The New York Giants lost again on Sunday. of course. That is nine straight and the Giants are 2-13. Let’s review in our unique ‘Kudos & Wet Willies’ style.
Kudos to …
Brian Burns — Burns continued the best season
of his career with two sacks on Sunday. One of those was a first-half strip/sack of J.J. McCarthy that led to the Giants’ only touchdown, a scoop and score by Tyler Nubin.
Tyler Nubin — The second-year safety was the Giants’ best offensive player on Sunday, with his 27-yard scoop and score of the Burns strip/sack. He also had a pass defensed.
Tyrone Tracy — The second-year running back got 31 yards on his first two carries of the game, then continued to grind against a tough Minnesota defense. He finished with 16 carries for 71 yards, 4.4 yards per carry.
Ben Sauls — The rookie placekicker knocked the opening kickoff out of bounds on his first NFL play. He rebounded by handling the MetLife Stadium winds to kick 27- and 39-yard field goals.
Bobby Okereke — It is dangerous to base an impression simply on the number of tackles made, but Okereke had 13 tackles and a pass defensed and seemed to play one of his better games of the season.
Wet Willies to …
Theo Johnson — Two first-half drops, one that turned into an interception that set up a Minnesota touchdown.
Pass blocking — Yes, the Giants had a makeshift line with Andrew Thomas and John Michael Schmitz going down with injuries, and Jon Runyan with his wife awaiting the birth of a child. Still, the pass blocking rarely gave Jaxson Dart a chance to stand in the pocket and figure out what he was looking at.
Aaron Stinnie — It isn’t easy to sit on the bench most of the year and then play in Week 16. But, Stinnie is a veteran offensive lineman and being ready when called upon is his job. Stinnie committed three penalties. Not good.
Jaxson Dart — This was truly the first game in which Dart looked like a rookie. He was overmatched by Minnesota defensive coordinator Brian Flores, and the Giants knew it. They used an exceptionally conservative game plan to try and nurse the quarterback through, and they nearly got a victory out of it.
It was clear that Dart wasn’t sure what he was seeing at times. He was also under duress due to the Vikings’ pass rush, or the makeshift Giants’ offensive line’s inability to stifle it.
Dexter Lawrence — Lawrence had two penalties, a defensive holding and a neutral zone infraction, on Minnesota’s game-winning drive. His only other contributions to the stat sheet were a tackle for loss, a QB hit and a pass defensed. To win games your best players have to come up big when it matters, just like Justin Jefferson did for the Vikings. Lawrence did not.
Giants’ receivers — Man, do they miss Malik Nabers. And, man, do they need more than just Nabers’ return next season. The pass blocking wasn’t good, obviously. It wasn’t helped by the receivers inability to get open or catch the ball.
The two drops by Johnson we already talked about. Veteran receiver Darius Slayton dropped a ball on the Giants’ final drive that would have been a gain of about 20 yards and given New York a first down in Minnesota territory. As a staff, we’re arguing about whether the floater down the middle to Wan’Dale Robinson was a drop. I say no because Dart hung him out to dry with a poor throw. Chris and Tony say yes. Either way, the work by the receivers left a lot to be desired.
Kwillies to …
Abdul Carter — Carter had a sack for a third straight game. He also added a tackle for loss and four quarterback hits. His neutral zone infraction that nullified a 96-yard pick six by Jevon Holland, though, was a crusher. I simply never understand how guys at the line of scrimmage can line up offside. Unforgivable.
