N.Y. Giants: Time For Offensive Triumvirate To Prove Their Worth

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Manning  ~  Barkley  ~  Beckham

New York Football Giants: Onus on Big Three to be Elite.

Olivier Vernon will miss his fourth game due to a high ankle sprain.  It's one of the more diabolical  injuries in all of sports because it lingers and lingers, and can potentially compromise whole seasons.  Meanwhile, Eli Apple - who went from being a locker room cancer last season to returning this season as one of the Giants most important secondary pieces - will miss another week with a groin issue.

Someone once said you are what your record says you are.  But despite injuries, the Giants have thus far played representative defense.  Without their top pass rusher, the Giants are still somehow limiting opponents to an average of 20.6 points per game.  Then again, we're talking about the Jaguars, Cowboys, and Texans.  

However, starting Sunday against the Saints, the Giants have Drew Brees, Cam Newton, Carson Wentz, and Matt Ryan to look forward to.  In other words, this Giants defense is about to face a higher level of opponent.  Problem is they have recorded just four sacks through three games.  That in turn makes Olivier Vernon's unavailability an area of much greater concern.

Even more dire than that, is the increasingly questionable availability of Snacks Harrison.  I said it last week: if the Giants lose him, they're done.

That said, it's time this offense takes some pressure off the defense.  If there is one game in which they need to finally break the thirty-point threshold, this is it.  After three weeks of mixed results, and losing tight end Evan Engram this week to yet another injury, it's now incumbent upon the Giants featured triumvirate of talent to get in sync and place the responsibility of securing victory squarely on their backs.

Eli Manning is coming off his best game of the season, Odell Beckham has 100-yard games against the Jaguars and Texans, and Saquon Barkely has more than proven himself a legitimate duel threat with 216 yards rushing, and 137 yards receiving.

It just so happens the Saints give up points in bunches.  Last week, the Giants new offensive line combination provided Eli just enough time, and Saquon Barkley just enough daylight in order to make play-action a viable weapon again.  Therefore, Eli and Odell need to finally start connecting for touchdowns against a pedestrian Saints secondary.

Last week, Eli completed 25 (86%) of 29 attempts for 297 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

FYI:

The Giants faced the eventual Super Bowl champion Eagles last season in Week Three, in which they suffer a 27-24 loss.  Eli Manning completes 35 (74%) of 47 passes for 366 yards and three touchdowns.  However, he winds up throwing two INTs.  Do you think rushing 17 times for a mere 49-yards had anything to do with that?

Enter Saquon Barkley ...

N.Y. Giants: Blue Monday

From the desk of: DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Game One

Jaguars   20

Giants     15

FINAL

New York Football Giants: Offense Fails to Seize a Winnable Day.

With the Giants playing minus the services of Olivier Vernon - decidedly their best defensive player - they hold Jacksonville to 13 offensive points.

Leonard Fournette was having his way early, rushing nine times for 41-yards.  But a cranky hamstring takes him out of action.  T.J. Yeldon then steps in with 51 yards on 14 carries.  Meanwhile, Blake Bortles only passes for (18/33) 176 yards, an INT, and a touchdown, but scrambles twice for 42 yards.  All told the Jaguars gained 137 yards on the ground.

But then, the Jaguars aren't exactly known for offense.

On the other side of the ball, the Giants create good scoring opportunities against a stout Jacksonville defense.  But three times they settle for field goals.  In the first-half, Eli Manning overthrows a wide open Odell Beckham in the end zone.  In the second-half Manning has a pass batted at the line of scrimmage which is intercepted and returned for six points.  Evan Engram even drops what could have been a big play.

Special teams seals the loss, fumbling a punt that negates the Giants final possession of the game.

Odell Beckham registers 11 catches for 111 yards while rookie Saquon Barkley rushes 18 times for 106 yards and a touchdown.  Yet, the Giants lose by five.

Truth be told, Eli Manning's accuracy decreased as the afternoon wore on.  For the game, Eli was 23 of 37 (62%) for 224 yards, with no touchdowns and a pick-six.  In the first-half Eli is 13 of 17 (76%) (regardless of negating penalties committed by Ereck Flowers or other plays that went for minimal gain).  In the second-half, Eli only completes roughly 50% of his passes.

The offensive line allows two sacks, both within the final two minutes of the first half.  Jacksonville hits Eli six other times.  Now playing right guard, Ereck Flowers couldn't have gotten off to a worse start, wasting little time committing two inane penalties on the Giants very first two plays from scrimmage.

But the running game paints a somewhat different picture of Flowers' performance.  The Giants run 23 times for 114 net yards.  Saquon Barkely accounts for 18 rushes and 106 yards (5.9 avg).  Take away Barkley's touchdown romp, he rushes 17 times for 38 yards (2.2 avg).

Here's the rub ...

Together, Jonathan Stewart and Saquon Barkley rush 20 times.  Five plays go left side for +16 yards; five plays up the middle go for +6 yards; but nine plays go right side towards Ereck Flowers for +24 yards.  Now add Saquon Barkley's 68-yard touchdown that started middle, but then bounced right around Flowers.

Too bad this will be lost in the narrative of the Giants first regular season loss.

N.Y. Giants: Ben McAdoo Breaks Out The Pom-Poms

from the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Giants Are Double-Digit Underdogs At Home

Oh, The Shame!

SUNDAY

Kansas City Chiefs

vs.

New York Giants

New York Giants: Coach McAdoo Says Come Out To Met Life Stadium To Watch A Great Show; We Plan On Playing Great Football On Sunday And Getting A Win.

The man sounds delusional, but I'll play along and talk strategy for the hell of it.

The New England Patriots defense actually leads the NFL in most yards allowed per game.  However, you can chalk much of that on a poor start during their first four games of the season.  Since then, they've clamped down, limiting their opposition to just 13 ppg over their last five games.

Second on the list are the Giants, having allowed an average of 400.3 yards per game.  No wonder there.  Suspensions in the secondary, injuries to the defensive line and linebackers, and overall poor play speak for themselves.

Fourth on the list are the Indianapolis Colts.  They're just terrible.

Surprisingly sandwiched in at number three on the list are the Kansas City Chiefs.  They've allowed an average of 390.3 yards per game, and like the Giants, have surrendered an average of 6.0 yards per play!  I know losing safety Eric Berry hurt them.  But I'm nevertheless surprised that K.C. is the only division leader (of eight) to have surrendered more than 200 points so far.

Once upon a time, that would have been welcome news for the old smash mouth Giants of yore.

But without Weston Richburg and Justin Pugh, the offensive line isn't likely to be creating much daylight.  D.J. Fluker is also dealing with a barking knee and has only engaged in limited practice.  Whatever Orleans Darkwa gains will be won through his own individual efforts.

Shane Vereen has become a non-entity. And the back-up receivers are still not up to snuff, at which point, it becomes easier for the Chiefs to eliminate either tight end Evan Engram or Rhett Ellison.  That being said, don't count on much pass protection for Eli Manning.  I counted on numerous occasions how the 49ers were on Eli Manning in three seconds flat. 

But you know what they say about any given Sunday.  If the Giants can put together a respectable offensive effort, the Chiefs defense just might be willing to oblige.

Giants fans can only hope Coach McAdoo's ploy to view last week's game film in front of the whole team works out.  Although that seemed directed at the defensive side of the ball, perhaps most players will indeed have become embarrassed enough into putting forth better performances this week.

This big money defense still has big problems. 

Landon Collins, DRC, Eli Apple, and Janoris Jenkins, all need to redeem themselves, and do a little bit of growing up as well.  Linebacker B.J. Goodson is out this week, and upon returning from his injury Jonathan Casillas still appeared a step behind the competition last week.  Snacks Harrison is dealing with a bum ankle, while JPP is still being hampered by a disagreeable knee.  At least Olivier Vernon has played well since returning from injury, but he can't stop Alex Smith and tight end Travis Keice by himself.

Who is going to step up?

John Mara and Robert Tisch have spoken.  The Giants will finish out the season with Ben McAdoo as head coach, and Jerry Reese as general manager.

I agree with them.  Don't change a thing. 

As if life on the hot seat wasn't making McAdoo sweat already, he will most certainly be judged all game against Kansas City head coach Andy Reid.  Be sure ownership will be watching this particular match-up very closely.

Let McAdoo and Reese own this (and increase our odds for securing a high draft pick).  Besides, adversity reveals character.  We are beginning to learn which players are committed to playing the game, and which chose to comport themselves in a professional manner, versus those more willing to just go through the motions, and focusing on self-serving interests.

N.Y. Giants: Epic Fail

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

HOUSE OF HORROR

FINAL

Rams    51

Giants   17

New York Giants: The Defense Rests ...

According to every outlet 😞😞😞 Sunday's loss to the Rams was the third worst defeat in New York Giants history.  They allowed the most points at home since (1964) before I was born.  And it's the first time they've started a season with a 1-7 record since 1980 - under head coach Ray Perkins, which by the way I remember very well.

In fact, I started rooting for the Giants when Rams head coach Sean McVay's grandfather, John, still coached the New York Giants in the mid 1970s.

As a life long Giants fan, I feel what John McVay's grandson and the Los Angeles Rams did to them Sunday at Met Life was flat out embarrassing.  What a gutless performance.

It's not like the Rams possessed the ball for forty-five minutes.  Both teams shared the ball fairly equally.  Yet, the Rams outscored the Giants by 34 points on their way to a 51-17 rout.

No one expected anything good coming out of Sunday's game considering suspensions to DRC and Janoris Jenkins, and injuries sidelining linebackers B.J. Goodson, Jonathan Casillas, and defensive end Olivier Vernon.

The effort was nevertheless a fail on all fronts.  Jared Goff threw for 311 yards and four touchdowns.  Some of that can be attributed to the Giants disciplinary situation in their secondary.  But allowing the Rams to score on 3rd and 33, off bubble screen, was inexcusable. 

Moreover, the Giants generated no sacks, and only touched Goff twice all game.

Throw in 162 yards and two touchdowns allowed on the ground.

Fail.

The Giants headed into the tunnel trailing 27-10 at half-time.  Whatever adjustments were made didn't work, because the Giants gave up another 21 points in the third quarter.

When McAdoo was asked about halftime adjustments, the Giants head coach has no answer.

Fail.

After the game, Coach McAdoo says he'll consider benching Eli Manning for sake of gaining a glimpse into the future potential of back-up Davis Webb.

Head coaching ...

Fail.

Jerry Reese ...

Epic fail.

N.Y. Giants: Rushing to Conclusions

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Offensive Line Inability to Create Daylight

Keeping Big Blue Fans Brooding in the Dark

New York Giants Football: After Three Weeks, Season Already Seems All But Lost.

It took three games, but the Giants finally broke the century mark in rushing.  They ran the ball 17 times for 49 yards during Sunday's 24-27 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, finally pushing them over the 100 yard mark in rushing for the season.

Through the first three games, the Giants backfield of Darkwa, Perkins, and Vereen, have rushed a total of 43 times for 134 yards.  That averages out to 14 attempts for 44.6 yards per game/ 3.1 yards per rush.

That's not complimentary football, folks, as Coach McAdoo likes to say.

Sure ... Eli threw three TD passes in the fourth quarter against the Eagles.  And on the one hand, Eli Manning and Odell Beckham proved that when they're in sync, they're among the most feared threats in football.  That being said, the Giants most gifted offensive player and lone scoring threat is at the same time the team's main source of controversy and fan irritation.

Eli clearly made adjustments heading into this game and got his throws off (more or less) within two seconds or less.  With regards to Coach McAdoo's version of the West Coast offense, that's the way it's supposed to be.  And in a micro sense, it worked.  Pressure on the offensive line was reduced.   They allowed no sacks and only four other QB hits.

But I ask, what good is this quick strike capability when their inability to run the ball and control the clock is continually putting Coach Spagnuolo's defense on the field for an average of 34:31 minutes a game?  Said another way, the Giants opposition is possessing the ball for ten more minutes per game.

More defensive field time equals more wear and tear.  In Week One, Dallas' Ezekiel Elliott rushed 24 times for 104 yards.  Detroit rushed 29 times for 115 yards.  Meanwhile, the Eagles oppressed the Giants defense with 39 rushes for 193 yards.  Said another way, they've already allowed a grand total of 437 yards on the ground, an average of 145 yards allowed per game.

With more wear and tear, injuries at some point could become problematic.  Janoris Jenkins, J.T. Thomas, and B.J. Goodson all had issues heading into Week Three.  Meanwhile, Olivier Vernon leaving Sunday's game with an ankle injury perhaps is not coincidental.

I derive no joy by saying the Giants regular season, and any aspirations of making the playoffs already seem like dust in the wind.

N.Y. Giants: New Big Blue Defense Faces First Real Test

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

2016

HOME OPENER

New Orleans Saints

vs.

New York Giants

FROM

The Swamps of East Rutherford

New York Football Giants: The Spotlight Will Be Shining Brightly on Jerry Reese's Expensive Defensive Pieces as Drew Brees and the Saints Come Marching In for Big Blue's Home Opener.

Despite Big Blue limiting Dallas to 19 points, possessing the ball for a mere 23:17 on offense against the New Orleans Saints simply will not do.  That's exactly how long the Giants held the ball last Sunday against the Cowboys, who ran 21 more offensive plays.

Minus Tony Romo, Dallas' major shortcomings occurred in the red zone with backup quarterback Dak Prescott taking snaps.  Questionable football acumen on the part of a certain Cowboys receiver on the game's final play is another reason to ponder Big Blue's week one victory.

Now the Saints come marching in to MetLife Stadium.

If you recall (or chose not to) it was the Saints edging out the Giants last season on a late field goal for a head-shaking 52-49 victory in New Orleans.  Drew Brees threw for (39 of 50) 505 yards and seven touchdowns.  All the while, the Saints still incorporated more running plays than the Giants.

That's absurd!

Giving the ball to Drew Brees for nearly 37:00 minutes is clearly begging for trouble.  Therefore, part and parcel to defending against Brees is keeping him on the sidelines.  That means employing yet another balanced offensive attack.

The strength of the Giants offense is obviously Eli connecting with OBJ and Cruz.  But they need to run ball just as they did in the fourth quarter against Dallas ... with power ... in order to exert a greater measure of control over the clock.

Even more absurd regarding last year's loss to the Saints, was the Giants managing no sacks, and registering an inconsequential three quarterback hits.

In 2015 the Giants defense allowed 400+points for a second straight season prompting beleaguered general manager Jerry Reese into spending huge sums of money during the off-season on available free agents.

The Giants require efficiency on both sides of the ball in order to get this done.  But all eyes, particularly those of Jerry Reese, owner John Mara, and every fan in attendance Sunday, will be on the defense.

After a tune-up against Dallas, this revamped unit will undergo its first real test of the 2016 season.   They must somehow disrupt Drew Brees yet still be very mindful of a very effective New Orleans running game.

Devon Kennard still leads a suspect group of linebackers.  Coach Spags need to be able to rely on at least two of them in order to maximize his blitz packages, otherwise they'll lack teeth.  Drew Brees will no doubt try crossing up Landon Collins and Craig Dahl, but free agent Janoris Jenkins and Dominique Rogers Cromartie give the Giants a very strong tandem at corner back.  That in turn, could and should help the boys up front get to the quarterback.

There was no mistaking Jerry Reese's true off-season priority lay in the front four.  The re-signed Jason Pierre-Paul, along with new free agent line mates Olivier Vernon and Damon Harrison, and even the returning Cullen Jenkins (cut by Washington), must now all live up to their half of the deal,

... or the general manager gets it.