The New York Giants overcame the Baltimore Ravens in their Week 6 matchup. Take a look at our analysis and grades for each unit.
The New York Giants picked up a much-needed victory on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, snapping a three-game losing streak. The Ravens seemed to have the game under control until the third quarter when the big play Football Giants took over.The final turned out to be 27-23, just a bit off from our 26-24 prediction in the pregame article. A rough offensive beginning put the defense in unenviable spots, but Eli Manning, Odell Beckham Jr., and the big play turned out to be Baltimore’s kryptonite in the second–half of the contest.
Anyhow, let’s dig into the specifics of the game and grade each unit of this Giants team.
Here are the New York Giants grades from their Week 6 victory against the Baltimore Ravens at MetLife Stadium:
Quarterback
Eli Manning (32-46, 403 YDS, 3 TD, 2 INT) took steps in the right direction to dig himself out of the early season hold he placed hiimself in.
He played quite well against the Ravens, especially when you consider that neither of his interceptions was his fault. He was much more accurate than he had been the past three weeks, and he connected with his receivers a whopping 32 times. Though he had a handful of throws that were either behind or too far in front of his receivers, his accuracy was acceptable.
Not to mention, he recorded both his 100th win and 300th touchdown of his career. You can say Manning had a good day.
GRADE: A-
Running Backs
What is the worst unit of this New York Giants team, you ask? It is, undoubtedly, the running backs.
Even with Rashad Jennings (9 CAR, 15 YDS) back, they couldn’t get anything going. The unit, as a whole, averaged an appalling 2.2 yards per carry.
The Giants should consider sticking with Darkwa and Rainey as their lead backs since Jennings only made this unit worse.
GRADE: D
Wide Receivers
Must I say anything? The picture above sums it all up. Odell Beckham Jr (8 REC, 222 YDS, 2 TD) was simply phenomenal. There is just no other way to put it. He single-handedly kept this team in the game.
Meanwhile, on one of the plays in which Beckham was out due to injury, Roger Lewis (1 REC, 24 YDS, 1 TD) stepped in and grabbed his first-ever NFL touchdown. Sterling Shepard (4 REC, 25 YDS) and Victor Cruz (3 REC, 31 YDS) had mediocre performances, but at the end of the day, this receiving unit won the game for the Giants.
GRADE: A
Offensive Line
What do you know, what do you say, the Giants offensive line had a solid day!
Eli Manning seemed to have re-gained some confidence in his offensive line, as he should have. They did their job in protecting Manning as he was only sacked one time.
In the run game, it is hard to say that the offensive line was bad since the running backs didn’t do much to help the cause. It would be nice to see the offensive line create some holes for the running backs so that the Giants can establish some type of a rushing threat.
Either way, it is nice to see Manning taking his time and completing his throws thanks to the stability of the offensive line.
GRADE: B
Defensive Line
Well, I’ll be darned. It looked like the defensive line actually generated a pass rush against the Ravens.
Olivier Vernon and Jason Pierre-Paul looked like different players in this game, pressuring Joe Flacco play in and play out. They received help from the linebackers and Landon Collins, but the pass rush was far superior than it has been in any other game this season.
On the other hand, the defensive line didn’t do so well against the run. Now, were they horrible? No. However, letting up 3.8 yards per carry is nothing to brag about. Specifically, Terrance West (23 CAr, 87 YDS, 2 TD) had his way against the Giants defensive line.
It would have been nice for the defensive line to both generate a pass rush and stop the run. However, this was a far better outing than anything we have seen from this unit all season, so it would be tough to complain.
GRADE: B
Linebackers
Jonathan Casillas, the captain of this Giants defense, shined throughout the day. He had one huge play when he tackled Terrance West short of the goal line on 4th-down. He continues to be the breakout player of this Giants defense.
The rest of the linebackers played OK. They didn’t do anything to stand out, which I guess is a good thing since standing out could mean making a bad play. Anyhow, the unit was solid in coverage, limiting Dennis Pitta (6 REC, 36 YDS). They did a quality job against the run, wrapping up Terrance West when they needed to. An overall solid performance by this unit.
GRADE: B
Cornerbacks
Janoris Jenkins continues to prove why he is worth $62.5M. Ignoring one play when Mike Wallace beat him deep down the sidelines, Jenkins knocked down just about every ball that was thrown to him. He played exceptionally.
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who was questionable to play with a groin injury, filled the nickel and played well. He had a great play at the end of the game, but the refs made a horrendous call throwing a flag for pass interference. Leon Hall, Coty Sensabaugh, and Trevin Wade all had limited playing time. They all played well when they got their reps.
Once again, this unit was by far the best unit of this Giants defense.
GRADE: A
Safeties
The Giants need to get Landon Collins some reps at wide receiver this week in practice cause he just can’t catch the football. Regardless of his butter-fingers, he had a great game. He was finally used to pursue Joe Flacco in the pass rush, and he even recorded a sack. In coverage, he struggled once again, but he made some great tackles all over the field. It was a great performance by Collins.
Andrew Adams also had a good game. It seems that Adams is finally getting comfortable in this Giants defense. He was promoted from the practice squad just over two weeks ago. He doesn’t have much time left as a starter, as Nat Berhe and Darian Thompson are both close to returning. However, at least the Giants know they have Adams in case there is another injury sustained by a safety at some point later this season.
GRADE: B+
Giants As A Team
Overall, this team still has a way to go to compete for a playoff spot. However, this win brings them to .500 as a team, which was vital. Now, the G-Men head to London to take on the Los Angeles Rams in a matchup favoring the Giants. For now, this team should be happy with how they played.