New York Giants 3, Dallas Cowboys 19: O-Line Pathetic in Defeat (Highlights) 2
ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 10: Eli Manning #10 of the New York Giants is sacked for a loss by Demarcus Lawrence #90 of the Dallas Cowboys in the first quarter at AT&T Stadium on September 10, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

The New York Giants were pathetically dominated by the Dallas Cowboys, 19-3, on ‘Sunday Night’Football’ in Week 1 of the NFL season. 

  • New York Giants 3 (0-1)
  • Dallas Cowboys 19 (1-0)
  • NFL, Week 1, Final, Box Score
  • AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas

Well, if you’re a New York Giants fan, that’s not exactly the start you’d want. The same thing that we all expected to happen, happened. The Giants went into the Jerry dome and were downright brutal.

The New York Giants fell to the division rival Dallas Cowboys, 19-3.

First thing’s first, the offensive line was abysmal.

The Cowboys never really had to bring extra pressure the entire night and the Giants offensive line was beyond lost. When both of the offensive tackles are absolutely lost on the field, there’s not much you can do.

It didn’t help that Odell Beckham was ruled out of tonight’s game 20 days after suffering an ankle sprain against the Browns in the preseason.

Defensively, I thought the Giants were pretty good. When you’re stuck on the field for the entire game, there is not much that you can do defensively. The Giants allowed 19 points the whole night. Against teams who can actually move the ball, that effort would typically be enough to win a ballgame.

In the first half, the Giants played a bend, don’t break defense and they provided the offense every possible chance to win. After holding the Cowboys on the first drive, the Giants got the ball and ran three plays for negative-one yard. They punted away and the Boys put the first score on the board through a Dan Bailey 21-yard field goal.

The Giants again ran another three plays, leading to a punt. Through two drives the Giants ran a grand total of six plays. That just does not cut it. I understand they did not have Beckham, but to flat-out not be able to move the ball is seriously troubling.

After adding another field goal, Dallas got the ball back and scored the first and only touchdown of the night. It was set up by a super questionable pass interference call on a throw down the left sideline to Dez Bryant. It looked like Janoris Jenkins broke the play up nicely, but the flag was thrown and the drive was capped by Giants killer Jason Witten (who, on the night, became the Cowboys all-time leading receiver).

After the Cowboys touchdown, the Giants went three and out again, leading to another field goal.

The Giants got the ball back with 1:41 left in the first half. Eli Manning has led the Giants on many successful two-minute drills, so there was potential hope that he could at least get the Giants on the board. Instead, the Giants went three and out in 22 seconds, leading to yet another Dan Bailey field goal.

The G-Men went into the second half trailing 16-0 in a situation that probably could have been 13-3.

In the first half, the Cowboys ran 50 plays to the Giants 19. The defense stood no chance halfway through the second quarter and they still only allowed 16 points.

In the second half, the Giants finally moved the ball past their own 35-yard line and actually started to move the ball a little bit. The Giants finally got down to the Dallas 5-yard line and on first down, Paul Perkins got the ball and was stuffed after a one yard gain.

The play on second down basically summed up the entire night. Manning was in the shotgun, the Cowboys sent four pass rushers and three got to the QB. He was sacked for a nine-yard loss which would set up a Rosas field goal for the Giants only points of the night.

On the first drive of the fourth quarter, Big Blue had an opportunity to pick up a long fourth down when Eli had Brandon Marshall wide open in the flat. He straight up missed him. There was nobody in front of B-Marsh and he may still be running if the throw was on target. That basically sums up how Marshall’s Giants debut went. On four targets, Marshall had one catch for 10 yards. Without Beckham in the lineup, it’s going to be hard for Marshall to make plays, and that was glaring tonight.

Cole Beasley of the Cowboys made an unbelievable catch on third and seven to kill a lot more time from the Giants. Eli Apple almost had a pick six and somehow Beasley held onto the ball with his back. The Cowboys would end up punting on the drive, but they lost field position and time.

A few possessions after that, Eli avoided a sack and then hit rookie Evan Engram for 31 yards down the sideline. The very next play he was looking for Roger Lewis Jr. on a slant and was intercepted by Anthony Brown, which basically ended the Giants night. The Cowboys would tack on another field goal to cap it off.

There is nothing on the offensive side of the ball that the Giants can take as a positive. The offensive line is one of the worst in the NFL and without Beckham, throwing the ball downfield is nearly impossible. On the defensive side, the Giants are still really well off. They’re going to keep this team in games this season. It’s just up to the offense to convert.

Manning was an abysmal 29-for-38 for 220 yards and an interception.

The 0-1 Giants have a lot of work to do before they take on the Detroit Lions in their home opener next week on Monday night.

 NEXT: Ranking the 10 Most Important Giants 

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Chris Kowalchuk
I'm a Communications Major at St. Thomas Aquinas College and have a passion for sports. My favorite teams are the Devils, Giants, Yankees, Knicks, and Tottenham Hotspurs. I'm excited to be able to share my love of sports on the site.

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