As the old coaches adage goes, “a team should never apologize for a win.” But to many Giants fans this was a win that was less than favorable as it came at the expense of a better position in the 2015 draft. Regardless, the Giants got the win and remain in a strong position (7th overall) to select a top tier prospect for next season. On to the game review.
Offensively we were given more of the same of what we’ve become accustomed to–a poor running game, sometimes suspect pass protection (both can be attributed to another poor effort from a sub par offensive line) and Odell Beckham dominating yet another outing.
Beckham finished with a career high 12 catches (on 15 targets) for 143 yards. He also found himself on the right side of two pass interference penalties totaling in 50+ yards. For kicks, OBJ also drew a 15-yard taunting penalty against Bashaud Breeland on a ball that he did catch. Additionally, OBJ had a 30+yd touchdown (which would have netted him four on the day) called back due to an offensive holding penalty.
Beckham continues to amaze and has proven to be worth the wait after missing the Giants’ first four games of the season. As Andy has maintained this season (and any sensible person should agree), the Giants cannot continue to run the risk of running OBJ out as the team’s punt returner. The risk certainly outweighs the reward here. Let’s hope the team comes to it’s senses on this one.
While the Cruz injury was an unfortunate turn in the season, you can’t help but wonder if Beckham would have truly blossomed in the way he has this season with the Giants OTHER star receiver on the field. As Andy has mentioned all season long, it has never been about the 2014 season and with some progress on offense (we have seen that) under McAdoo and some improved personnel on the o-line, the Giants offense can be a force to be reckoned with in 2015. If Cruz is able to return to even 90% of what he once was, this will be a dangerous combination next season.
The offensive line once again proved to be less than competent and showed an inability to get any sort of push in the running game. The group consistently lost the battle at the point of attack and as a result the running game was stagnant. This has been the case for most of the season with the exception of last week’s matchup against Tennessee’s brutal run defense. Whether it’s through the draft or free agency, the offensive line must again be addressed in the 2015 offseason.
Much like the offensive output, the Giants defense showed more of what we’ve become accustomed to in recent weeks. A decent to strong effort up front and poor tackling and production in the back seven. As Banks continues to mention on both the broadcast and his weekly WFAN spot, this group struggles with both “assignment football” and the ability to tackle ball carriers. As he said–this is the difference between a defense with good individuals and a defense that is collectively a good unit. Again, when healthy (and as we know from Andy’s posts this is a whole nother issue) this unit has the individuals, when properly prepared, to be a strong defensive unit.
Up front, JPP and Jonathan Hankins both once again turned in a strong effort, recording 2.5 sacks apiece and several other QB pressures. To compliment that, both Devon Kennard and Damontre Moore were forces in the pass rush and that has to be a great sign for 2015 with the teams best 2014 pass rusher (Robert Ayers) returning at full strength to start next season. Even pre-season standout Kerry Wynn showed that he may be worthy of a spot in the 2015 DE rotation.
Kennard continues to impress as a pass rusher, tackler, and sometimes in coverage. He looks to be a 5th round steal for the Giants, taking some (albeit not much) of the pressure off of Reese who has been criticized for some of his draft choices, particularly at the LB spot.
I continue to wonder if the next Giants defensive coordinator (we can only hope that Perry Fewell is not welcomed back next season) is of the 3-4 variety as the personnel seems to be in place. Both Kennard and Moore seem to be strong options for 3-4 OLBs, JPP/Ayers ends and Hankins possibly a strong 2-gap nose tackle in the defense. Just a hunch and something to think about as we all inevitably look towards next season.
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