Thanksgiving this year was truly something to be thankful for. Over the past two years, I've come a long way -- I've grown as a Christian, as a man, and more so as a human being with an understanding of life. I'm so blessed for my journey. Yes, it's been hard, and, yes, I probably wouldn't want to do it again, but I am very thankful for the journey because it has taught me so much about myself, about what I can do in life, and about what I can accomplish.
I'm very thankful for so many people as I've been through this journey -- starting with my family and with the Giants organization, from the front office, to the training staff, to the coaches, and to the equipment guys. So many have been there through the entire process who have motivated and encouraged me. I'm truly blessed to be playing this game that I love again.
I'd say that I'm just in a good state of mind right now. Thanksgiving dinner was great, I had leftovers all week. I sent a plate home to my main man Leigh Weiss, one of the team doctors that helps me out a lot. I also took care of my teammates, the rookies Charles James and Jr. Martell. I gave them a few plates since they weren't able to have their families in town -- you know, it's just a time to be thankful for all of your blessings and it's about giving.
Going into the Washington game, I was a little down at first for the simple fact that we lost to the Cowboys at home. It was a big divisional rivalry and a game that we needed to win, but we still have hope and a chance. After the game, the main thing that we needed to do was to get our mind back on winning and back to our ways. I was a little nervous playing Washington since I haven't played them in two years and more so for the simple fact that their offense has changed. They have new personnel, a new quarterback, and just a new offense as far as a read option. I didn't know how I would fare against it because it's something you have to prepare for. So I made sure that I watched a lot of film and made sure I was prepared. I was able to see their concepts and routes, and our coach did a great job of preparing us for the week. We went out there and it didn't start as we had expected; we were down 14-0 and it kind of had us off-balance, but we fought and finally got back in it. We finished the game strong the way the Giants can.
After the game, I was excited because I knew it was time -- it was time to go back to Cali. After six years in the league, I finally get to have a game in my home state where all of my friends and family can come -- and I don't have to fly my family all the way out here to watch me play.
So, it's been a long week coming. Last night, I was sitting here watching Thursday night football excited I have over 60 people coming to the San Diego game -- family, friends, coaches, doctors, and trainers. Everyone's coming to support me. My daughter's going to be there and she's truly excited to be able to go on the football field again. She told me, "Dad, just promise me one thing, just make sure you do not get hurt." So, I've definitely got to uphold that for her. More than anything, with all of the turmoil that I've been through the last two years, it's just a perfect way to be able to play in front of my family and friends. I hope everyone's there!
Arizona was the last place that I had anything close to a west coast game. It was the last game my grandma was able to see me play, and I got an interception against Kurt Warner. So I hope that I will be able to have a great game and be able to make some plays to help our team win and to make some plays in front of my family. As a team, we just want to keep building and getting better, giving ourselves a chance to finish this year on a high-note. Potentially finish at 9-7, and see what happens. Hopefully, we can get into this dance and make some noise.
As for the overall season, life is not fair -- I'm a prime example of that. You know, I've been a guy that has overcome some bad luck, if you want to say, but it's not about what happens to you, it's about how you adjust and how you react to the adversity. And our season has been that. We started 0-6, got on the four game run, and lost a pivotal game to a divisional-rival, the Cowboys. But even at that, life isn't over (I laugh). You know we still have a chance as a team. Coach Coughlin and our leaders have done a great job at motivating us, keeping us locked in, and finishing the season strong, because you never know what can happen. It starts this upcoming week, so I'm going to stick to the program, keep preparing, and keep doing everything that I've been doing the last couple of weeks because it's been working for all of us. I will keep giving Antrel [Rolle] his tea the night before meetings because he's never had it in his life and we've been 4-1 since I've been giving it to him. You've got to stick to the script and ride this thing out. In the end, you know something good will come out of it. That will be a team with a winning record, and hopefully it will be the Giants getting into the wild card game and making another run.