Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
New York Giants Top Carolina Panthers 25-3
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ-- New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, working with a significantly depleted offense, buckled down and loaded the team on his shoulders, carrying them across the finish line for a 25-3 win over the Carolina Panthers at MetLife Stadium.
It was the Giants second win of the season and their first this year at home.
Jones, missing running back Saquon Barkley and receivers Kadarius Toney, Kenny Golladay, and Sterling Shepard, finished the afternoon, finished 23 of 33 for 203 yards and one touchdown pass.
The touchdown pass went to receiver Dante Pettis on a drive in which Pettis, on a bit of razzle-dazzle, completed a 16-yard pass to Jones, who channeled his innermost Odell Beckham Jr to make the one-handed catch on the scoring drive.
The game itself was mostly a snooze fest as both sides couldn't' do much of anything. After the Panthers took a 3-0 lead on Zane Gonzalez's 45-yard field goal, the Giants defense recorded a safety when Panthers starting quarterback Sam Darnold was penalized in the end zone for intentional grounding. Meanwhile, the Giants offense crossed into Panthers territory on four of their six first-half possessions but only managed to come away with three points on a 49-yard field goal by kicker Graham Gano as New York took a 5-3 lead at the half.
The second half was all Giants, as New York added 20 unanswered points to their lead. It began with the Jones to Pettis 5-yard touchdown pass on the drive, including Jones's reception from the receiver and a 19-yard touchdown run by running back Devontae Booker, sandwiched around two Gano field goals of 53 and 44 yards.
Darnold, the former New York Jets quarterback, was benched by Panthers head coach Matt Rhule in the fourth quarter after going 16 of 25 for 111 yards and one interception.
The interception, by former Panthers cornerback James Bradberry, extended New York's record of recording at least one takeaway in each of the first seven games of the season for the first time since 2011 and increased their streak of six games with a takeaway against the Panthers.
Carolina, who came into this week's game intending to run the ball down the Giants' throats, only managed 56 yards on 17 carries on the ground, with Chuba Hubbard leading the way with 28 yards on 12 carries.
The Giants closed out the afternoon, having improved to 704-623-33 all-time and 173-158-5 all-time in the month of October. They have also posted consecutive games against the NFC South for the first time since 2018-19.
New York will visit the Kansas City Chiefs, who were throttled by the Tennessee Titans Sunday 27-3, next Monday.
Injury Report
Giants edge rusher Lorenzo Carter left the game in the first half with an ankle injury. Safety Jabrill Peppers also had to leave the game when he suffered a right ankle injury on a punt return.
Daniel Jones Has a Big Day
In addition to catching his first NFL reception, quarterback Daniel Jones moved to within one touchdown pass to pass fellow Duke alumnus and Giants quarterback Dave Brown (40) for the seventh-most passing touchdowns in Giants history.
Jones, who finished 23 of 33 or 203 yards and one touchdown, needs just 22 passing yards to join Eli Manning (2011, 2018) as the only players in franchise history with at least 225 passing yards in six of the first seven games of a season.
And Jones also became the third quarterback in NFL history to record 200+ passing yards, 25+ rushing yards, and 15+ receiving yards in a game.
Solid Day for Ex-Panthers
It was a solid day for a pair of former Carolina Panthers, whose respective performances etched their names in the Giants' franchise record books.
Kicker Graham Gano nailed all three of his field-goal attempts--49, 53, and 44 yards--against his old team. His 53-yarder enabled him to pass Joe Danelo (nine) for the most 50-yard field goals in Giants history.
In addition, the 53-yarder was his fifth long-distance field goal of 50+ yards, tying the single-season record he set in 2020.
Gano needs just one more 50-yard field goal to eclipse his own record (five) for the most 50-yard field goals in a season in Giants history.
Cornerback James Bradberry, who recorded one pass defensed and an interception, became the first Giants player with a pass defensed in each of the first seven games of a season. Bradberry needs just two more passes defensed to become the fourth player in NFL history with at least ten passes defensed and one interception in each of their first six seasons.
Giants Pass Rush Comes Alive
The Giants recorded six sacks and ten quarterback hits against a banged-up Panthers offensive line this week. Two players--rookie edge rusher Azeez Ojulari and defensive lineman Leonard Williams, accounted for four of those sacks.
Ojulari's team-leading 2.5 sacks moved him ahead of Cornelius Griffin (5.0 in 2000) and Andy Headen (1983) by a half-sack for the second-most sacks in a season by a Giants rookie. Ojulari needs one more half-sack to pass B.J. Hill (5.5 in 2018) for the most sacks in a season by a Giants rookie.
Williams's 1.5 sacks marked the seventh time in his career that he recorded consecutive games with at least one sack.
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