Giants “Weak Spots” Playing Well
By Jesse Connor
The Giants have surprised many of their critics. Not so much the fact that they sit 2-2 but the fact that they are getting excellent play from three positional groups that were getting buried by the media before the season started. The offensive line has done a nice job of supporting a decent run game in the first quarter of the season. The defensive line has stopped the run better then any team in football and the safeties who were supposed to be offal have been nothing short of very good.
Aug 3, 2014; Canton, OH, USA; New York Giants center Weston Richburg (60) against the Buffalo Bills in the 2014 Hall of Fame game at Fawcett Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The Giants have yet to record 100 yards rushing in a single game this season but it does not seem to be a necessity within this offense. The Giants have been able to run the ball, fairly successfully, in fact they have maintained a great balance of run vs pass this season. The run game is noticably better then it has been in quite some time and that is due to the play of the offensive line. Rookie Ereck Flowers has given the Giants more then they could have asked for as he pre-maturely was forced to anchor the left side of the offensive line. Justin Pugh has moved all around, playing left guard, left tackle, and right tackle and has not missed a beat at any of those positions. Weston Richburg and Geoff SChwartz have done a nice job on the interior of the line and veterans John Jerry and Marshall Newhouse have been nowhere near the dumpster fire they were projected to be by most critics.
Today the Giants used rookie lineman Bobby Hart in heavy packages as a tight tackle. He dominated his block on a couple of plays and I’ve been saying it since he got drafted he will have an impact on this football team moving forward. If Hart continues to develop and succeed in his limited action he will add valuable depth to a line that is already set to re-gain Will Beatty in the coming month. All of a sudden the Giants line is looking like it may develop into a real strength.
New York Giants
The Giants defensive line, a unit that got trampled all last season has made a complete 180. The Giants, have not allowed any team to rush for more then 88 yards so far this season. Buffalo had not rushed for any less then 147 yards in their first three games. Today they were limited to just 55 yards on the ground. The Giants have allowed the fewest amount of rush yards in the NFL. The defensive line is a group of hard working, disciplined, and multi-talented players.
Jonathan Hankins is the big name of the group but Kerry Wynn, Cullen Jenkins, DaMontre Moore, Robert Ayers, Jay Bromley, Owa Odighizuwa, and George Selvie hae all taken a team first attitude as they rotate in and out depending on the situation. The loss of Jason Pierre Paul is no longer a story line surrounding the Giants because they’re playing fine without him. If he does return this year, he has the potential to beef up an already fierce rushing defense and add some life to a pass rush that leaves something to be desired.
Landon Collins, the Giants rookie safety, has played like a veteran. He has showed why he was tagged as a “big hitter” coming out of college and has also showed he a well rounded safety, his coverage skills and ability to track the football in the air is much much better then expected. The Giants secondary as a whole is playing outstanding and Collins’ contributions are a large part of that. Along with Craig Dahl and Brandon Merriweather the Giants safeties totaled 12 tackles in the win over Buffalo and teamed for 34 tackles in the 3 previous weeks.
The unit that was supposed to be exposed and taken advantage of for deep plays has barely given up any.
This Giants team is much better then most people thought. They are a few bad plays away from 4-0. The best part is there is still plenty of room for improvement and their not fully healthy as of right now. The return of Victor Cruz, Will Beatty, Robert Ayers, and Daniel Fells will only better this football team.