EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Let’s review the New York Giants’ preseason-opening 13-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings as only we can, with our unique ‘Kudos & Wet Willies’ review of who played well and who did not.
Kudos to …
Malachi Fields — The rookie wide receiver had a 15-yard touchdown catch from a scrambling Jaxson Dart that perfectly illustrated the kind of weapon he can be. He worked for the quarterback and used his size, athleticism, and strong hands to haul in the touchdown pass. Fields finished with three
catches for 34 yards.
Braxton Berrios — I will just come out and say it. If Berrios gets through the preseason healthy, he is making the roster. Berrios was the first punt returner and was on the first kickoff return group with Deonte Banks. He had two 15-yard punt returns and caught a pass for 9 yards.
Darius Alexander — The second-year player was a better pass rusher than run defender as a rookie. Saturday, things looked the same. Alexander had a sack, a tackle for loss, and a quarterback hit.
Chauncey Golston — The versatile backup edge defender/defensive end had a tackle for loss and two quarterback hits in limited action.
Odell Beckham Jr. — Beckham had just two catches for 6 yards, but I am including him simply because seeing him playing in a Giants uniform in MetLife Stadium at this point was ool.
Isaiah Likely — The Giants’ new tight end has been forming a good relationship with Dart during training camp, and it showed up on Saturday. Likely had just two catches for 11 yards in brief action, but both were third-down grabs that created first downs.
Jack Kelly — The sixth-round pick was impressive. As he has been all summer. Kelly had a team-high five tackles. He was a big part of the reason Darius Alexander was able to get his sack.
Wet Willies to …
First-half run defense — The Giants’ run defense has been an issue for years. Harbaugh has made fixing it a MAJOR emphasis. The Giants were playing on Saturday without front seven starters D.J. Reader, Shelby Harris, Brian Burns, and Tremaine Edmunds.
With that in mind, it might be tempting to shrug off the fact that the Giants gave up 5.2 yards per carry in the first half (62 yards on 12 rushes), but we should not. There were 17- and 15-yard runs on Minnesota’s first offensive series.
All of that indicates that the defensive line depth is not good enough. GM Joe Schoen needs to be looking for upgrades, especially at the backup nose tackle spot, when teams trim their rosters from 90 to 53 players.
Brandon Allen — The third-string quarterback entered the game midway through the third quarter. He threw his first pass directly to Minnesota linebacker Jacob Roberts, giving Minnesota the ball at New York’s 27-yard line. The Vikings capitalized with a 1-yard touchdown pass from Carson Wentz to Myles Price.
Allen threw a second interception later, trying to fit a deep throw down the sideline to wide receiver Ryan Miller. The ball was intercepted by safety Jacob Thomas, a result you could see coming from the press box as soon as Allen let the ball go.
Allen might be a great guy. We know he is a favorite of Giants’ quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan. There has to e a better option out there somewhere for the Giants as their third quarterback.
Deonte Banks — With Paulson Adebo and Greg Newsome not playing, the 2023 first-round pick played the entire first half. Unfortunately, Banks did not carry the momentum of a good training camp into the game. He committed back-to-back penalties on second-quarter passes by J.J. McCarthy, a defensive holding and an illegal contact.
Other cornerback notes: Art Green had a pass interference penalty on third-and-goal from the 1-yard line. Korie Black had a pass interference penalty. Rookie Colton Hood had an illegal contact penalty and gave up a 42-yard completion from J.J. McCarthy to Myles Price.
Kwillies to …
Jaxson Dart — The second-year quarterback did some good things, some bad things, and had an unfortunate, unwanted visit to the medical tent for a concussion check.
Dart threw a beautiful 15-yard touchdown pass to Fields. That was an improvised scramble play with Dart moving to his left, the kind of unscripted play on which Dart excels.
Dart found his new favorite target, Isaiah Likely, for two first downs.
On the negative side, Dart took two sacks. The first one bothered me more than the big hit he took on the second one because it appeared to be his fault. He had an opportunity to throw the ball, chose not to, and ended up holding the ball and running himself into a sack. Dart led the league in sacks with the quarterback being at least partially responsible last season, and he needs to get better about not causing negative plays.
