It's been a brutal week for the NY Giants franchise and their fans following the Week 1 disaster against the Minnesota Vikings. The Giants were never going to be contenders in 2024, but no one expected them to come out completely flat for the opening game of their 100th season.
However, the beauty of the NFL is they get to play another week. This Sunday, they'll visit the Washington Commanders and hopefully we a see a team ready for a bounce-back performance. Is an upset road victory on the way?
4. Daniel Jones puts up similar numbers to his rookie debut
We're going to take it all the way back to 2019 with this one when we were all young, dumb and full of hope for No. 8. As a rookie, Daniel Jones threw for 336 yards and two touchdowns, plus another two touchdowns with his feet against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This Sunday, we are going to see a similar performance from the man under center. Jones is going to throw for 300+ yards and have at least three total touchdowns against the Commanders.
No one in the NFL needs a big game quite like this guy. From playing like he's never thrown a football or been in a pocket to being booed by his home fans as he was leaving the stadium, Jones has earned the right to try to shut everyone up. The writing is on the wall for Jones, and his career as the Giants' starter is going to be over after this season. So, he'll go out there and give everyone one more false sense of hope he could be the guy, especially against the team he's 5-1-1 against.
3. Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux make a statement
As bad as Week 1 was, the defense was a positive. Take away an egregiously bad pass interference call which led to a Vikings touchdown, and the defense only allowed 14 points. However, there were two guys missing from all the fun. Kayvon Thibodeaux and prized offseason acquisition Brian Burns were seemingly no-shows. Burns only had four tackles and no sacks. Thibodeaux was basically out there getting cardio as he didn't do much of anything.
The defense is going to be what keeps the Giants in games and makes them at least manageable to get through. But, that won't happen if these two don't show up. The good news is they will this week. Between the two of them, they'll have 1.5 sacks and 10 tackles. We'll see our two anchors on the edge all over the field. Burns will give us hope he's worth the contract and trade capital and Thibodeaux will back up his talk about the Commanders not being a rival.
2. Andru Phillips secures his spot as the starting slot CB
One of the biggest positives on the defensive side of the ball was rookie slot corner Andru Phillips. Phillips had an immediate impact, forcing a fumble on the Vikings first drive and giving the Giants great field position. He ended his debut with the forced fumble along with four total tackles, including one for loss. He had a 90.9 coverage grade and an 84.3 overall grade per PFF.
This week, Phillips will have a game that makes the starting slot corner spot his for the foreseeable future. The rookie will post five tackles, four passes defended and his first career interception. Phillips makes it known he's the missing piece in the Giants' secondary and starts his journey to becoming a franchise staple. Phillips' play along with Thibodeaux and Burns showing up will give the Giants' defense some national respect.
1. Malik Nabers shows he's the future
The one bright spot on offense besides the offensive line play was prized draft pick Malik Nabers. Even with some disgusting quarterback play, Nabers still managed five catches for 66 yards. He showed as long as you can get the ball in his direction he can make a play. Whether it was getting separation, finding the soft spot in zone or making catches in traffic, the Giants' brass and fanbase have to be happy with what they saw from the rookie.
In the best way, Nabers builds on that performance. If Jones is going to throw for 300+ yards and a couple of touchdowns, all those passes have to go somewhere right? Nabers becomes the go-to target and has 10 receptions for more than 100 yards, including the first touchdown of what's hopefully a long career in Big Blue. The Commanders' defense has been talked about as one of the worst in the league and Nabers exploits that in a big way on Sunday.