The Washington Commanders (4-6) play host to their long-time rivals, the New York Giants (2-8), at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland this Sunday afternoon.
Here are five storylines we are following ahead of the Week 11 game.
Giants in free fall
The Giants have lost three straight since beating the Commanders, 14-7, in Week 7 at MetLife Stadium. They have gotten progressively worse with each loss.
They are last in the league in points and yards and the defense is right on the offense’s heels, surrendering 89 points over the last two games.
The Giants will be going with Tommy DeVito at quarterback again this week and are hoping he’s improving with age. He better. The Giants are averaging just 68.7 yards passing per game over the last three weeks.
The frustration level is at a boil
Last week in Dallas, head coach Brian Daboll had several ‘animated’ discussions along the sidelines, most notably with defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
Although both men downplayed the exchange, the optics were not encouraging as onlookers saw this as an organization possibly coming apart at the seams.
If the Giants’ defense puts in another sieve-like performance this week, look out. It won’t be pretty.
Loyalty means nothing
Pro Bowl running back Saquon Barkley is another player who could be playing his last games for Big Blue.
The Giants are currently relying on Barkley to prop up their sagging offense and he’s keeping a brave face about it. After a contentious offseason in which his contract demands fell short, Barkley is under no illusions about his future with the Giants.
“Loyalty means nothing,” Barkley told reporters this week. “Loyalty, that doesn’t mean anything. No matter how loyal, no matter how committed you are, it’s a business at the end of the day. That’s something that I’ve learned.”
The injuries just keep on-a comin'
The Giants have been one of the most-injured teams in the NFL over the past decade and they’ve been one of the worst-performing teams in the league as a result.
They are down to their third-string ’emergency’ quarterback in DeVito and are banged up all over the roster.
This week, they had 17 players on the injury report. 13 of those players are starters.
Although most of the listed will likely dress versus Washington (sans Evan Neal and Adoree’ Jackson), bettors are feeling more and more comfortable laying that 9.5-point spread.
Another December to forget is on it's way
There are very few things Giants co-owner John Mara despises more than his team playing meaningless football in December.
The 2-8 Giants have four home games remaining: New England, Green Bay, Los Angeles Rams, and Philadelphia.
The way things are trending, they likely won’t be favored to win any of their remaining seven games and could end up with the worst record in team history.
Don’t expect the fans to come out in droves to North Jersey in the late November/December winter to witness this tire fire. It won’t prove nearly enough warmth.
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