The Giants dropped their eighth straight game on Sunday, losing to the New Orleans Saints, 14-11.
Drew Lock and the offense struggled for most of the day, but the defense kept the Giants in the game till the very end. Lock connected with Malik Nabers for a 22-yard catch to set the Giants up on the one-yard line, Tyrone Tracy punched it in, and Nabers caught the two-point conversion to make it a 14-11 game with 4:11 left.
The defense got another stop to get the ball back, but Lock threw an interception on 4th-and-nine. Yet again, New York’s defense forced a quick three-and-out to give Lock and the offense one more chance. The QB drove 56 yards in just over a minute to set up the game tying FG, but Graham Gano‘s 35-yard attempt was blocked.
Lock finished the game 20-for-45 with 204 yards passing, one interception, and 59 yards rushing. Nabers had five receptions for 79 yards and Tracy ran for 45 yards with a TD.
Here are the key takeaways…
– New York started their first drive of the day in good field position across midfield at the New Orleans 48-yard line, but couldn’t get anything going. Brian Daboll opted to go for it on 4th and 8 from the Saints’ 36; the result — a holding and intentional grounding call on Lock, resulting in a turnover on downs. Luckily, the Giants defense forced a 53-yard field goal attempt and caught a huge break when Blake Grupe missed to keep it a scoreless game.
– Derek Carr led the Saints on a 98-yard scoring drive, capped off by a Kendre Miller rushing touchdown to go up 7-0 with 1:19 left in the first quarter. After two strong stands by the defense, Carr completed a 22-yard pass on 3rd and 5 from their own seven-yard line and followed it up with a 30-yard play to TE Juwan Johnson to keep the drive moving forward.
– Lock started the game 0-for-8 passing and Big Blue had just 29 yards of offense through the first quarter. His first completion came on an 11-yard pass to Daniel Bellinger, setting up the Giants on the Saints 40-yard line. Lock followed that up with a 17-yard pass to Nabers, but the drive stalled and he was sacked on third down. Graham Gano made a 43-yard FG as the Giants trailed 7-3 in the second.
– New York came up with a huge stop on a fake punt, stuffing Jamaal Williams short of the first down marker and taking over on downs at the New Orleans’ 48-yard line. However, the Giants couldn’t capitalize and punted after another three-and-out. After another stop by the defense, they finally got the big play they’ve been waiting for — Ihmir Smith-Marsette returned a punt for a TD, but it was called back for holding on Greg Stroman.
– Giants rookie S Tyler Nubin was called for pass interference on a deep pass by Carr with four seconds left in the first half, giving the Saints a chance to score on a 60-yard FG. Luckily, DT Casey Rogers blocked Grupe’s attempt to keep it a 7-3 game at halftime. The Giants recorded just 86 total yards and had four first downs in the first half, as Lock was 6-for-19 passing for 52 yards and added 17 yards rushing. New Orleans racked up 154 total yards and 10 first downs in the first half.
— The Giants’ offensive struggles continued into the second half, punting on their first drive after another three-and-out. Guard Jon Runyan injured his ankle on third down and limped off the field. The defense came through as Tre Hawkins picked off Carr for the first interception by a Giant since Week 1. Once again, the Saints forced a Giants three-and-out. They then marched 69 yards and scored on an 11-yard pass to Johnson to go up 14-3 with 3:40 left in the third quarter.
– Penalties continued to crush the Giants as a Gano field goal was taken off the board due to a Jake Kubas personal foul, forcing yet another punt. New York finished with 12 penalties called against them for 112 yards.
– Micah McFadden led the defense with 11 total tackles, including five tackles for loss. Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns each had a sack and two tackles for loss. The defense held Carr to 219 yards passing and star RB Alvin Kamara to just 44 yards on the ground.
Highlights
What’s next
The Giants stay at home to take on reigning NFL MVP Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, Dec. 15 at 1:00 p.m.
