The New York Giants are coming off a tough 31-26 loss to the Detroit Lions last week and have now dropped four straight games.
Big Blue returns home on Monday night to face the NFC East division-leading Dallas Cowboys, who they were embarrassed by, 35-17, in Week 1.
Let’s look at five reasons why the Giants can back in the win column this week for the first time in over a month.
Pat Shurmur
Last week, the Giants played a tight game with the Lions and should have been in position to tie in the final minute and a half. Instead, Pat Shurmur questionably chose to go for two points in the third quarter in response to an Aldrick Rosas missed extra point in the first half. Shurmur also called a roll out play with Daniel Jones, which cut the field in half resulting in an incomplete pass and failed conversion.
Shurmur was essentially chasing points when he could have kicked the extra point to cut the deficit to 24-20 with another full quarter to play. This decision came back to bite Shurmur later as his team made it down to the red zone in the fourth quarter trailing 31-19. At this point, the Giants could not kick the field goal on fourth and goal, down two possessions and were unable to convert on fourth down. If Shurmur had chose to kick the extra point on the team’s previous score, they could have kicked the field goal to cut the deficit to eight. This would have given the Giants an opportunity to tie the game by going for two following their final touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
It is the head coach’s job to be aware of these details that give his team and rookie quarterback the best opportunity to win the game. By chasing points early on, Shurmur let the game get squandered out of reach after the defense gave up an additional touchdown.
If the Giants are going to snap their losing streak against their division rival, they are going to need Shurmur’s in-game management to improve this week. And you can bet he’s not going to make that same mistake again, so the Cowboys won’t have that added advantage in Week 9.
James Bettcher
James Bettcher’s defense has been dreadful this season ranking 28th in total defense surrendering 386 yards of total offense per week. The secondary has also been a nightmare allowing 264.4 yards in the air each game. The defensive backfield was abysmal yet again last Sunday as they allowed 316 passing yards and three receiving touchdowns. It will be another tough match up for Bettcher’s unit on Monday night as they go up against the number one offense in the league averaging 437 total yards per game.
Dak Prescott had a field day against the Giants secondary in Week 1, going 16-of-16 against anyone not named Janoris Jenkins. Prescott went 25-for-32 overall throwing for 405 yards and four touchdowns. Despite having to account for star running back Zeke Elliot, the Giants secondary and James Bettcher must stop Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper if they hope to pull out a win on Monday night.
While the Giants defense has recorded 22 sacks on the season, they have had trouble getting off the field on third down. Last week, the Lions had a 57% third down conversion rate, while the Cowboys converted 60% of their third down tries in week 1.
Bettcher needs to tighten up the zones on his defense as the holes in these areas allow far too much space allowing receivers to get open on a regular basis before the backs can close in on them. This issue can also be traced back to Bettcher’s lack of creativity when it comes to dialing up timely blitzes. Bettcher must take the pressure off his secondary on third down by bringing the heat with the pass rush in order to come up with stops.
This is the week we think the unit finally gets it right.
Reinforced Front 7
Earlier this week, the Giants acquired Pro Bowl defensive lineman Leonard Williams from the Jets in exchange for a 2020 third-round pick and 2021 fifth-round conditional pick. Williams is third in the league since 2016 with 97 run stops and 43 tackles for a loss. He also recorded 26 quarterback hits last season, which ranked sixth in the NFL. Williams has 14 pressures and five QB hits in 2019 and is already among the leaders in these categories on the Giants defense.
Although he is still searching for his first sack on the year, Williams qualifies as a more than capable reinforcement as he will slide in at defensive end. Williams will most likely be used alongside Dexter Lawrence on passing downs as Bettcher likes using two-defensive linemen in these situations.
This is Williams second matchup against the Cowboys in 2019 as he recorded a hit on Dak Prescott in Week 6. The addition of Williams will certainly enhance Big Blue’s defensive line and give this unit a boost against the pass and run against one of the league’s best offensive lines.
The Giants also added money backer Deone Bucannon to their roster prior to their game against the Lions. Bucannon and Bettcher have a history with the Arizona Cardinals together, where they revolutionized the money backer position converting Bucannon to a coverage middle linebacker.
Buccanon also provides stability to the linebacker corps that has lost its best player in Ryan Connelly. Despite only playing 11 snaps last week, the expectation is that this number will increase in his second game with the team. Bucannon will split time with defensive captain Alec Ogletree and David Mayo at the inside linebacker position. This trio will attempt to neutralize the Cowboys fourth ranked running game (146 yards per game) behind star tailback Zeke Elliot.
The Secondary
The Giants secondary had another rough game Sunday surrendering 316 yards and three touchdowns to Matt Stafford and the Lions. It was the same old story last week with missed assignments plus miscommunications resulting in big plays.
The Cowboys enter this match up with the third-ranked passing offense in the league throwing for 291 yards per game.
Janoris Jenkins has been solid the past three weeks with two interceptions and four pass deflections. Jenkins will have his hands full shadowing Cowboys top receiver Amari Cooper, who had six catches for 106 yards and a touchdown against the Giants defense in Week 1. If Jenkins rises to the occasion it will take away Dak Prescott’s favorite target and stall the Cowboys passing game.
Rookie cornerback Corey Ballentine should be back from a concussion that kept him sidelined the past two games. Could this be the week we finally see Ballentine record a snap on defense? With a group that has struggled as much as Big Blue’s defensive backs, Ballentine should get his chance sooner rather than later. The hope he will soon be ready to audition for the slot corner role, where Grant Haley continues to get beat.
Antoine Bethea has also been a weak link in Big Blue’s secondary. Rookie free safety Julian Love played two snaps last week in Detroit, which doubled his season total. Love could potentially replace Bethea if the 35-year-old continues to struggle.
Rookie Deandre Baker didn’t have his best game last week against Kenny Golladay, surrendering a touchdown to him despite getting his hand on the ball. Although he has made his fair share of mistakes, Baker has shown tremendous improvement since getting torched in the team’s previous match up with the Cowboys in Week 1. The Cowboys will try and test Baker, but the rookie will certainly be playing with a chip on his shoulder in an attempt to redeem himself against this divisional foe.
If Jenkins can keep receiver Amari Cooper in check, and the front seven can do their job and take the pressure off the secondary with some creativity from Bettcher, the defense could wind up having a bounce back game.
Daniel Jones
Despite a rough start, which included a backwards pass returned for a touchdown, Jones bounced back to have his best game as a pro against the Lions. Jones went 28-of-41 for 322 yards and four touchdowns. He also had a 58% third down conversion rate.
Jones took two deep shots to Darius Slayton resulting in two impressive touchdown passes. Unfortunately, the offense did not attempt another long passing play for the rest of the game. This needs to change on Monday.
Saquon Barkley must be used in space in the passing game more, as he had a 38-yard catch-and-run on an angle route, where he would have scored if he did not lose his footing. Once again, Shurmur has to utilize Barkley in these situations more in order to help Jones max out his weapons.
Barkley had 19 carries for 64 yards and eight catches for 79 yards and a touchdown last week. The Giants must stick to a balanced attack to help take pressure off Jones. If Jones can build off an impressive game last week, he can dig into a Cowboys pass defense that allows 228 yards per game.
