Giants Struggles Continue in Latest Fail vs. Dallas: Instant Reaction

The Giants abysmal 2021 season can be summed up simply as "rinse and repeat" as they continue to hurt themselves.

Author:
Michael Lee
Publish date:
Dec 19, 2021 6:24 PM EST

In this story:

The New York Giants continue their struggles with a 21-6 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The loss marks the Giants third consecutive double-digit loss with virtually an unwatchable offense. Quarterback Mike Glennon finished with 99 passing yards and three interceptions and was eventually benched for Jake Fromm.

Fromm was the only offensive positive to glean from a terrible offensive performance. He led a 13-play, 84-yard drive that didn't result in any points, but the offense established a rhythm with two third-down conversions. Then again, the bar was already set low as Fromm finished the game 6 of 13 for 82 yards.

The Giants' rushing attack averaged 5.2 yards per carry, but there were far too many stops at the line of scrimmage. Devontae Booker ripped off several long runs, the most impressive coming on a 4th-and-1, 31-yard gain.

Head coach Joe Judge deviated from his typical conservative nature and ended up one of three on fourth downs and had the offense lined up for another 4th down deep in his own territory. Unfortunately, much to the dismay of Saquon Barkley, right tackle Matt Peart moved before the snap, effectively ending the fourth-down inverted wishbone play.

The Giants committed six penalties for 34 yards, but they seem to come at the most inopportune times. Peart had two false start penalties that ended a Giants’ drive.

Receiver Sterling Shepard, who left the game with an Achilles injury, had a false start, and the Giants also had too many men on the field penalty. At times, there’s no doubt that the Giants are their own worst enemy, but the offense is still unwatchable.

Dropped passes, mistakes missed blocking assignments, and just terrible mental errors prevent the offense from establishing anything respectable.

Backup quarterback Mike Glennon is also a major problem. He’s prone to mistakes, can’t move well, and consistently puts the football in harm's way. Fromm, who relieved Glennon in garbage time, should have an opportunity to start next week.

RELATED: Giants Receiver Sterling Shepard Suffered Torn Achilles

The defense was another bright spot for the Giants. They surrendered a few field goals, a rushing touchdown to Ezekiel Elliott, and a touchdown in the back of the end zone to tight end Dalton Schultz. Despite an offense that failed to maintain consistent possession, the defense only allowed 328-yards.

Lorenzo Carter had his best season since Week 5 in the 2020 season. Carter had two sacks, one resulting in a fumble recovered by the Giants. The good field position was squandered by a Glennon interception thrown to Trevon Diggs, an interception was initially ruled incomplete due to Kenny Golladay’s good defense but was challenged and overturned.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was sacked by Giants edge Quincy Roche and Azeez Ojulari on a 3rd-and-4 resulting in a Greg Zuerlein field goal attempt. The young players on the defensive side of the football are playing with pride, and former Cowboy linebacker Jaylen Smith also earned a significant snap share.

The 2021 Giants can always be summed up in one embarrassing sequence of plays every week. Against the Cowboys, that sequence materialized before halftime. The Giants defense bent but didn’t break, as the Cowboys led a 16-play 68-yard drive that ended in a Zuerlein field goal.

New York received the ball with two timeouts and 1:39 left in the half, with the score 12-3. There was little evidence of the Giants’ offense displaying competence up to this point in the game. The Giants had to get some points on the board before halftime.

New York, perhaps rightfully so, was reluctant to allow Glennon to push the ball downfield. Instead, they attempted two short screens to Barkley before handing the football off to Barkley.

During that handoff, Barkley fumbled the ball, the loose pigskin recovered by Dallas in what was the first lost fumble of Barkley's career. That gave Dallas an opportunity for more points as quarterback Dak Prescott got the team into field goal range, and the Cowboys took a 15-3 halftime lead.

The New York Giants struggle to compete against most football teams. They also struggle to get out of their own way with terrible mistakes. These are recipes for unwatchable football, specifically on offense, which is what’s been on display for quite some time. The defense is constantly put into challenging positions and tends to keep games closer than they should realistically be.

Some reports claim that head coach Joe Judge will be retained next season. It’s evident that the players don’t quit on Judge, but the product is frustrating and lacks the fundamentals promise that Judge ensured when he accepted the job early in 2020.

The Giants have solid pieces on their roster but are completely missing competent aspects of the team. The new general manager will have his hands full with repairing the offensive line and providing Giants’ fans a product that they can be proud to watch.