In the first Primetime game of the New York Football Giants season, the Joe Judge era began with a 26-16 loss at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers Monday night. However, the loss did have plenty of bright spots, and some takeaways that could be improved on going into next week’s matchup on the road against the Chicago Bears.
THE GOOD
Defense:
Blake Martinez and the Giants front seven were FLYING around the field last night. Coach Judge and his staff have preached aggressiveness and effort since the start of camp, and it showed on the defensive end Monday night. Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham and his group looked pretty solid. Blake Martinez led the team with 12 total tackles, eight of them were solo. This is what was expected of Martinez, who signed as a free agency this past spring. He has been a tackling machine throughout his career, recording 140 or more tackles the last three seasons. Leonard Williams also played well on the interior line, recording a sack which was for a loss of 12 yards. This defensive group, specifically the front seven looked lightyears better compared to what we saw last season, although a few big plays and mistakes led to touchdowns, this defense took multiple steps in the right direction.
Offense:
Andrew Thomas is for real. Since Nate Solder’s decision to opt out of the season due to reasons relative to COVID-19, fourth overall pick in this past year’s draft took the spot he was waiting in the wings to take over. Overall the line was more of the same. Not able to give Jones a decent amount of time in the pocket, and relying on Saquon Barkley’s talents to get the run game going, but Thomas stood out. Even though the offensive line took steps in the right direction, Andrew Thomas seems to be ahead of the curve. Another stand out on the offense was Darius Slayton. The second-year receiver out of Auburn showed great promise last year, recording 740 receiving yards and eight touchdowns as a rookie. In the game against Pittsburgh, Slayton had six receptions for 102 yards, also finding the end zone twice. The connection of Daniel Jones and Darius Slayton is fantastic for the two second year players, and as time goes on, the opposition will put such a focus on Slayton that receivers like Sterling Shepard and Golden Tate will be open for Danny Dimes.
THE BAD
Defense:
The lack of depth at the cornerback position came and bit the Giants Monday night. Corey Ballentine was exposed last night, getting burned multiple times, and failing to realize multiple coverage packages that led to touchdowns. It could be considered growing pains for the second year player who was selected 180th overall in 2019, he should not be the other starter. Newly acquired Isaac Yiadom could see more reps in front of Ballentine going forward. Yiadom, a former fourth round pick of the Denver Broncos, was acquired in a trade for a seventh round pick a few weeks before opening night, really knows how to protect the deep ball, and plays tough man to man coverage.
Offense:
As a Giant fan and a journalist, I don’t think since drafting Saquon Barkley someone would write the following: the running game could not get going. Barkley carried the ball 15 times for six… yes SIX yards. This raises a few questions, was this on the offensive line? Or was it because of the talent the Pittsburgh Steelers have on the defensive side of the ball this season? Although Barkley did have six catches for 60 yards, the running game was invisible for the first time in a long time. The former Penn State Nittany Lion usually makes something out of nothing, but that was not the case last night. However, this is a minor bump in the road for one of the best running backs in the game. Expect more of a focus on the running game next week in Chicago.
Although the 0-1 start is not what anyone was hoping for, there were some bright spots. For the first time since Tom Coughlin was at the helm, this team feels as if there is a real sense of direction. Things will click over time. As the saying goes “the season is a marathon, not a sprint”.
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