Big Blue Breakfast: New York Giants lose to Steelers 20-12
By Curt Macysyn
Welcome to Big Blue Breakfast, an evaluation of the previous day’s game.
The New York Giants dropped their preseason opener to the Pittsburgh Steelers 20-12 on Friday night. Before we get into the inevitable spin by writers, keep in mind that we were told the offensive line was improved.
Could have fooled me.
Case in point, T.J. Watt is not J.J. Watt, but it sure seemed like the elder Watt was out there. T.J. Watt played most of the contest and had five tackles and two sacks. The point being that he is a rookie and basically wreaked havoc on the Giants offense for most of the evening.
Obviously, there were some bright spots on offense and defense. The major takeaway is that the top concern heading into this game remains a major concern.
New York Giants Offense
The New York Giants gave up seven quarterback sacks to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday night. Now, you can slice and dice that all you want, it’s still not good. Yet the beat writers couldn’t type fast enough on Twitter and elsewhere to absolve blame from Ereck Flowers.
Here’s a sample from NJ Advance Media’s James Kratch:
"“Before we start: The first sack the Giants allowed wasn’t left tackle Ereck Flowers’ fault. His man – linebacker T.J. Watt – had the sack, but the pressure came from the middle of the line. Josh Johnson just happened to be forced to his left and Watt more or less walked into it.”"
I will say this, while we tend to focus on Ereck Flowers, the bigger concern remains the offensive line. The unit just does not seem to get any better. One can say that Flowers is the biggest reason why, and I would not disagree.
For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, the preseason should be an opportunity to refine their game. Instead, the offensive line continues to look like a fire drill without instructions.
Poor play from the unit makes it impossible to evaluate the other positions. That’s why I advocated for the signing of Andrew Whitworth in the offseason.
In terms of evaluations, if a player stands out, it’s usually good or bad. Offensively, I will highlight a few players later on. One who doesn’t need a paragraph is Josh Johnson. If I were Jerry Reese, I would send him on his way now, and bring in another offensive lineman. Let’s get Geno Smith and Davis Webb some more snaps.
New York Giants Defense
Wow!
Safety Landon Collins was a buzzsaw. Defensive end Olivier Vernon was stout. Even Jay Bromley looked good. With rookie Joshua Dobbs under center for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the defense did what it should do, dominate the opponent.
Every year, the Giants try to cut Kerry Wynn, and every year they can’t. Devin Taylor looks like an under-the-radar signing. For a big man (6-8), he can certainly move. He’s another toy for Steve Spagnuolo to play with.
Cornerback Michael Hunter looks like a lock as fourth corner. But I am concerned about the fifth cornerback spot. Both Valentino Blake and Donte Deayton looked below average. In post-game comments, Deayton stood out to McAdoo for the wrong reason.
"“Yeah, we wanted to get a good look at him, but he’s got to take care of the ball. That’s what stood out to me.”"
Gun to my head right now, I say the team picks up a player after cuts to fill the reserve role.
The top three safeties are decided. So one of Eric Pinkins, Nat Berhe and Duke Ihenacho must step up to gain a roster spot. It was reported that Ihenacho had a hamstring problem, so that hurts him. The safety position has the kind of depth needed at corner.
New York Giants Special Teams
Rookie Aldrick Rosas acquitted himself well in his NFL debut. Rosas nailed a 52-yard field goal in the second quarter. McAdoo alternated his kickers, as both Rosas and Mike Nugent hit two field goals a piece.
Apparently head coach Ben McAdoo was pumped about the kicking competition.
"“I thought both kickers kicked real well. I’ve never been so excited to kick a field goal.”"
The Giants have played this one correctly. I would not place too much stock in the results of the first game, with one exception. At least Rosas looks like he belongs, unlike Tom Obarski from last summer.
This competition should last for the entire preseason.