Team Grades: Manning Sets Record As Giants Thwart 49ers 30-27
By Curt Macysyn
The New York Giants (3-2) took the field for their match with the San Francisco 49ers (1-4) on Sunday night with first place at stake. Earlier losses by the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys meant that New York would be alone atop the NFC east with a victory. In front of a sold-out crowd at MetLife Stadium, the Giants started out quickly and jumped out to a 13-3 first half lead.
But the 49ers fought back as a combination of self-inflicted wounds by the Giants, and hot hand by San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick got the 49ers even at 13-13 midway through the third quarter. After the teams traded touchdowns, Josh Brown hit a 24-yard field goal to put New York up with 4:37 left in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers answered with a long touchdown drive, as Carlos Hyde bulled in from two-yards out with less than two minutes remaining, and the Giants trailed 27-24. Fortunately, this week the fourth quarter was the Giants' friend, as Manning hit tight end Larry Donnell with a 12-yard strike with only 21 seconds left to win the game 30-27 for New York.
Offense: B+
The demise of Odell Beckham, Jr. was greatly exaggerated. The 49ers had no answer for Beckham, as the mercurial receiver caught seven passes for 121 yards, including a touchdown. But Beckham left the game after his touchdown catch with a hamstring problem, which undoubtedly put a crimp in the Giants' passing attack. Rueben Randle also left the game with a strained hamstring, which severely limited Manning's weapons in crunch time.
Rookie tight end Will Tye caught four passes for 45 yards, bouncing back from his debut last week. Relying on rookies Geremy Davis and Myles White during crunch time could have tied Manning's hands during the comeback, but thankfully Beckham gutted out a couple plays late, getting a critical pass interference call on Kenneth Acker.
In Beckham's absence, New York relied upon Rashad Jennings and Shane Vereen a bit more, and the veteran running backs produced for Big Blue. They combined for 12 catches out of the backfield for 107 yards, and Vereen was virtually unstoppable out of the backfield in the final drive. For his part, Manning set a Giant's franchise record with 41 pass completions, in 54 attempts, and he had 441 passing yards. Manning played his best game in several seasons, and he ended with a 110.2 quarterback rating, even with a sloppy interception to end the first half.
Right tackle Marshall Newhouse continues to struggle and had two big holding penalties that set the Giants back twice deep in 49ers' territory, and Justin Pugh left the game late with an apparent injury. Andre Williams rushed three times for zero yards.
Defense: C+
The defense took some major hits this week, with George Selvie, Devon Kennard, Jonathan Casillas and Roberts Ayers missing the game due to injury, so the Giants had to make some adjustments in personnel and scheme. Mark Herzlich started in place of Kennard, while Cullen Jenkins shifted to defensive end from his defensive tackle spot. Jay Bromley got a start at defensive tackle, taking Jenkins' position in the interior. Then linebacker Jon Beason sustained a concussion in the first quarter on Sunday, and he was replaced by Uani Unga.
San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick had a bounce back game for the 49ers, as he had solid effort on the evening. Kaepernick finished 23 for 35 for 262 yards and two touchdowns. The Giants got a heavy dose of running back Carlos Hyde, and they had trouble containing him. Hyde rushed 21 times for 93 yards (4.4 yards per carry), including the go ahead touchdown late in the fourth, and the impressive gang tackling from a week ago, all but disappeared for the G-men.
There were too many missed tackles, but the defense did just enough to get by on the evening. Safety Landon Collins had a critical 28-yard pass interference call that led to a 49ers touchdown. Getting players healthy this week in advance of the division game against the Philadelphia Eagles will be critical for Big Blue.
Special Teams: A
Punter Brad Wing had two punts, one that landed inside the 20-yard line, and another one that sailed 55 yards. Josh Brown was perfect on field goal, going three-for-three. Brown also made three extra point conversions for New York, and he was solid on kick-offs as well.
Dwayne Harris had three punt returns for 31 yards with a long of 14 yards, and Shane Vereen returned two kickoffs for 44 yards. Kickoff and punt coverage was solid this week.
Coaching: A
With so many injuries on offense and defense, the Giants' coaches did an incredible job of putting team in a position to win the game. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was able to manufacture pressure on Colin Kaepernick, even as the 49ers' signal-caller got hot down the stretch. Kaepernick did have a couple of runs, but the defense also forced the quarterback to his left with some frequency, which limited his effectiveness.
Offensively, Ben McAdoo was asked to do a lot with the game on the line, and he dialed up Shane Vereen's number several times on the last drive. Getting tight ends Larry Donnell and Will Tye involved in the offense was critical for New York, especially after Randle and Beckham went down with injuries.
Tom Coughlin's steady hand has made the winning streak possible, as the coach has preached that the team was merely an inch away from victory in the first two games of the season. After a few adjustments, the cream is beginning to rise to the top. If only the Giants had not cut receiver James Jones at the end of the preseason, New York would have some more depth at the receiver position. But being in first place after five games speaks for itself.
Notes:
The Giants (3-2) are in sole possession of first-place in the NFC east, and they take on the Philadelphia Eagles (2-3) at Lincoln Financial Field on Monday night with the top spot of the division on the line. The Eagles handled the New Orleans Saints 39-17 in the City of Brotherly Love on Sunday afternoon.
Curt Macysyn has been covering the New York Football Giants for the past four seasons for Examiner.com, and he is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). Born and raised in New Jersey, Curt attended Seton Hall Prep School in South Orange, N.J. and is a graduate of Rutgers University - New Brunswick. Follow him on Twitter @CurtMac23 for the latest NFL and New York Giants news.