Daniel Jones comes of age in NY Giants 25-3 win over Panthers | takeaways

NY Giants dominant defense steps up

The effort of the NY Giants’ defense, particularly the secondary, shouldn’t be overlooked.

Safety Jabrill Peppers made a huge play in the second quarter, when he chased down Sam Darnold from behind for a sack. Later, cornerback James Bradberry goaded Darnold into an interception, when he hung back in coverage and pulled down a leaping grab on second-down, keeping points off the board in the red zone.

New York’s defense only allowed the Panthers to cross the 50-yard line on two of six first half possessions and held Carolina to just 121 total yards of offense in the first half.

The Panthers’ defensive line was nearly as banged up as the Giants’ entering Sunday’s game, and Carolina was without Christian McCaffrey. But, the Giants’ defense responded to a week of questions following last week’s lackluster showing against the Rams.