New York Giants-Pittsburgh Steelers immediate reaction | Wide Right Podcast 33

Episode No. 33 of the Wide Right Podcast will recap the New York Giants’ 26-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers to begin the 2020 season.

In the New York Giants‘ first regular-season matchup of the year, which took place against the Pittsburgh Steelers at MetLife Stadium this past Monday night, there were many things to pay attention to on the field. Would the offensive playcalling be different under Jason Garrett? Would the offensive line and defense improve from last year? Was Daniel Jones going to start righting the wrongs from his turnover-filled rookie campaign?

And after four quarters, we now possess a glimpse of the answers to each of the aforementioned questions. Luckily, the Wide Right Podcast is back to discuss it all on episode No. 33.

We’ll talk about how the defense looked a lot better than last year during the first half, but how Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense figured out the Giants’ young unit after halftime. Corey Ballentine seemed to struggle all night and free-agent acquisition James Bradberry couldn’t keep up with JuJu Smith-Schuster on a late Steelers touchdown. Someone who stood out though was inside linebacker Blake Martinez. The veteran, who the Giants signed to a three-year deal back in March, led the team with 12 combined tackles in the 26-16 loss.

The episode will additionally recap the flashes of potential on the offensive side of the ball, including Jones’ pair of touchdown passes to Darius Slayton. Nonetheless, the offensive line didn’t look great, allowing a trio of sacks. Saquon Barkley also experienced a very rough game, only racking up six rushing yards on 15 carries.

Evan Engram was an additional offensive weakness, missing numerous blocks and dropping a pass early in the game. Not to mention, he also had a first-down reception wiped out due to an offensive pass interference call.

The Giants weren’t embarrassed, but they definitely have things to work on prior to Sunday’s Week 2 matchup against Chicago.

You can listen to the latest episode of the Wide Right Podcast at the top of the page. It can additionally be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Google Play, and Google Podcasts.