The New York Giants defeated the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night by a score of 25-23 as they improved to 3-0 in the preseason.
Here are three takeaways from their third exhibition game:
Solid quarterback play
Eli Manning made some really nice throws and even ran out as the lead blocker on a Wayne Gallman run. Unfortunately, Cody Latimer dropped two passes including a sure touchdown that would’ve capped off Manning’s lone 15-play drive of the game. Instead the Giants settled for an Aldricks Rosas 41-yard field goal.
Manning finished 4-of-8 for 41 yards on the night with two drops from Latimer.
Enter Daniel Jones: The rookie looked like a savvy veteran when he hit a long completion over the top to Brittan Golden, where he looked off the safety before making the impressive throw. He then dropped a dime to fellow draft pick Darius Slayton on a 27-yard pass play that had the receiver fall out of bounds just inches short of the goal line.
This play was just one of many examples, where Jones made a big time throw under duress in this game. The rookie was able to keep his composure on numerous plays with the pocket collapsing.
In his third outing, Jones went 9-for-11 for 141 yards and showcased excellent ball placement. He is now 25-for-30 for 371 yards and two touchdown, with an 83.3 completion % on 12.4 yards per throw in the preseason.
Alex Tanney came on to play the third quarter and was 2-for-6 for 25 yards. Last year’s fourth-rounder Kyle Lauletta had another promising night as he went 4-of-7 (one drop) for 79 yards and dropped a nice ball into Brittan Golden inside the five.
Receiver competition heating up
Despite losing Odell Beckham Jr. (traded to Cleveland), Corey Coleman (torn ACL) and Golden Tate (four game-suspension), the Giants have a deep and talented receiver group on their roster.
This was on full display last night as young guys continued to step up and make big catches. As previously mentioned, sixth-rounder Darius Slayton hauled in a 27-yard grab just short of the goal line on a Daniel Jones ball that was perfectly placed.
Reggie White Jr. also had a nice 36-yard reception later in this game and Russell Shepard caught two passes for 31 yards. This trio is fighting for the final three receiver spots with Tate suspended for the first month, but it was journeyman Brittan Golden, who stole the show.
Golden made two sparkling catches for 59 yards off passes from Daniel Jones that were placed only where the receiver could make a play on them, and he did just that. He would cap off his night by scoring the go-ahead touchdown on a 63-yard punt return for a touchdown.
Golden came into Thursday’s game on the roster bubble, but without a doubt helped build up his case for Big Blue to keep him around. Despite fumbling a return following his score, the receiver definitely made the wideout competition that much more interesting with his stellar performance.
Shaky defensive play
This unit was able to create pressure on the first drive as Dexter Lawrence batted down a pass on second down. Next play, Tae Davis blasted Andy Dalton, who somehow got a pass off as Corey Ballentine knocked it away from the receiver incomplete. The defense collected five sacks on the night, which is a positive sign as they are trending in the right direction in this category.
Safety Jabrill Peppers surrendered a long touchdown in the second quarter on a wheel route to tight end C.J. Uzomah. This miscue appeared to be a miscommunication between Corey Ballentine and Peppers as Ballentine was lined up on the player, who Jabrill had to come running to the outside for. It looked as though the correct call would’ve been to switch assignments, but alas, this did not happen.
While this play is one that can be cleaned up in the film room, the Giants continue to demonstrate their inability to cover tight ends. This aspect of their defense is a weakness that has killed them since 2016.
The Giants pass defense overall was shaky once again giving up 338 yards and three-touchdowns in the air. The unit as a whole missed several tackles in this game, most notably linebacker Nate Stupar, who whiffed in open space on numerous plays.
On a brighter note, Oshane Ximines picked up two more sacks tonight, as he continues to fight his way into the outside linebacker rotation. The rookie also looked stable against the run finishing with three total tackles.
Other notes
The line as a whole was overall pretty solid last night, despite rough games from both Nate Solder and Will Hernandez. Solder was beat bad on a play, where his man almost killed Daniel Jones.
Hernandez struggled in the first half going up against All-Pro defensive tackle Geno Atkins. Hernandez committed three penalties, as Atkins gave him fits on a regular basis.
In an already crowded linebacker room, Nate Stupar did not help himself missing several open-field tackles on the defensive side of the ball.
