Ten Thoughts on The Giants

[Dont Stop Billeiving]

Watched the All-22 of the Giants' Week 3 victory over Washington and came away with the following observations:

 

1. Eli Manning takes ages at the line of scrimmage (even more than Luck did in Week 1). Giants were forced to take a couple timeouts. He likes to read the defense and call audibles, but I think this could play to our advantage like it did against the Colts.

 

2. On the flip side, Manning was getting the ball out quick against Washington despite their lack of a pass rush. Was connecting on a lot of short passes and crossing routes, but Manning missed almost everything that was 10+ yards downfield. The one successful vertical throw was a TD to Beckham Jr. and he underthrew him. OBJ did what he does and adjusted to the ball perfectly for the score. If we can jam their WRs and make Manning wait, I think our D-line should be able to dominate.

 

3. Dwayne Harris looks like a dangerous returner just as he was for Dallas. Our special teams haven't looked quite as solid this year, hopefully Easley, Brooks, and the coverage team will keep this guy contained.

 

4. The Giants' running game was really poor. Their run-blocking didn't hold up about 50% of the time and Jennings/A. Williams looked slow and lacked vision. Vereen (notorious Bills-killer) looked very average in a different jersey which was great to see. We should be able to focus mostly on the pass in this one.

 

5. The Giants didn't blitz very often or get a pass rush on Kirk Cousins (no sacks as far as I remember). Made some good plays in coverage, Prince Amukamara had a nice INT and Landon Collins looks like he will be a strong player for them. Robert Ayers and DRC should be back for this game unfortunately, but overall their defense looked fairly average even against a below average Washington offense. Tyrod should get time in the pocket to throw or to run...as a side note, I'd love to see him run more than he has the last two weeks provided he learns how to slide properly!

 

6. Chris Culliver and DeAngelo Hall kept OBJ rather quiet until Hall was knocked out of the game with an injury. OBJ took advantage of the CB that was subbed in after that. Made me more confident that Gilmore and Darby can handle him though.

 

7. Jordan Reed had a big day against the Giants' LBs and safeties. I like the matchup for Charles Clay this week, let's keep feeding the big guy!

 

8. The Giants rotated their defensive players more than I've ever seen before. Must have had almost equal snaps between a lot of the starters and their backups.

 

9. Victor Cruz being ruled out is a huge break for us, but Reuben Randle isn't a slouch either. Had a strong game against Washington, always seemed to get separation and is tough to bring down after the catch. If the Bills can take OBJ and Randle away (much easier said than done I know), the Giants don't really have any other weapons.

 

10. Daniel Fells is Manning's safety valve...doesn't look dangerous but Manning looks for him a lot on 3rd downs and as a checkdown option. He's got an injury; if he doesn't play, our defense will be able to make Manning even more uncomfortable.

 

That's all I've got...the Giants have a few playmakers, but I like this match up for our guys. Go Bills!