The New York Giants got mixed reviews in the NFL Power Rankings for Week 5, after laying an egg in Minnesota on Monday Night Football.
The Week 5 NFL Power Rankings are in and the New York Giants are trending down from last week. And up, inexplicably, but more on that later.
Big Blue was bad on every front against the Minnesota Vikings. The offense is still not there, and it may be time to call it what it is: broken. The defense, decimated by injuries in the secondary, couldn’t get stops. They allowed the Vikings, the NFL’s worst rushing offense, to have some success. Dwayne Harris muffed a punt on special teams, leading to Minnesota’s first score.
There isn’t much silver lining to take from this performance, and it’s especially worrisome the Giants played so poorly in a game they had to have. They were never in it. They got close in the fourth-quarter, pulling within a touchdown, but even that was an aberration. A 67-yard screen play to rookie Paul Perkins set up a short Orleans Darkwa TD.
They seem right at around 19 or 20. ESPN’s reason for ranking Big Blue number 12 isn’t clear, to put it mildly, or a massive oversight by the good folks in Bristol to be blunt. The Giants aren’t the 12th best team in football by any objective assessment, not even close.
Next: NYG-MIN Quick Returns from Week 4
The G-Men will look to rebound at Lambeau next week on Sunday Night Football, against the Green Bay Packers. Whether the opportunity to respond motivates them or is just another nationally televised meltdown remains to be seen. One thing is clear; Big Blue is in bad shape fairly early in Ben McAdoo’s tenure.