Giants Top Packers on Late Game Field Goal, 24-22
East Rutherford, N.J. - It was a night to remember for New York Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito, who led his team to a dramatic 24-22 win over the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football at MetLife Stadium.
The undrafted rookie quarterback cemented his fan-favorite status by engineering the first game-winning drive of his career, completing four consecutive passes to set up a 37-yard field goal from Randy Bullock, ending the thrilling game featuring numerous momentum swings. The win over the wild-card-hopeful Packers has suddenly put the Giants back within reach of a playoff spot.
DeVito ultimately ended the game, completing 17 of 21 passes for 158 yards, a touchdown, no turnovers, and a 113.9 passer rating while also rushing for 71 yards on ten carries. His top target was wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson, who caught six passes for 79 yards and chipped in 36 rushing yards on just two carries.
The Giants primarily relied on the run game, with 209 of their 367 total yards coming on the ground. Running back Saquon Barkley led the way with 86 yards on 20 carries (alongside three receptions for 15 yards) and a pair of rushing touchdowns despite losing a costly fumble late in the fourth quarter, just the third lost fumble of his career.
Another crucial factor to New York’s win was the turnover battle, which New York won 3-2 thanks to a forced fumble and an interception on defense; both teams also muffed punts on special teams. Despite allowing 326 yards, the Giants' defense continually made big plays in the red zone and kept their team in the game throughout, ultimately being rewarded by DeVito’s game-winning drive.
Packers quarterback Jordan Love completed 25 of 39 passes for 218 yards and a touchdown, with one interception and a lost fumble. Tight end Tucker Kraft was his top target with 64 yards on four catches, most of which came on a 43-yard reception. Green Bay had 123 yards on the ground, led by A.J. Dillon’s 53 yards on 15 carries, while wide receiver Jayden Reed had 38 rushing yards and a touchdown on four carries to go alongside eight receptions for 27 yards.
Both teams were forced to punt on their opening possessions, but the Packers would be pinned deep in their own territory due to an illegal blindside block penalty during their punt return. They subsequently went three-and-out, and another special teams penalty on Green Bay gave the Giants excellent field position at the Packers’ 32-yard line. Unfortunately, the offense sputtered and could only move two yards in three plays, and kicker Randy Bullock missed a 48-yard field goal attempt wide right.
Green Bay’s next possession would contain some controversy. After three plays, they faced 4th-and-1 at their own 47-yard line and elected to go for it. New York’s defense appeared to get the stop when Deonte Banks tackled receiver Dontayvion Wicks short of the line of gain; despite replays seemingly confirming the original call, the officials reversed the call and awarded the Packers the first down.
This immediately became important, as Dillion caught a short pass and rumbled 35 yards into the Giants’ red zone, and two plays later, wide receiver Jayden Reed scored on a 16-yard touchdown run to give the Packers a 7-0 lead.
But the Giants were able to counter just eight plays later. After Barkley’s 5-yard run converted a 3rd and 1, DeVito followed with a 14-yard completion to Isaiah Hodgins before scrambling for 10 yards. Barkley then took a direct snap from the wildcat formation and handed the ball to Robinson, who ripped off a 32-yard run to move the ball inside the five, and Barkley himself ran the ball into the end zone on the next play to tie the game.
The rest of the first half featured missed opportunities from both teams. The Packers drove 48 yards in seven plays to the New York 27, but thanks to a successful coach’s challenge from Brian Daboll, it was ruled that Love fumbled the ball before he could have been downed by contact, and Xavier McKinney recovered for the Giants. Unfortunately, New York’s offense failed to capitalize and turned the ball over on downs at midfield when Barkley was tackled for no gain on 4th and 1.
Two plays later, Love threw a deep pass intended for Wicks that was intercepted by Jason Pinnock, who returned it to his own 44-yard line. But New York’s offense again couldn’t get anything going and went three-and-out.
With 2:45 left in the half, the Packers finally got another productive drive going, aided by a defensive pass interference penalty on Cor’Dale Flott and a 14-yard run by running back Patrick Taylor. But the Giants’ defense halted the drive at their own 18-yard line, and Green Bay settled for a 36-yard field goal by Anders Carlson to take a 10-7 lead at halftime.
The third quarter began with both teams capitalizing on punt return miscues, combining for 10 points. New York initially seemed to harmlessly go three-and-out with the opening possession of the second half, but Green Bay punt returner Keisean Nixon muffled Jamie Gillan’s kick, and Benton Whitley recovered for the Giants at the Packers’ 31-yard line. Taking advantage of their second chance, DeVito took off for a 26-yard run two plays later, and Barkley followed with his second touchdown run of the game to give the Giants their first lead, 14-10.
However, after New York’s defense forced a punt, they would make the same mistake as the Packers; special teamer Bobby McCain was unaware of Daniel Whelan’s punt hitting him in the arm, resulting in a live ball that Rudy Ford recovered for Green Bay to give his team an instant red-zone opportunity. Fortunately, New York’s defense returned to the field and stood their ground, including a sack of Love split by Kayvon Thibodeaux and Micah McFadden on third down. Ultimately, the Packers settled for a 32-yard field goal by Carlson to cut the Giants’ lead to one.
It didn’t take long for this defensive stop to become important, as New York’s offense responded with a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that took just over six minutes. Tight end Daniel Bellinger converted a 3rd and 9 with a 9-yard reception, and DeVito used his legs again with a 13-yard run on the next play. Three plays later, with a fresh set of downs at the Green Bay 36, DeVito ran a flea-flicker with Barkley and launched a deep ball to Robinson, who made a fantastic catch at the 11-yard line for a 25-yard play. Three plays after Robinson’s grab, Hodgins made another highlight-reel grab, this one in the back corner of the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown, extending the Giants’ lead to 21-13.
Green Bay looked to strike back by driving into New York’s red zone again, aided by 16 and 14-yard receptions by Samori Toure and Romeo Doubs, respectively. But once again, the Giants defense stepped up and recorded a big third-down sack of Love, split by Dexter Lawrence and Azeez Ojulari. This time, the Packers wound up with no points as Carlson shanked a 45-yard field goal attempt wide left.
Green Bay didn’t take long to get the offense back on the field, as the Giants went three-and-out on their next possession. Pinned at their 16-yard line, the Packers zipped into Giants territory when Love fired a 43-yard strike to tight end Tucker Kraft and eventually made it as far as the New York 25. But yet again, New York’s defense made a big stop, as Ojulari tackled Reed for a 5-yard loss, and Banks broke up a pass to Toure in the end zone. Carlson came out for another field try, and this time, he drilled a 48-yarder to reduce the Packers’ deficit to five.
Unfortunately, the Giants would make a crucial mistake at the worst possible time. After breaking off a 17-yard run, Barkley burst for a 34-yard run but was tripped up and lost the ball to Green Bay cornerback Carrington Valentine; with nobody on the Giants realizing the ball was live, Valentine was able to return the ball to the New York 36-yard line before Bellinger finally tackled him.
Even worse, New York’s defense could not make the big stop this time, as Green Bay drove 36 yards in nine plays before Love threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Malik Heath, giving the Packers a 22-21 lead after the two-point conversion failed.
But this would set the stage for DeVito, who calmly led the Giants’ offense down the field for his first career game-winning drive. After completing a trio of passes to Robinson, Barkley, and Darius Slayton, the undrafted rookie connected with Robinson for a 32-yard completion that moved the ball well within field goal range.
The dramatic 8-play, 57-yard drive would be finished by Bullock, who knocked a 37-yard field goal right down the middle to win the game for the Giants, releasing a roar from the excited MetLife Stadium crowd.
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