October 8, 2009

We’ve got Oakland this week at home. Though they don’t have a great record, from the standpoint of an offensive lineman this will be a tough game. They have a very good front four with Richard Seymour, Greg Ellis, Tommy Kelly and Gerard Warren, they’re all veterans with a ton of experience.

Those guys all line up and play hard and they have a good linebacking crew behind them. They’re fast, downhill running linebackers who aren’t afraid to fill a hole and aren’t afraid to hit. So as an offensive line it’s going to be an awesome game and an awesome challenge.

The Raiders have good players but they also play well together. Their schemes are designed well for them and it will be exciting for us to match up with such a good front seven.

I believe that in every NFL game, the battle is won or lost between the offensive and defensive lines.

Some of the guys are nicked up a bit, but you just have to fight through it. There’s nothing you can do about it, this is the NFL and everyone has bumps and bruises and whatever. But being an NFL player, you are a Sunday Warrior, you do whatever it is that you have to do to be out there on the field and fight through it. When you win the football game, it makes it all worth it.

It was great to win three games on the road. It’s a great accomplishment but that’s in the past. We’re moving forward with our season and we’re excited to be back at home playing at Giants Stadium. No planes, no trains, no busses this week. To be able to play in our own environment with our home crowd, to have that intensity, will be a great boost for us.

When we play at home we always talk about getting off to a fast start to get the crowd into it. That really makes it a tough place for our opponent to play. We’re just fired up to have the home crowd rally behind us, and we’re ready to do whatever we need to do to come out with another win.

Dave Diehl is an offensive lineman for the New York Giants. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.davediehl66.com. Find him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/davediehl66.