The New York Giants have their eyes on improving to 7-2 come this Sunday. Entering the Week 10 battle, Daniel Jones has played like a franchise quarterback, Saquon Barkley has regained the NFL’s best running back throne, and the Brian Daboll/Joe Schoen pairing looks like a grand slam hiring.
However, we are only halfway through the 2022 season. Now the Giants enter the stretch run, nine games in nine weeks, where will we learn whether or not the first eight weeks were a fluke or not.
It all starts this weekend when the Giants host the lowly Houston Texans. The Texans enter this weekend’s contest with a porous record of 1-6-1, the worst in the NFL. The Giants are 4-1 all-time against Houston and have won the last four contests. If the Giants want to play late into January or early February, a win against the Texans is mandatory. Here are four bold predictions for the Texans/Giants showdown Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
4. The New York Football Giants whoop the Houston Texans
To put it nicely, the Houston Texans stink. On defense, the Texans rank 19th in points allowed per game, 19th in passing yards allowed per game, 32nd in rushing yards allowed per game, and 30th in total yards allowed per game. If you think that is bad, on offense the Texans are a dumpster fire too. Houston ranks 29th in yards per game, 28th in points per game, 26th in passing yards per game, and 25th in rushing yards per game.
All six of the Giants victories have come by one possession this season, but this is the game the Giants will snap that trend. The Texans are lifeless, and play a lot of bad football. Coming out of the bye week the Giants are relatively healthy, and Daboll will have his boys fired up.
The Giants will get up on the Texans early, and will finally deliver the easy win their fans are craving. The offense, defense, and special teams will all thrive, as the G-Men whoop the Texans 34-17.
3. Saquon Barkley runs wild and racks up 200 scrimmage yards
The Houston Texans allow 180.6 rushing yards per game, the worst in the NFL. In fact, the next closest team, the Detroit Lions, only give up 148.8 yards rushing per game. On the flip side, the Giants rank fourth in the NFL in rushing, averaging a 161.5 rushing yards per game.
Saquon Barkley is the force driving the Giants rushing success, and is third in the NFL in both rushing and scrimmage yards. Barkley has been healthy all season and the two-week break will have him recharged with fresh legs.
The Giants have been very pass-happy early in games this season, but against the league’s worst run defense, Mike Kafka will simply just give the ball to his best weapon, and Barkley will pound the rock early and often.
The Giants offensive line has been dominant run blocking this season, and they will create massive holes that Barkley will burst through. Barkley will give the electric MetLife Stadium crowd one long touchdown run, and on Monday, all the talk in New York will be about how the Giants need to give Barkley an extension – this will come after more than 200 total yards for No. 26.
2. The Giants defense continues to dominate
The Giants defense gives up just 19.6 points per game, tied with the Jets for eight least in the NFL. The Texans however, score just 16.6 points per game. Davis Mills is in for a rough Sunday afternoon.
Wink Martindale, who we all know and have come to love, has called the most blitzes in the NFL this season. That is a major problem for Houston’s offensive line. According to ESPN analytics, The Texans offense has a team pass-block win rate of just 57 percent, tied for 20th in the NFL, and a team run-block win rate of 70 percent, seventh worst in the NFL. Blitzes are a major problem for offensive lines, but especially for offensive lines that have trouble stopping non-blitzing defenses.
With Xavier McKinney being sidelined due to his freak ATV accident, rookie fourth-round pick Dane Belton, who has played sparingly this season, will see significant playing time. Belton will be looking to make a statement and will play with his hair on fire, making multiple huge defensive plays.
The Giants defense will stick to their ways, and hold the Texans under 20 points. I would not be surprised if the Texans didn’t even sniff 10 points.
1. Kenny Golladay has the game we’ve been waiting for
Sure, why not? The first three predictions were somewhat bold, but this is next-level bold. Golladay has just two catches for 22 yards this season, and has not played since injuring his knee in the Week 3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. He will be back and fully healthy on Sunday, and this will be his breakout weekend.
Before the Giants loss to Seattle, Golladay told the New York Media the following:
"“I never have been a part of a team that was 6-1, so I’m definitely trying to get back out there. I get jealous of the guys in a good way. It motivates me even more to get out there with them just so I can put my little stamp on the game however that comes. If it’s in the blocking area, if it’s in the pass catching, that’s what I get jealous about just seeing those guys out there having fun with it.”"
That sound bite from Golladay seems like a drastic shift in perspective from training camp. Roman Poet Sextus Propertius famously said “absence makes the heart grow fonder” and maybe Golladay’s injury and lengthy absence has made him once again find a love for football.
There is no doubt Golladay is the most talented receiver currently on the Giants roster, and you know what, he is going to catch a touchdown this weekend.
The holiday season is here, and we’ll be saying “Happy Golladays” on Sunday. When Golladay catches a touchdown vs. Houston, MetLife Stadium will be so loud a seismograph will register an earthquake.