The Giants went into this week needing a big-time effort from their defense.
Mission: Accomplished.
They needed their quarterback to take care of the football and lead a beat-up offense.
Mission: Accomplished.
For the Giants, this was the game they can look back at and say it’s where they played up to their own expectations.
For weeks, head coach Joe Judge has preached attention to detail, effort, and hustle. His players responded this week with a 25-3 victory over the struggling Carolina Panthers.
It’s exactly what this team needed, moreover they did it in front of their home crowd at MetLife Stadium.
This is the type of performance required to silence critics and calm down decision-makers in the front office.
Quarterback Daniel Jones completed 23 of 33 pass attempts for 203 yards, 1 touchdown. Jones also didn’t turn the ball over; it was a vast improvement from last week’s regression against the Rams.
Saquon Barkley (ankle), Kenny Golladay (knee), Kadarius Toney (ankle), and Sterling Shepard (hamstring) were all unavailable this week.
But the Giants (2-5) received a huge lift from the return of Darius Slayton (5 catches, 63 yards) along with meaningful contributions from Evan Engram (6 catches, 44 yards), and Dante Pettis (5 catches, 39 yards). It was truly a next-man up mentality this week for Big Blue.
Place kicker Graham Gano went 3 for 3 on field goals, including a 53-yarder.
But the defense deserves to be the story this week.
The maligned unit has struggled all season. They allowed over 500 total yards to Dallas, and 38 points to the Rams. This week, however, they stepped up and did their job.
With the offense missing so many key weapons this week, defensive coordinator Patrick Graham needed his unit to bring their A-game.
Leonard Williams and the defense responded with their best performance of the season. They limited Carolina to just the 3 points put on the board from their opening drive of the game.
They sacked Panther’s quarterback Sam Darnold three times. The Panthers eventually benched their struggling quarterback for PJ Walker. But the defense kept their foot on the gas and picked up three more sacks on defense.
Carolina head coach Matt Rhule came into this week wanting to run the football. But Graham’s unit met the challenge and limited the Panthers to just 56 yards on 17 carries. The Panthers have now lost four in a row after starting the season 3-0.
