With both teams eager for a bounce back win after tough Week 4 losses, a healthier Seattle Seahawks squad will return to Lumen Field to host the New York Giants in a critical Sunday afternoon matchup between NFC foes.
Despite losing three of their first four games, the Giants have been quite competitive, losing two of those games by fewer than five points to the Cowboys and Commanders. Most notably, their defense has jumped from finishing 26th in scoring to 12th through the first four games, showing marked improvement under new coordinator Shane Bowen.
What's the current outlook for Brian Daboll's team one month into the season? Taking a deep dive into everything from Daniel Jones' return from an ACL tear to new additions on defense, Patricia Traina of Giants On SI tackles five questions heading into Sunday's contest:
1. Coming off an ACL tear, what is your general assessment of Daniel Jones' play so far? And is he on a short leash?
Jones hasn’t been horrible, but he’s also not made the plays you expect your franchise quarterback to make to elevate the team. His deep-ball accuracy has been atrocious–whereas in camp, he was overthrowing guys, lately, he’s been underthrowing them. This results in the receivers having to stop to catch the ball, which allows the defender to close in and limit YAC, on which this offense depends so heavily.
Jones is ranked 23rd out of 24 quarterbacks with a minimum of 10 deep pass attempts of 20-plus yards in adjusted percentage, so that’s not good either. And it would seem that all that speed the Giants have on offense right now is being wasted with him struggling to hit those guys in stride.
I believe the Giants will stick with Jones until at least midway through the season, though. Whether Giants fans like it or not, he gives them their best chance to win, and I think they'll stay with him as long as they have a chance at a Wild Card berth. We posted an article questioning the wisdom of sticking with Jones, who has an injury guarantee in his contract if the losses continue to pile up.
2. Without Malik Nabers, how will the Giants compensate for the absence of the star rookie receiver, and who stands to benefit most from him being sidelined?
The expectation is that second-year receiver Jalin Hyatt will see some of Nabers’ snaps. I also expect Wan’Dale Robinson to get his usual workload, and Darius Slayton will also see an uptick in targets for New York.
Ultimately, I think that the Giants might lean a little heavier on the run game this week. I don’t think starter Devin Singletary plays, as he’s doubtful with a groin, but maybe the Giants might want to take advantage of a beat up Seattle defensive line that didn't defend the run well last Monday night.
3. How has the blockbuster trade for Brian Burns worked out so far, pairing him with Kayvon Thibodeaux and Dexter Lawrence?
If we’re talking sacks, then it’s been overwhelming. Burns only has one sack and two quarterback hits so far, but according to ESPN’s Pass Rush Win Rate, he's sixth (28 percent) when lining up off the edge. That said, given the financial investment made in Burns, I think everyone would like to see a little more production from him, as there should be no reason why safety Jason Pinnock should be sharing the team lead in sacks (3) with Dexter Lawrence.
Lawrence, by the way, has been in mid-season form. PFF posted a stat last week about Cowboys center Cooper Beebee handling Lawrence, but failed to mention that Lawrence was double-teamed on 20 of his 25 pass rush snaps.
Thibodeaux, per PFF, has 11 pressures and 1.5 sacks. He leads the Giants’ edge risers with a 14.7% percent overall Pass Rush Win Rate, per PFF. But in true pass sets, his win rate is 20.5 percent, second among Giants edge rushers behind only Azeez Ojulari.
4. While New York's defense has improved quite a bit in the scoring column, what's the biggest concern for the team dealing with Seattle's potent offense?
The cornerbacks. Deonte Banks was supposed to be a No. 1 corner for this team, but he has struggled badly against the opponent’s top receiver. This week, his position coach, Jerome Henderson, openly criticized Banks for allowing CeeDee Lamb a 55-yard touchdown, and I have to say it was refreshing to hear such honesty.
Meanwhile, it looks like the Giants might get one or both of Adoree’ Jackson and Dru Phillips back from calf injuries, so it remains to be seen if they can keep up with DK Metcalf and the other standout Seahawk receivers if the two corners play. Philips is the slot cornerback, and he’s been very solid, but again, a lower body injury to a player who has to earn his keep by keeping up with speedy receivers isn’t a good thing.
5. After coming up just short in two of their past three games, what's the recipe for a Giants upset on Sunday down their best offensive player?
They can’t have self-inflicted wounds like drive-killing penalties, dropped passes, overthrown/underthrown passes, and missed tackles. I realize expecting a perfect game from any team is asking for a lot, but the Giants aren’t good enough to overcome the mistakes they’ve been making that have cost them scores, yardage, and wins.
It goes without saying, but New York's offense must be better in the red zone. The Giants have moved the ball well between the 20s, but the red zone has to stop being the dead zone for them. The Giants are tied for 20th in the league in red zone scoring with a 50 percent conversion rate. They’ve had two games this season - both losses - where they put up a goose egg in the red zone category. That just can’t continue to happen, regardless of the opponent.
