It’s been a hell of a season for the Giants. Injuries devastate the team, especially the offensive line and quarterback. Daniel Jones was struggling with a neck injury before tearing his anterior cruciate ligament, and substitute Tyrod Taylor suffered a chest injury, which left him on the substitute’s side. The Giants are expected to sign undrafted rookie free agent Tommy DeVito, a New Jersey native who is perhaps best known for living at home with his parents.
The Giants stunned the Commanders 14-7 the last time they played in Week 7 at Meadowlands Stadium. If Washington is to have any hope of making an outside push in the postseason, it must start with a win on Sunday.
Let’s dive into the stats to get to know the Giants.
Everyone knows Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale likes to attack. In Week 7, Martindale outscored quarterback Sam Howell 29 of 49 for loss (59.2 percent) – the highest percentage of tackles for a Washington quarterback in the last decade – and the offense looked unprepared. The main reason for the commanders’ defeat was the commanders’ inability to cope with the attack.
Two weeks later, in a victory over New England, Howell and a reshuffled offensive line showed tremendous improvement despite the pressure. Howell’s pre-snap recognition and sounds were crucial to the offense’s success, especially against zero-coverage tackles, one of which Howell overcame for a 33-yard touchdown to receiver Jahan Dotson.
The question now is whether Martindale will continue to attack despite Howell’s progress. If that happens, will Howell be able to continue to beat her? Who blinks first?
Last week, Dallas destroyed New York 49-17 in DeVito’s debut. According to the NFL, Dallas gained 640 yards compared to New York’s 172, the largest difference in total yardage between two teams in a game in 44 years.
Commanders coach Ron Rivera was asked what he thought of the Giants’ offense with DeVito.
“They are all professionals,” he said. “They’re going to play as hard as they can and they’re going to do everything they can to win. We will try to counteract all this by going out on the field, playing as best we can and trying to win.
Rivera had problems with the Giants as Washington’s coach. His record against them, 2-4-1, is good for a .357 winning percentage, which is the second-lowest of any team he has faced at least three times (behind Seattle, .333).
Several players said the recent loss still hurts.
“A lot of players are motivated by this loss because we feel like we should have won the game,” quarterback Brian Robinson Jr. said. “I think a lot of the guys are very upset about it, me too. I haven’t won a game against New York yet. I can’t wait to beat them. This is a key match for us and what we are trying to achieve in the season. So I think the guys are excited about it.”
