The New York Giants defeated the Houston Texans, 24-16, at MetLife Stadium on Sunday afternoon to lift their record to 7-2 on the season.
Here are some winners. losers and in-betweens from the game.
Winners
Saquon Barkley: Barkley came into the game with a mouth-watering matchup in front of him and he took full advantage by racking up 152 yards on the ground and re-taking the NFL rushing lead over Tennessee’s Derrick Henry, 931-923. His ‘comeback’ is more than complete right now.
Dexter Lawrence: Lawrence continued his dominance in the middle of the defensive line with five QB hits, including a sack, and a batted pass. He had some help from lineman Leonard Williams (nine total tackles, forced fumble) but it’s clear who’s the boss out there.
Darius Slayton: Back from the dead thanks to many injuries and misadventures to the others in the wide receiver room, Slayton has become Daniel Jones’ top target with three receptions for 95 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown.
Kadarius Toney: Yes, we know he’s not on the Giants any longer, but Toney had himself quite a day for this new team, the Kansas City Chiefs. The former first-round pick with four catches for 57 yards and a touchdown along with two rushes for 33 yards.
Others: Daniel Jones, Leonard Williams, Andrew Thomas, Adoree’ Jackson
Losers
Kenny Golladay: The embattled wide receiver’s return from injury was an ugly one. He couldn’t reel in his first target and then let the second one go through his arms. Both plays hurt the Giants’ chances on two separate drives. As far as we saw, he wasn’t on the field in the second half.
Kayvon Thibodeaux: Continues to be held and it’s becoming frustrating. The rookie isn’t getting many calls and it has hindered his effectiveness. He did have four combined tackles in the game but, again, no sacks or QB hits.
Tae Crowder: Took a backseat to rookie Micah McFadden and only wound up with one assisted tackle and — we have to check the film on this — several key misses. His Giants future could be in jeopardy.
Others: Justin Ellis
Mixed reviews
Dane Belton: The rookie safety was asked to step into Xavier McKinney’s shoes and had a bit of a rough day with a few missed tackles. Sure, he had a pick in the end zone in the fourth quarter but allowed a TD the previous play which was negated by a holding penalty on Texans rookie Kenyan Green. Not a good game all around for him. He’ll get there.
Jamie Gillan: Had several poor punts on the day and just didn’t seem like himself. He’s still a good punter but just had an off game. His late punt inside the 10 saved him from the “losers” list.
Others: Jon Feliciano, Joshua Ezeudu
