Preseason is easier when you play against a minor league team. The Giants first teams were better. The score was made closer by a late H2 comeback led by 3 Bryce Petty TDs.
So what did we see incrementally in the 3rd Preseason game? Throughout preseason we have seen dominance from both Landon Collins and Jason Pierre-Paul. That continued vs the Jets. Collins and JPP are moving at a different speed. It does remind me how Lawrence Taylor would make limited preseason appearances; he’d go through the motions and make plays effortlessly. In similar fashion, Collins is moving on auto-pilot. He is making tackle after tackle. Tonight he punctuated his dominance with a textbook Pick 6.
JPP wreaked havoc at the line of scrimmage. He stood out with a Safety which set the tone for a dominant defensive showing.
The Offense is the unit which needs improvement. They saw some in the first TD generated all preseason. Mock cheers. The OL played against a terrific Jets DL. While they did not look good, they did not look awful either, which is enough to declare a mild win. Yup, that’s a pathetic way to grade them on a curve. What we did see was some glimpses of success where the 11 man unit was able to move the sticks with some passing. John Jerry was manhandled by Sheldon Richardson, which partially caused an INT.
The run game is weak. We did see some better running by Perkins and Darkwa, benefiting from some nice holes. The Giants shook up the preseason vanilla playcalling a tad, which aided the run efficiency.
Nugent and Rosas will both get jobs in the NFL. The question is who the Giants take. I cannot see why the Giants would pass up on Rosas, who is the younger kicker. Still, Nugent hit FGs from 50 & 54 yards, making a case. Maybe the Giants can trade one of them if a team desperate for a FG kicker does not want to take a chance on the waiver wire. It is a longshot, but you never know.
Geno Smith makes poor decisions. Both Smith and Johnson are uninspiring. At this point I would almost rather go with 2 QBs on the roster: Manning and Webb.
Engram, Shepard and Rudolph looked good in the passing game. Engram is going to be a matchup nightmare, if not this season, certainly by his second year. In his rookie campaign he will see enough single coverage to make an impact. I do not know what opposing Defenses do when he requires more attention. Which all goes back to the OL… with even a modicum of protection Eli will be able to pick apart defenses. Plays like the one where Jerry is destroyed in his pass block are a reminder of why the Giants Offense can struggle mightily.
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