Are Brighter Days Ahead? - Giants Seahawks Recap

To be frank, this game didn’t feel like one that was even worth previewing. As much as I wanted to continue my schtick, (picking the Giants to pull out a victory, despite being outmatched across the board) it didn’t feel genuine. After all, I had just witnessed my team unsuccessfully attempt to field goal the Cowboys to death. Then, 4 days later I saw this Seahawks team amass 516 yards of offense against a legitimate contender. Without the 2 players responsible for 55% of the team’s total yards (Nabers and Singletary), no one in their right mind would expect the Giants to go into Seattle and leave with a win.

Not only did Big Blue pull off the massive road victory, but they might have fully restored my faith in the direction of this franchise in the process. As someone who has spent much of their adult life living well outside of their right mind…damn it feels good to be back.

When the 10 minute, 16 play, 79-yard opening drive ended with one of Eric Gray’s patented fumbles - I couldn’t help but laguh as the Seattle defender pranced 102 yards down the sideline. There aren’t many renderings of Sunday Hell that I hadn’t been exposed to. So at the time, I assumed this unique experience would serve as one of the few bits of joy and wonderment I’d feel as I watched my team plummet toward an insurmountable 1-4 start.

I’ll start by saying - it looked to me like Gray broke the plane. Unfortunately, Seattle must’ve blown their “facilities budget” buying new decibel counters to track the fake noise they pump into their “hostile environment” - rather than installing a single camera down the goal line. Instead of being provided with any conclusive evidence, I got a hard cut from commercial to the Seahawks lining up for the PAT. Don’t worry hawks fans, you’ll be getting your referee karma shortly.

This catastrophic start turned out to be the best thing for the Giants, as it resulted in Gray renewing his lease in the doghouse, while allowing Tyrone Tracy Jr. to emerge as the lead back. Tracy’s 18 carries for 129 yards set the tone for the Giants offense and allowed them to stay on schedule without the security blanket of Malik Nabers. Most importantly, there were no negative plays and he held onto the fucking ball. Personally, I’ve seen enough and want the rookie to remain the lead back, even when Singletary returns. Given that Brian Daboll is also an offensive mastermind, I assume he and I will share this belief.

This dominant rushing attack led to all sorts of positives in the passing game. Extra men in the box and a ton of 3rd and manageable’s helped Daniel Jones have one of the best games of his career. Not only was he truck sticking dude’s on QB keepers, but he continued to execute the quick passing game well and most importantly - finally connected on a pair of perfectly placed deep balls to his old pal; Darius Slayton.

Much like Jones, Slayton has pissed me off a ton throughout his career. He shows flashes, but seemingly always drops the big pass in the crucial situation. However, he deserves a ton of credit for stepping up as the WR1 Sunday (8 REC, 122 YDS, TD) while battling apparent injuries himself.

Slayton was the main contributor for those fluffed deep passing metrics DJ boasted early in his career. Aside from the recent emergance of Nabers, he’s been the only weapon Jones has ever had real chemistry with. It goes without saying that if we want this passing game to truly hit its ceiling (probably about 10 feet), Slay will have to be on the receiving end of the deep shots, while Malik is blanketed in the other levels of the field.

While this offensive formula led to domination both in time of possession and total yardage, it only tells half of story. After Sunday’s shit kicking in the trenches, it is apparent to me that we once gain have a dominant pass rush and more importantly - an actual identity.

It all starts with Dexter Lawrence - who should have a legitimate shot at Defensive Player of the Year. If he is not double teamed, he simply rams whatever guard/center is “blocking” him into the quarterback’s lap. With Aaron Donald gone, tell me another interior DL who is recording 3 Sacks, 2 TFL, 4 QB Hits on a regular basis. He is the best in the game right now and it needs to be known.

Burns and KT are also starting to really hit their stride. While their stats don’t quite compare to Sexy Dexy, the eye test shows pockets collapsing from all angles as they close in on their prey. This sort of pass rush simply wrecks gameplans and has the ability to prevent even the most potent of offenses from functioning. This obviously works best with a lead, but seeing this group lead the NFL in sacks through 5 weeks is as positive a sign as any that this team can eventually reach a level at which they can play with the league’s truly elite teams.

Now don’t get me wrong - this game got way sweatier than it needed to be. This is a still a young team, that hasn’t done a whole lot of winning. We need to get better at closing out games, especially those in which we dominate from start to near finish. Offensively, we’re still plagued by drops on key 3rd down conversions. Defensively, the man defense we ran at the end of both halves allowed Geno Smith to run freely into field goal range. But how about the special teams deciding to close the show in dramatic fashion?

Trust me, I’ve seen the senseless debates about whether “Simmons jumped over the center or the A Gap” and whether or not its legal to move players to create said gap. Quite frankly, I couldn’t give a rat’s ass. We’ve been so behind the curve on Special Teams for decades and if we were able to somewhat exploit any sort of loophole, that’s great to hear. Plus - we got banged on a 102-yard TD return earlier in the game. Go sit outside in the rain you green face painted fucks.

More than anything, this game made me come to the realization that the Giants have legitimately outplayed a majority of their opponents thus far. We’re seeing improvements each week and the upcoming schedule that looked daunting in the pre-season suddenly has opponents that are more than mortal.

This team is developing before our eyes, with young pieces stepping up, and strengths beginning to form. While I still may be 2-3 wins away from thinking Super Bowl - I am once again confident in this team pushing for a playoff spot (possibly the division).