The New York Football Giants (5-3) scored an important 28-23 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles (4-4) at MetLife Stadium. The G-Men got a couple of quick hits, as they intercepted Carson Wentz on the first two possessions. Both picks resulted in touchdowns for Big Blue. Philadelphia chipped away at the lead, but could overcome the Giants’ fast start. New York was not pristine, but overall they were effective. Team focus shines on the Cincinnati Bengals (3-4-1) who come to town for a “Monday Night Football” affair next week.
Quick Hits: Coaching
Most importantly, Ben McAdoo brings coaching consistency into the equation. When McAdoo says something will happen, it usually does. For example, rookies Paul Perkins and Jerrell Adams were given more of an opportunity yesterday. Earlier in the week, McAdoo indicated this might happen.
The decision to bench Eli Apple was surely a difficult one. But it also helped the Giants win the game. In previous seasons, ineffective players were left in to work out of a slump. Overall, McAdoo kept his head about him in a critical match-up. The same cannot be said for his counterpart, Doug Pederson.
Pederson was erratic, to say the least. According to NJ Advance Media on Nov. 6, 2016, “The decision to go for it, late in the first quarter on a fourth and two, was questionable enough. The call was utterly indefensible. Pederson sent quarterback Carson Wentz running to his left on the read-option — the near identical play that Jason Pierre-Paul smothered for a five-yard loss just minutes earlier.”
One has to say that among all the rookies on the team, McAdoo is most advanced. Having said that, the coach should have run the ball on Manning’s deflected interception late in the fourth.
I said he was good, not perfect.
Quick Hits: Rushing Attack
This headline should actually be “lack of rushing attack”. In the big picture, however, the continued commitment to the run remains fundamentally important. First, the rushing attack will not improve if put into the closet. Secondly, Paul Perkins may grow into this job, and Rashad Jennings is a professional. Fans can be down on the run game, but to abandon it means the Giants become one-dimensional.
As we move further into the season, statistics become less important. To be effective, the Giants will have to pick and choose when to bring out the ground game. As long as ball security does not become an issue, the ground game has its place.
As the New York Post pointed out on Nov. 6, 2016, “The run game, last in the league entering the game, wasn’t quite as dormant. Perkins did his best to defer credit to his teammates blocking for him, using ‘we’ even when asked specifically about himself.”
Perkins will be a key down the stretch.
Using Marshall Newhouse as an extra big body might also be helpful down the road. Also understand that McAdoo is dealing with an imperfect set-up with no fullback. Would things look differently with Nikita Whitlock or Will Johnson around? I believe so.
Maybe Jerry Reese can get on the horn to find a fullback for the stretch run.
Quick Hits: Swagger is Back
The reality is that the Seattle Seahawks were never close to the greatest team in NFL history. I easily put several teams not named the 1972 Miami Dolphins ahead of them. But the Seahawks acted like they could beat the 1985 Chicago Bears, 1986 New York Giants or 2000 Baltimore Ravens.
They not only acted like they could win, but their team would be a two touchdown favorite! Recently, the Eagles, and particularly Eagles fans, thought that they could throw anything on the field and beat Big Blue.
Not so fast.
Instead of counting the Joe Pisarcik fumble and DeSean Jackson punt return as serendipity, the Dirty Birds misread the tea leaves. You are not 100 percent destiny’s darlings. When you play bad enough to lose, and then win, it’s a gift.
It’s not a strategy.
After this win, it was nice to see some of the swagger return for the G-Men. “I hate tipped balls,” Manning said after the game according to the New York Daily News. “I hate cheap interceptions and that’s kind of as cheap as they come with the tipped ball at the line of scrimmage. We had a good play, everybody did the right thing and you have to give them credit, their defensive line getting a hand up and getting a piece of the ball.”
Good for him. If the Birds and their fans won’t give you respect, then take it from them.
And good for Ben McAdoo. Don’t sit around trying to explain the nuances of why something did not work. Perfect games are for baseball.
“Last year is in the rearview mirror,” McAdoo said. “You go back, you learn from the past and you work on today. We believe that we are going to win these football games We’ve just got to hang onto leads and win the games. We know we’re going to get better as the game goes on, and we’re going to win in the end.”
Based upon the games that Chip Kelly coached against the G-Men, Eagles fans would likely declare him a better coach than Tom Coughlin.
The Giants simply have to keep the quick hits coming. In the end, that’s all anyone can ask for.