Coming off a 31-22 victory over the New York Jets in their first exhibition matchup of 2019, the New York Giants face off against the Chicago Bears in Week 2 of the preseason on Friday night.
Here are three things to keep an eye on during this contest:
The Progress of Daniel Jones
Jones will look to build off last week’s impressive debut in which he went 5-for-5 with a touchdown pass to begin his NFL career. Although it was merely one drive in his first preseason game, Jones looked like a seasoned veteran in this moment.
The expectation was that the No. 6 overall pick would be nervous in his first professional game action, but Jones looked to be the complete opposite. The signal caller was fast and decisive when making his throws, while also placing the ball wherever he pleased.
While some critics denounce the success of his debut with the notion that he played against the Jets backups, Jones did it without his top three offensive weapons in Saquon Barkley, Sterling Shepard, and Evan Engram. It can be assumed that Jones will play in at least one full quarter tonight and the hope is he will prove that this was no fluke.
Generating a pass rush
The Giants front seven failed to generate any pressure last week, which allowed Jets quarterbacks to throw from a clean pocket all night. This can’t happen if this unit wants to improve their sack total (30), which ranked near the bottom of the league in 2018.
Lorenzo Carter (four sacks) and B.J. Hill (5.5 sacks) need to take the next step after solid rookie campaigns last year. If these two can figure it out, this should pave the way for guys like Dalvin Tomlinson and Clemson rookie Dexter Lawrence to create pressure up the middle and disrupt the pocket. So far, they were unsuccessful in game number one.
Oshane Ximines is one rookie to watch on the edge in this game. The Giants spent a third-round pick on the Old Dominion product and some experts had him as their “sleeper” of the draft.
While Ximines has received some praise during training camp, he did not make much noise in his preseason debut last week. Ximines currently sits behind Markus Golden and Kareem Martin on the depth chart, but could push his way into a thin rotation if his reputation as a pass rusher translates over from ODU into the pros. For now, it is up to the rookie to start showing why Dave Gettleman valued him as the 95th best player in the draft.
Defensive coordinator James Bettcher has also been dealt a deep and versatile secondary, which he will need to get creative with if he wants his defense to surpass last year’s anemic sack numbers. This could leave room for safety and corner blitzes in various dime and nickel sets.
Communication in the secondary
Speaking of the Giants new look secondary, the team spent three draft picks in April on defensive backs Deandre Baker, Julian Love, and Corey Ballentine. As of now, Ballentine has led the pack having a solid first game that included an interception.
Baker and Love had a few rough drives against the Jets first unit, which involved the mix-up of several different assignments. Baker did do some positive things in that game, including his solid positioning in coverage on a Jets receiver, which almost led to a Jabrill Peppers interception.
Unfortunately, Baker sprained his knee in practice on Monday and is expected to be sidelined for the next couple weeks.
As for Love, the Giants have him switching between free safety and slot corner, which is a difficult task for any rookie in the league. Love was at the wrong end of a couple big pass plays, one which was particularly due to a miscommunication with Peppers on a crossing route.
Both he and Baker also gave up a touchdown together on a two receiver rub route, where it appeared they were supposed to switch. Again, clear lack of communication.
While it can be expected that there will be growing pains with young defensive backs in a new system, these are issues that can be cleaned up in the film room during the week.
This Giants secondary is loaded with young talent, so it will be interesting to see how they develop as we progress through the preseason.
