The New York Giants are 5-6 after losing a pivotal NFC East battle with the Washington Redskins. The Giants are now in second place in their division due to the Redskins owning the tiebreaker. The Giants understand that the playoff push has begun. Frustrated Giants fans understood that their team gave themselves and uphill path to the playoffs. It is time to break down the Giants by position. What is going right? What is going wrong? Let’s take a look.
Quarterback: A-
Nov 1, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) throws against the New Orleans Saints during the second half of a game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Saints defeated the Giants 52-49. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Eli Manning has had a couple of bad games this season but he is playing pretty incredible football. The Giants average 265.3 yards through the air which is the ninth best in the NFL. Manning has completed 63 percent of his passes this season and he is playing really efficient football. Even after a three turnover performance against the Redskins, Manning has a healthy touchdown to interception ratio. Manning has 23 touchdowns to his credit and 9 interceptions. Manning is playing sharp and giving his team a chance. Is he perfect? Absolutely not. Is he doing all you can ask for? Absolutely, and he may be doing even more than that.
Running Backs: C+
The good news is that Shane Vereen (and even Rashad Jennings) is delivering in the passing game. The bad thing is that the Giants have four running backs and none of them have established themselves as the feature back of this team. The Giants rushing attack has been rather pedestrian overall. While much of this has to do with the offensive line the running backs have not been overly impressive. I’d like to see Orleans Darkwa get some more carries because he seems like a spark plug out of the backfield.
Offensive Line: C+
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When the Giants have struggled this season it has been largely to do with the offensive line. The Giants offensive wasn’t going to be successful against the Redskins, I mean they were playing without Justin Pugh, and Weston Richburg and then Geoff Schwartz went down. The pass protection was a disaster in a few games this season but it has been fairly solid this year. Manning has been hit a lot less this season. The run blocking is the real reason for the C+ grade. The line just doesn’t get enough push.
Tight End: C
Will Tye has stepped up in the absence of Larry Donnell but he is no superstar. Donnell has had some big moments including a game winning reception against the 49ers. Donnell when healthy, has been what he was last season. He is a decent option who is still developing.
Wide Receivers: B
Nov 1, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham (13) celebrates after a touchdown against the New Orleans Saints during the first quarter of a game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The New Orleans Saints defeated the New York Giants 52-49. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Odell Beckham doesn’t count in this report card as he is an outlier. We know Beckham gets an A+. The reason the Giants receivers get a B is because they have given the Giants solid but not great production this year. Rueben Randle has been inconsistent but his numbers are respectable. Dwayne Harris has been a pleasant surprise, at least offensively. The Giants only have three legitimate receivers and they are all doing their fair share.
Defensive Line: D
The Giants defensive line isn’t horrible against the run but let’s not pretend they’re providing much pass rush. The Giants defensive line was supposed to be a strength of the team. The long absence of Jason Pierre-Paul didn’t help. It became painfully clear that the Giants don’t have enough pass rushers. Bad roughing the passer penalties from Damontre Moore have been problematic. It just hasn’t been what we expected from the Giants defensive line.
Linebackers: B-
The Giants linebackers are doing okay. The inevitable season ending injury of Jon Beason didn’t take long to occur. Guys like Uani’ Unga and Jonathan Casillas have stepped up and played some hard hitting football. Devon Kennard and J.T. Thomas have battled injuries.
Defensive Backs: C-
The turnovers really boost the grade of the Giants defensive backs. The Giants have one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie has been leading the way with big takeaways. That being said the Giants are getting beat through the air at an alarming rate.
Overall Grade: C-
The Giants have struggled to finish games this year and in two games they struggled to even start. The Giants are 5-6 for a reason. The Giants have talent but they have their problem areas and these problem areas are holding them back. This team was gift wrapped the NFC East but they may not even make the playoffs. We’ll see what happens but it has not been good enough so far.