5 takeaways from New York Giants’ Week 4 loss

No. 3 – New York’s O-Line far from fixed

There was a sense of optimism surrounding the Giants after getting their first win with Ereck Flowers on the bench. His replacement, Chad Wheeler, didn’t shine in the team’s win over Houston, but the unit as a whole played much better.

That didn’t continue on Sunday, as the o-line was unable to open running lanes or give Manning time in the pocket. New York’s two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback surely didn’t have his best performance, missing some key throws, but he was once again under constant duress.

Unlike, the Giants first three games where Manning would feel pressure coming off the edge, the Saints took advantage of Big Blue’s interior offensive line. Manning was brought down three times, bringing the veteran quarterback’s sack total to 15 this season.

Despite another disappointing out for the Giants revamped offensive line, Shurmur continued to paint the unit in a positive light.

"“I thought they battled against a pretty good – they got us on a couple third down situations. Chad Wheeler had 94 (Cameron Jordan) most of the game and he did a pretty good job. They battled, but there were some plays in there. If you brought anybody up here, they would tell you they’d like to have a couple plays back.”"

There are few changes the Giants can make to fix their issues up front. The group as a whole has to play better, or the front office needs to be looking for a quarterback who can make throws on the run.

Manning surely deserves blame for New York’s anemic offense this season, but until the offensive line turns it around there’s plenty of blame for everyone. It’s not a shock, that the offensive line’s best performance this season led to Manning’s best game.