A A $1 ticket to an NFL game – or almost any professional sporting event – sounds like a phenomenal deal. But most bargains come with a catch, and Sunday was no exception: it had to be watch the New York Giants play football.
Still, a few bucks being part of the sights and sounds of an NFL game can be worth it, even if a Giants loss is predetermined. The Giants did indeed lose on Sunday, 14-11 to New Orleansbut the fine print neglected to mention the suffering that would come with watching the team’s latest botched job.
There is misery all around the Giants, hence the $1 tickets on resale. Eight straight losses will do that to a fan base. Fans are tired of the team’s woes a banner was flown over MetLife before the game with a clear message to the Giants’ owner: “Mr. Mara, enough – please fix this dumpster fire.”
The fire in the waste container was intense. It starts with owner John Mara and his recent string of failed head coaches, from Pat Shurmur to Joe Judge and Brian Daboll, who is 17-29 after Sunday’s loss. It continues with a general manager, Joe Schoen, who has failed miserably when it comes to developing the two most important aspects of the offense: the o-line and the quarterback (some blame must be given to his predecessor, Dave Gettleman for drafting the now ex-Giant Daniel Jones so high in the first place).
But despite the negative atmosphere surrounding MetLife, the Giants did something remarkable for a team whose season is long over. They almost won, thanks to their defense, which had their best day of the season in terms of points allowed (14), their second-best for yards allowed (292), and the biggest upset: Tre Hawkins III collected the first interception of the team since Week 1.
Unfortunately, to win games, a team also has to score points. Drew Lock has no business being the starting quarterback in the NFL at this point. Lock failed to complete 28 of his 49 passes. Some were drops, but most were his fault or the result of a limited offensive playbook.
But special teams had a special place in screwing this thing up. First, Graham Gano had a 48-yard field goal that was negated by an unnecessary roughness penalty on Jake Kubas. Then, with a chance to send the game to overtime, Gano’s 35-yarder was blocked. That’s the kind of field goal that should be routine, but Gano doesn’t necessarily agree.
“I don’t think you can blame our boys for that, they played a good game. They also have great athletes at their side,” he told reporters after the match.
Hey? You can and should assign blame. It’s called accountability, something else the Giants have been lacking from top to bottom this season.
Do Giants fans really have to keep this up for four more weeks, starting with Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens next week? At least there are some bright spots. Rookie wideout Malik Nabers is a clear talent who can rise even with an average quarterback. Nabers is dealing with a hip injury and the Giants need to preserve his health and sanity and lock him down for the rest of the season. The emergence of fellow rookie Tyrone Tracy as a running back was a fun story. Tracy found the end zone for the Giants’ only touchdown of the day. Linebacker Micah McFadden is also a stud. But apart from the injured Dexter Lawrence and Bobby Okereke, this team doesn’t get much deeper.
There is a lot of work to do. A cleanup seems inevitable, and the Giants are in a good position. They are currently holding the No. 2 pick in the draft. And with Jones’ cap hit dropping from $41.61 million to $22.2 million, the presumed new GM will have an extra $20 million to play with. But Mara has to put the right people in place. And based on the precedent of decisions coming from Mara and the organization, Giants fans should probably temper expectations. Until this team makes major changes, they aren’t even worth a dollar to watch.
MVP of the week
Sam Darnold, quarterback, Minnesota Vikings. Atlanta-Minnesota has long been heralded as Kirk Cousins’ revenge game. But the only revenge in this one was Darnold against MVP voters who dismissed him from the conversation. He was sensational in it the Vikings’ 42-21 victory over Atlantawith a career-high five touchdowns and 347 passing yards. Darnold’s passer rating of 157.9 Sunday was his eleventh 100+ passer rating this season. It wasn’t just the monster numbers; they were the style points along the way. Most notable was a third-and-8 late in the third quarter, when Darnold calmly avoided pressure and found Justin Jefferson deep amid blown coverage for a walk-in 52-yard touchdown. He made smart decisions and beautiful throws all day, creating fruitful outings for Jefferson and Jordan Addison. Darnold capped the career performance in the final minutes by standing on the bench, waving a towel and taking in the crowd’s raucous MVP chants.
Now 11-2, the Vikings have far exceeded preseason expectations thanks to Darnold’s resurgence. No matter what happens this year, Vikings brass should be working on a contract extension for Darnold. This is clearly his team now, even with JJ McCarthy waiting in the wings.
Video of the week
Tom Brady said it best. “You’ve got to be kidding me” sums up this absolutely insane toe-dragging catch from Puka Nacua. Nacua had plenty of other great moments in the Rams’ 44-42 thrilling win over the Bills and only gets better in its second season. The Rams, who had a 17-point lead at one point, needed all of Nacau’s 12 catches and 162 yards. Josh Allen took Buffalo to the brink of an astonishing upset: He had six touchdowns on the day, three as a rusher and three as a passer – the first player in history to do so. The Bills lost, but Allen reaffirmed that he is the most dangerous player in the NFL.
Statistic of the week
The Philadelphia Eagles failed to score for the 10th time in the first quarter this season. Sure, her defeated Carolina 22-16 and Saquon Barkley broke LeSean McCoy’s franchise record for most rushing yards in a season. At 11-2, Philly is chasing Detroit very hard for the coveted No. 1 seed in the playoffs. But they need to stop playing with fire. Only two of the scoreless first quarters resulted in losses, and this was dangerously close to the third quarter. Despite a tough season, Carolina has become a difficult opponent.
The Panthers mostly ran a balanced, smart offense, while the Eagles’ passing struggles continued. Still, a team with Super Bowl hopes should beat the Panthers. Ultimately, this was a ping-pong nail-biter thanks to some Panthers mistakes. Most dramatically, Xavier Legette failed to hold on for a tying touchdown with 44 seconds left. The Kentucky gambler who had wagered $3.1 million on an Eagles win, should send Legette a portion of his winnings. The rest of us should hold off on Eagles betting until they learn how to put up points in the first quarter, because their early game woes are dangerously close to catching up to them.
Elsewhere in the NFL
Of course, the Kansas City Chiefs got the win on Sunday Night Football. Their 19-17 win over the Los Angeles Chargers was their 10th one-score victory this season, and also captured the AFC West, KC’s ninth straight division title. We’re sure the Chiefs will be discovered every week, but they keep winning, and Patrick Mahomes keeps raising his game when it counts: Their game-sealing drive lasted almost five minutes and the quarterback ran away from the time of the defenders and again to set up the winning field goal.
One piece of good news for the Giants: They may not be the worst football team in New York, and at least they have some familiarity with the postseason. The Jets, meanwhile, will miss the playoffs for the 14th straight season – and this was a year in which they should have been an outside contender for the Super Bowl. Sunday’s loss a 32-26 heartbreaker in OTwas among the least embarrassing in New York. The Jets played perhaps their best football of the season, but let the lead slip away in the fourth quarter. With the Jets taking the lead 26-23 with 52 seconds left, Miami’s Malik Washington returned the kickoff 45 yards to set up the tying field goal. The Dolphins won the overtime throw and drove down the field for the win.
Jameis Winston had the idea to be Cleveland’s long-term solution at quarterback and threw it straight at the opposing team. Sunday’s version of Winston featured two interceptions, one in the fourth quarter, and a more tepid passing game than we’ve seen in recent weeks. The result was a 27-14 victory for the red-hot Steelers and a non-committal answer from Browns coach Kevin Stefanski about who will be his starting quarterback next week.
The san francisco 49ers regained consciousness after last week’s battering in buffalo en route to an easy 38-13 win over the Chicago Bears. Interim Bears head coach Thomas Brown didn’t inspire much confidence in his debut. Brock Purdy, George Kittle and Co destroyed Chicago’s weak zone defense. As usual, Caleb Williams had some bright spots, but he held the ball too long in certain spots. San Francisco is still in the playoff hunt at 6-7.
Another week, another smooth one-handed catch for rookie tight end Brock Bowers. The Raiders aren’t going anywhere – Tampa beat them 28-13 on Sunday – but the No. 12 overall pick in the draft is breaking records. Bowers’ 87th reception Sunday gave him the NFL rookie record for tight ends. Next goal: Break Nacua’s record of 105 receptions each newcomer. Bowers may already be the NFL’s best tight end. Imagine what he could do with an upgrade at quarterback.