5 takeaways from the NY Giants incredibly clutch win over the Commanders

That’s what we’re talking about, baby! Despite being 1-3-1 entering Sunday Night Football in their last five games, the NY Giants played with plenty of confidence in primetime going up against the Washington Commanders.

Just about everyone in the national media picked Washington to win, but the G-Men delivered for head man Brian Daboll and battled to post a 20-12 win. On both sides of the ball, several guys stepped up to make sure the Giants’ postseason hopes could remain strong.

This was a must-win game for Big Blue, and damnit, these guys showed some major stones in Week 15. Washington nearly tied things late, but the Giants closed it out. Here’s our takeaways from the action.

5. Daniel Jones made some huge throws for the Giants

As usual, the stats aren’t going to jump off the page for Daniel Jones, but goodness, this kid made some massive throws with pressure in his face against the Commanders. We’re of course going to have to bring up his completion to Richie James on 4th-and-9 late in the second quarter, with Daboll putting trust in his signal-caller.

On that  4th down play, Jones tossed an absolute rope to James, who hauled in the pigskin and then fell to the turf beyond the sticks. Not only was this a great throw by Jones, but James came up big for his quarterback. On such a key play, who would have thought No. 80 (James) would be the one to have his number called?

James made the sweet grab, but again, Jones was on the money. It wasn’t his only strong play of the night, as he managed to help the Giants move the ball consistently with his arm and legs, especially on that particular drive (more below). Following the completion to James, Saquon Barkley, who ran the ball like a beast late in the fourth quarter, was able to score shortly after to put the Giants up 14-3. It was all set up by the Jones completion.

4. The 97-yard drive to close the first half was a thing of beauty

When Washington punted the ball and pinned the Giants down at their own three yard line, we don’t blame you if you feared the worst for NY. People were probably nervous wrecks thinking Jones would get tackled in the end zone for a safety. The opposite turned out to be the case, with the G-Men going 97 yards on 18 plays.

That’s not a typo – 18 plays and 97 freaking yards for a touchdown by Barkley to put Big Blue up 14-3. Earlier in the game, a lot of folks were furious with the play-calling of Mike Kafka. He got back on people’s good sides on this particular drive, as Barkley, Jones, James and Isaiah Hodgins were brilliant.

This was just what the doctor ordered for the Giants. This offense has looked so bad in the first half quite a bit this season. For them to get back on track on this drive and deliver a powerful punch on Washington ahead of halftime was huge.

We already discussed the 4th-down completion to James, but you’ve got to give a ton of credit to Hodgins too. He made some monstrous catches for Danny Dimes too, including one that set the Giants up with 1st and goal. Two plays later, Barkley celebrated his score.

3. Landon Collins was fantastic in his revenge game vs. Washington

With how bad the linebacker play has been for the Giants this season, someone has been needed to make major noise for the group. On Sunday, it was Landon Collins who had himself an execeptional showing, doing so against his former team. The Giants made the call to elevate Collins from the practice squad for this game and it proved to be a genius decision.

Collins was all over the field against the Commanders and his huge tackle on 3rd down to stop Curtis Samuel short of a first down late in the third quarter was a game-changer. Collins has loads of experience and it’s what this defensive unit needs at linebacker. Again, the LB play has been a disaster.

However, Collins showcased just how strong of a tackler he is. Moving forward, there is no reason to not have him see extensive playing time the rest of the way. Come Christmas Eve against the Vikings, we not only want to see Collins in uniform, but we also want to see No. 21 get the start against an explosive Minnesota offense.

2. Kayvon Thibodeaux was spectacular for the NY Giants on Sunday

Make no mistake about it, this was the Kayvon Thibodeaux (12 tackles, 3 TFL, one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one score) game. Goodness me, what a spectacular, out of this world showing by the No. 5 overall pick. Leading up to the SNF clash, Thibodeaux was asked if he liked playing in prime time, and he said ‘prime time likes me.” The pass-rusher wasn’t telling any lies there.

He got things going with a bang for the Giants on defense, posting a strip sack on Taylor Heinicke. Not only that, Thibodeaux then had the presence of mind to grab the ball and power his way into the end zone to put the Giants up 7-3. With the offense not looking hot on the opening few drives, this was just what the Giants needed.

Thibodeaux belongs in the Defensive Rookie of the Year conversation. While his sacks and tackles weren’t high to start off his NFL career, he was always being disruptive. In recent weeks, Thibodeaux has been seeing much more success in getting to the QB and getting him down.

His play against Washington in Week 13 was fantastic and he was even better in Week 15. Cheers to the youngster on his breakout game. We loved that it came with the world watching.

1. The Giants win means the playoffs are in sight

This was the biggest game of the year, and the pressure couldn’t be measured for the Giants. With a loss, you basically could have said goodbye to the idea of watching this team suit up for the Wild Card Round. With the way the Giants had been playing of late, we don’t blame you if you thought this would be a long night.

Instead, the Giants managed to silence all of their doubters. When the going got tough, the Giants didn’t crumble. After punting the ball to Washington early on in the third quarter, the Commanders drove right down the field and scored on a TD from Heinicke to Jahan Dotson. With the missed PAT, it cut NY’s lead to 14-9.

As soon as Washington scored, everyone in New York and New Jersey got worried. The momentum had shifted, and we all felt like we knew how this movie would end. Instead, the Giants rose to the occassion and recorded the necessary plays late to improve to 8-5-1. The Giants were far from perfect, but they posted the win.

How about that sack and forced fumble by Dexter Lawrence with Washington looking to take the lead too? Love you, Sexy Dexy. Oh, and Graham Gano… you legend. The stud kicker drilled a pair of 50-yard field goals, including the one with less than two minutes to go to give NY its eight-point lead. Gano has been so clutch this season, and he broke Washington hearts at FedEx Field.

There’s still three games left, but NY’s odds to play in the postseason have skyrocketed. There’s still a long way to go, but the Giants are in fantastic shape thanks to the SNF result.

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