The New York Giants fell to the New York Jets, 13-10, in overtime on Sunday afternoon in MetLife Stadium.
This one was a stinger for Giants fans as it looked like a surefire win until the last few seconds of regulation. It does not help having half of your starting offense on the field for most of the game due to all of the injuries but this was one the Giants should have probably came away with a win.
Here’s a quick breakdown of what we saw during the game and how we graded the Giants in this loss.
Offense: D-
It feels like a broken record every week describing this offense.
Negative nine passing yards. Yes, that is right, negative nine passing yards is what the Giants finished with on the day. While they attempted only 14 passes on 18 dropbacks, -9 yards is far less than ideal. The problems start at the offensive line (but are not exclusive to the unit). Getting hit on eight out of 18 dropbacks and getting sacked on four of them is simply inexcusable.
However, the offensive line is not all to blame for the bad quarterback play. Both Tyrod Taylor and Tommy DeVito seemed to refuse to throw the ball down the field and did not go through their progressions all game. The receivers did not help much at all either as little to no separation was created on a per route basis.
The one positive on the day was the Giants were somewhat effective running the ball. The team totaled 203 yards on the ground as the offense was completely one dimensional in the second half. The 203 yards is a good mark but when you put it into perspective, these were the only positive offensive yards of the day (and the Giants only averaged 3.9 yards per attempt). This was still a lackluster performance.
Saquon Barkley did his best as he ripped off multiple 10-plus yard runs including one 34-yard scamper that set up Big Blue’s only touchdown. However, when the defense knows what is coming it does not make it hard to stop.
Overall, this offense has been in shambles all season and this game was the icing on the cake to show the world how inept the Giants are on the offensive side of the football. Going 2-19 on third downs and not scoring a touchdown when the defense gifted the team with an opening drive in the red zone is horrid. Something needs to change but until Daniel Jones and the offensive line gets healthy it looks unlikely to change anytime soon.
Defense: B+
The Giants defense and Kayvon Thibodeaux stole the show on Sunday afternoon.
Thibodeaux finished the game with three sacks, one forced fumble, and three tackles for loss. The team finished the day with four sacks and two fumble recoveries as it did all it could to help the offense.
Overall, it was a strong showing from the Giants’ defense holding the Jets to a mere 2-15 on third downs and stopping them on their sole fourth down attempt. However, the team needed a little bit more out of this defense and it could not come up clutch when necessary.
For starters, allowing Zach Wilson to drive 58 yards down the field in 23 seconds with no timeouts to send the game into overtime is unacceptable. Had the defense stopped Wilson and the Jets here the game would have been over. On the very next drive, the defense once again faltered allowing a game-winning field goal in overtime.
Outside of the last two drives, the defense played nearly perfect aside for a 50-yard catch and run from Breece Hall, who made multiple Giants’ defenders miss in a poor display of tackling. If the Giants were able to stop big plays in this game they easily come away with the win but it is unfair to ask the defense to do everything.
Special Teams: D-
Poor special teams play has been a staple of the Giants this season but this time it lost the game for New York.
Graham Gano missed two field goals but none bigger than his 35-yard attempt with 28 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. The weather was less than ideal but Gano needed to make both of his attempts, especially the one at the end of regulation to ice the game. The coaching staff trusted him twice instead of going for it on fourth and short and he failed both times.
Outside of Gano, the special teams unit played all right as Gunner Olszewski seemed like a big upgrade returning punts (six returns for 56 yards). Jamie Gillan was not great punting on the day but he was not terrible, averaging 42.2 yards per punt with five out of 13 landing inside the 20. He did shank a pair.
Coaching: D+
Brian Daboll had a tough challenge in this one as he was without his starting quarterback and offensive tackles going into the game and lost his backup quarterback and tight end during the game.
Nevertheless, Daboll still had his troops ready to compete and play for the win. Unfortunately, in what was one of the ugliest games of the year, the Giants fell just short. Daboll’s in-game management could have been better as the two decisions to go for field goals backfired and going for it on fourth down with Barkley at the end of the game seems like the best call in hindsight. Daboll also failed to convert on his one challenge attempt.
On the offensive side of the football, Mike Kafka was dealt the short end of the stick. It seemed like the team had no faith in Tommy DeVito passing the football leaving this offense entirely one dimensional. However, Kafka needs to have contingency plans and plays drawn up that put the rookie in places to succeed throwing the football and that did not seem to be the case with the play art. Despite this, Kafka did draw up some nice deigned run plays and the read option with DeVito did result in the only touchdown for the blue side of East Rutherford.
On the other side of the ball, Wink Martindale did what he was hired to do. The Giants pressured Wilson all day and they constantly had players in the backfield forcing the quarterback to run for his life. The only thing one could ask is for a better defensive formation in the last 20 seconds of the game.
