Giants overcome injuries and more in upset of the Packers
Packers #Packers
Overseas, with their starting quarterback hobbled with an ankle injury and bleeding from his right wrist, and with their best offensive weapon sidelined after a hard tackle in the second half, the New York Giants found a way to emerge victorious over Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers.
Is it time to take the Giants for real?
In the early going, it looked like it would be a rough afternoon for Brian Daboll and the Giants. After all, not only were they entering the game against the Packers undermanned, with a number of key players ruled out during to injury, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium felt more like Lambeau Field due to the heavy contingent of Packers fans in attendance. Just listen to this crowd when Rodgers was introduced prior to the game:
Surely enough, Green Bay got out to an early lead as the Packers passer threw a pair of touchdown passes, first to Randall Cobb and then to veteran tight end Marcedes Lewis, using a nifty bit of play-action trickery and ball-handling on the short touchdown toss to his tight end:
But then, the Giants offense started to make some plays. A big run from Saquon Barkley out of a Wildcat formation got New York deep into Packers’ territory:
Then the Giants finally reached the end zone, with another bit of brilliant design from Daboll as they dialed up the reverse down near the goal line:
In the second half, the New York defense started to make some noise. They held the Packers to a field goal on Green Bay’s first possession of the second half, with defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence finding a way to get to Rodgers for a sack early in the possession:
Then as the third quarter drew to a close, the Giants were on the move again. Barkley was out due to a shoulder injury suffered on a tackle, and with Daniel Jones bleeding from the right wrist, the offense still found a way to move the football. A big play on the drive was this connection from Jones to backup wide receiver Marcus Johnson, setting the Giants up with a first down inside the red zone:
New York would cap off the drive with this touchdown plunge from Gary Brightwell, tying the game at 20:
Suddenly, the fans in the stands were on the edge of their seats, including Idris Elba, Kit Harrington and … Aaron Rodgers himself?
The Giants defense stood tall on the next possession, forcing a three-and-out from Rodgers and the Packers. Suddenly, New York had a chance to take the lead, despite trailing by two touchdowns in the first half.
Jones and company did just that, thanks in large part to the return of their talented running back. With Barkley back in the game, Jones looked in his direction early in the drive, targeting the running back on this shallow route and letting Barkley do the rest:
Earlier this week we discussed how Barkley’s first-round traits have been on display this season, including his incredible direction skills. This replay from the long gain offers yet another look at this ability:
Then just outside the end zone, it was time to put the football in Barkley’s hands yet again:
Barkley’s touchdown run gave the Giants a seven-point lead with just over six minutes remaining, but with Rodgers on the other sideline, a thrilling finish was certainly in the cards. Green Bay marched right down the field on their ensuing possession, and as the two-minute warning arrived, the Packers faced a first down inside the New York 20-yard line.
Eventually, the Packers would face a 3rd and short from the 6-yard line. With two cracks to pick up the first down — and perhaps more — Matt LaFleur put the ball in Rodgers’ hands.
Both times his throw fell incomplete.
On third down, Rodgers looked in the direction or Randall Cobb, but rookie pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux stepped into the throwing lane and knocked down the pass, forcing fourth down:
Then on fourth down, Rodgers tried to connect with Allen Lazard but Xavier McKinney, blitzing off the edge, deflected the throw, forcing the turnover on downs:
With the game on the line, it is probably not a surprise to see defensive coordinator Wink Martindale dial up pressure and attack the quarterback. It pays off, as the Giants took over on downs.
New York used a trio of kneeldowns from Jones to work as much time off the clock as they could, but since the Packers still had a pair of time outs, they were forced to give the ball back to Rodgers one more time. But first? An intentional safety, rather than a punt out of their end zone.
Perhaps the Giants took a lesson from the Week 3 butt punt.
It looked like Rodgers would get one final throw, as Amari Rodgers returned the ensuing free kick to the Packers’ 41-yard line. Green Bay’s offense took the field with time for one more play, but they would not get a chance to run a play, thanks to a false start penalty on tackle David Bakhtiari. With the penalty occurring with under ten seconds remaining, the subsequent ten-second run off drew the game to a close.
Dropping the Packers to 3-2 on the season, as the Giants improved to 4-1.
Is it time to take New York for real?
Entering Week 5, it seemed as if the Giants’ resume was paper-thin. Wins over the Tennessee Titans, Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears did not exactly instill confidence. But with this victory, particularly how the Giants found a way to battle back in the game despite dealing with a number of injuries, might put the rest of the NFC East on notice.