Three Bold Predictions Ahead of Giants-Cowboys Monday Night Football Game

This week's Monday Night Football game promises to be a slugfest between two division rivals.

Author:
Patricia Traina
Publish date:
Sep 26, 2022 4:00 PM EDT

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The New York Giants are on a mission to become the "worst" 3-0 team in football (at least according to the experts) tonight when they host the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium.

This week's game will be the only divisional game for the Giants until Thanksgiving when they visit the Cowboys in Arlington. And if the Giants have any hope of competing in the division, they need to win games against division opponents.

"These divisional games, you understand the rivalry and the tradition of these games," said Giants quarterback Daniel Jones. "Especially in the NFC East, where these franchises have played each other for a long time, and there's a lot of historic battles back and forth. It's fun to be part of that.

"Divisional games mean a little bit more in getting a win. So, we're trying to do the best we can to prepare and play our best ball Monday night."

Here are three bold predictions ahead of kickoff.

Kenny Golladay Will Play a Big Part in the Offensive Game Plan

Golladay made it very clear that he isn't happy with his lack of game snaps despite having been told by the coaching staff that he's doing everything the right way. So with Wan'Dale Robinson (knee) already declared out and Kadarius Toney (hamstring) doubtful to play, Golladay should have plenty of snaps available this week to cash in on.

And it's important that he does. According to the NFL Network, the Giants "could" trade Golladay if his situation doesn't improve, the Giants likely having to absorb the bulk of his contract in exchange for a late-round pick.

The Giants likely don't want to go down that road, certainly not with the injuries they currently have, plus Sterling Shepard's recent injury history. They're likely to try to make things work with Golladay before coming to any conclusions.

For that to happen, they have to get Golladay on the field and see if he's genuinely willing to give it his all or if his perceived sense of entitlement when he said last week that he should be playing, regardless, enters the picture.

The Giants Will Make Life Miserable for QB Cooper Rush

It's hard not to feel good about the Giants defense these days. Although it's unlikely that Leonard Williams (knee) plays tonight, the Giants are expecting to have Kayvon Thibodeaux and Azeez Ojulari make their respective 2022 regular-season debuts, tough.

On a larger scale, Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, who last week revealed that he's run two completely different defenses to keep opponents on their toes, is likely to run a third variation that hopefully the Cowboys won't be expecting.

It Will be a Defensive Battle

According to SI Sportsbook, the over/under on tonight's game is 39.5 points. I could easily see taking the under in what's anticipated to be a good old-fashioned defensive slugfest.

The Giants and Cowboys defenses are tied for eighth in the league in average points allowed per game (18.0). On the flip side, Dallas is last in the league in average points scored (11.5), while the Giants are averaging 20.0 points per game.

The winner of this game will likely come down to whoever has the ball last, so I'm interested to see what decision the team makes by the team that wins the opening kickoff and the late-game clock management.