The Washington Commanders have a pivotal matchup on Thursday Night Football in Week 10.
The team is hitting the road to take on the division-leading New York Giants. The Giants enter the contest with a 5-2-1 record, while the Commanders are 2-5-1. The Giants as the reason for the extra one in the Commanders' record, as these teams played to a tie last month.
Now, let's dive in and find out what the Commanders need to do to make sure they come away with a win this time.
Get creative on offense
Entering Week 10, only four teams are allowing fewer yards per game than the Giants. This defense is stout, and it may take some creativity for the Commanders to get chunk plays.
If you're going to get this Giants' defense, you're going to have to do it on the ground. The Giants' secondary
only allows 177.8 passing yards per game, so the Commanders will have to scheme some things up. Running more play action with Jayden Daniels and incorporating some designed runs would be nice. The Commanders' offense gets too predictable at times, and it’ll be hard to beat the Giants like that.
Make J.J. McCarthy uncomfortable
J.J. McCarthy is a quarterback who will occasionally make some mistakes. The Commanders need to get pressure on the young quarterback and make him antsy in the pocket. The Giants have been having success when following the game script and when McCarthy manages the game.
If the Commanders can get consistent pressure, McCarthy will likely mistakes, considering this will be his first home start with the Giants. Don't let the young quarterback get into a rhythm. McCarthy is also dealing with a hip injury, so he may be more jumpy than usual.
Load up to stop the ground game
As mentioned above, McCarthy is a young, inconsistent passer who's making his first home start with the Giants. It thus won't be surprising if the Giants try to get the ground game established early to take some pressure off.
The Giants don't have an outstanding ground game, as they've only had a running back go over 100 yards once this season. However, they rotate in Cam Skattebo and Devin Singletary, and McCarthy isn't afraid to run either. If the Commanders can lock down the run game, I feel good about making McCarthy throw a ton.
Somebody step up for Jayden Daniels
Here's a stat for you: the Commanders have yet to have a 100-yard receiver in a game this year. That was not the expectation after bringing in Chig Okonkwo, Stefon Diggs, and others, but here we are.
Last week, Van Jefferson was the leading receiver with 58 yards. That's just not going to be a winning formula. Somebody, preferably Diggs, needs to step up and make plays for Daniels. Being without Terry McLaurin has been tough, but it shouldn't be this bad.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: 4 keys to a Commanders' victory over Giants in Week 10
