Offense Is Carrying This Year's New York Giants Team
By Gregory Hunt
The 8-0 New England Patriots will begin their second half of the 2015 NFL season when they travel to MetLife Stadium to face the New York Giants next Sunday. Despite their undefeated record, the Patriots are still fighting for playoff seeding with the Cincinnati Bengals, who are also 8-0. Also in the mix are the Denver Broncos, who still hold a 7-1 record after suffering a 27-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts this past Sunday.
Season Record
The Giants currently hold a 5-4 record, putting them in first place in the NFC East, one-half game ahead of the 4-4 Philadelphia Eagles. Last week, the Giants posted a 32-18 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
New York trails the all-time regular season series with New England 4-5, but the Giants have won both of the postseason meetings in Super Bowls XLII and XLVI. The teams last met in that latter Super Bowl, with the Giants scoring a touchdown with 57 seconds remaining in the game to come away with a 21-17 victory at Lucas Oil Stadium. Sunday's game will be the first time the teams have met at MetLife Stadium. The last time the Patriots came to New York to play the Giants was on December 29, 2007, with the Patriots winning a 38-35 shootout at Giants Stadium.
The series dates back to the first year of the AFL/NFL merger in 1970, when the Giants defeated the Boston Patriots 16-0 on October 18 at Harvard Stadium.
Giants on Offense
New York's second-year offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo has turned the Giants into a team that's capable of putting up big numbers, like it did in a 52-49 loss to the New Orleans Saints in which quarterback Eli Manning threw for six touchdown passes. The team is fifth in the NFL in scoring, putting up an average of 27.4 points per game.
Yet, McAdoo is not satisfied. "I still think he can grow and get better," said McAdoo about Manning last Thursday. Regardless of McAdoo's expectations, Manning is having a career year. Going into the game against Tampa Bay, the 12th-year quarterback was on pace to throw a career-high 34 touchdowns against a career-low eight interceptions.
Manning's favorite target is second-year wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who has developed into one of the most dangerous offensive weapons in the league. In just 21 career games, Beckham has already caught 150 passes for 2,064 yards and 19 touchdowns.
Giants on Defense
The Giants became synonymous with tough, physical defenses in winning two Super Bowls under former head coach Bill Parcels and two more under current head coach Tom Coughlin, but this season the Giants defense is struggling. Recent injuries to cornerback Prince Amukamara (pectoral), linebacker Jon Beason (ankle/knee) and linebacker J.T. Thomas (ankle) have left the unit shorthanded, and defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul returned to action just last week after suffering a severe injury to his hand in a fireworks accident last July.
Pierre-Paul's right index finger was amputated, so he is now playing with a mitten-shaped, heavy gray wrap on that hand. He's been known as a dangerous pass-rusher for most of his career, so the Giants are hoping he can boost a unit that hasn't recorded a sack in its previous two games. "I'm a little rusty in areas," he said after the win over Tampa Bay. "I'm going to go back and watch the film, see what I can get better at, and get ready for New England."
Giants Players to Watch
The biggest challenge for the Patriots offense will be covering Beckham, who is fourth in the league in receiving yards with 759. It remains to be seen which cornerback, Malcolm Butler or Logan Ryan, will line up against him. Either way, the defender will need to get help over the top from safeties Patrick Chung and Devin McCourty.
Pierre-Paul admitted he didn't start to feel fully comfortable against the Buccaneers until the fourth quarter of that game, but the Patriots should expect him to be at full speed against them from the opening snap. The Giants managed only 10 sacks for the first half of the season; but with Pierre-Paul back, they should exceed that number for the second half.
Outlook
The Patriots have done a great job of protecting quarterback Tom Brady despite a number of injuries to their offensive linemen. Tackle Sebastian Vollmer is the latest casualty thanks to a head injury he suffered last week against the Washington Redskins, so New England may need to do some juggling of its offensive line personnel.
Out for certain is running back Dion Lewis, who will missing the rest of the season after tearing his ACL against Washington. In addition to being a dynamic playmaker, Lewis was also a great pass protector, so giving Brady enough time to throw the ball is a serious concern for New England. The Giants are capable of scoring a lot of points, so the Patriots need to keep pace with the New York offense in order to avoid its first loss of the season.
Gregory Hunt is a Boston native and a life-long fan of the Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics. He's also particularly fond of lacrosse, IndyCar racing and women's college basketball. He currently works for Examiner.com where he serves as the Senior Manager of Content and Media Access. He also writes for Examiner.com as the New England Patriots Examiner. His work can be found on Examiner.com.