Giants at Buccaneers – Rookie Review

How did the Giants Class of 2019 do in Week 3? Let's take a look.

The New York Giants finally got their first win of the 2019 season, completing an 18-point comeback to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the road.

The biggest story of the game was the decision to bench 16-year starting quarterback Eli Manning in favor of rookie Daniel Jones, and then Jones leading the Giants on their comeback victory. However, the 2019 rookie class  (save for defensive back Julian Love, who was inactive,  and defensive lineman Chris Slayton, who isn't on the 53-man roster) deserve a share of the glory.

Each of the Giants' rookies had their best day as a professional against the Buccaneers. And while they might not have been among the best in the league at their respective positions, they deserve recognition for their play and the roles they played in the Giants' first win.

QB Daniel Jones

We have to start with Daniel Jones. He was the first player drafted by the Giants in 2019, he plays the most critical position on the field, and his play Sunday as the Giants' new starting quarterback is the news of the moment.

Jones got his NFL career off to a great start with a heroic performance, running in a game-winning touchdown on fourth down after finding Sterling Shepard all alone down the field for a significant gain.

Jones completed 23 of 36 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns, as well as another pair of touchdowns on four rushing attempts. Jones wasn't perfect through the air, with several passes sailing wide of their targets – most notably one which lead to an absolutely spectacular one-handed grab by Evan Engram – but it is safe to say that the rookie outplayed expectations.

He was particularly useful in the middle of the field, completing 10 of 13 attempts between the numbers for 183 yards and a touchdown. The Giants would be smart to emphasize that area of their passing offense in the coming weeks.

Making Jones' game even more impressive, Saquon Barkley was a non-factor for the most part. The Buccaneers held the superstar running back to just 10 yards before he left the game with a high ankle sprain just before the end of the first half.

Jones was also able to function despite heavy pressure from Shaq Barrett and the Bucs' defense. Jones' struggles with pocket presence and ball security reared their head again with Jones nearly throwing an interception and losing a pair of fumbles.

Both ball security and pass protection will have to be an area of focus for the Giants in the coming weeks.

DL Dexter Lawrence

The big defensive tackle finally started to show up on the defensive side of the ball. He isn't dominating one-on-one match-ups like many expected when he was drafted, but he did get a nice push into the backfield on several occasions.

Most notably he got a sack and was initially credited with a forced fumble – though the play was ultimately ruled an incomplete pass.

Lawrence's biggest play might have come on special teams early in the game. Lining up over the snapper on a point after, he blew up his blocker and was able to force the missed extra point.

It is possible that this early pressure and disruption was able to get into the head of Buccs' rookie kicker Matt Gaye and contributed to the missed 34-yard field goal which gave the Giants the win.

CB DeAndre Baker

Like the rest of the Giants' rookies, this was Baker's best game so far. After giving up a perfect passer rating to Josh Allen, Baker rebounded against Jameis Winston.

Baker still struggled early in the game before James Bettcher began calling tighter coverages and got flagged for a penalty early in the game. However, he also didn't have any egregious breakdowns as we saw in the first two weeks of the season.

Baker will need to continue to work on raising his game at the NFL and learning the finer points of cornerback play as a professional. This is all to be expected as corners have one of the sharpest learning curves of any position coming out of the draft. But this game gives Baker something to build upon in the coming weeks.

Oshane Ximines

Ximines is slowly expanding his role as a contributor to the Giants' defense. He played 40 snaps against Tampa Bay, up from the 21 he played against the Dallas Cowboys in week 1.

Ximines is firmly entrenched as the Giants' third pass rusher and regularly on the field in a variety of sub-packages. He isn't yet a dynamic threat off the edge, but he did have the best game of his young career.

Ximines finished with four tackles and a sack, a testament to the polish he showed as a prospect at Old Dominion and his relentless play style.

ILB Ryan Connelly

Connelly inherited the Giants' MIKE linebacker position when Alec Ogletree left the field after being evaluated for a concussion. He handled the duties which come with the green dot well, apparently communicating the defense well, and there weren't any glaring breakdowns in the second half.

His play was about what we have come to expect from him. He was fast and decisive coming downhill to play the run, which has stood out about his play since the preseason.

However, he doesn't look terribly rangy or particularly fluid when playing in space. He did have an interception, but that was a particularly bad decision from Jameis Winston rather than stand-out coverage by Connelly.

If Ogletree's concussion lingers, Connelly will be in line to start against the Washington Redskins. That's something about which the Giants should feel reasonably comfortable, but they might want to play more nickel packages to help with their speed in the middle of the field.

WR Darius Slayton

Rookie wide receiver Darius Slayton finally got on the field for the Giants after being sidelined with a hamstring injury for much of the summer and the first two weeks of the season. He showed just what kind of impact his speed could have on the defense picking up 82 yards on only three receptions (5 targets).

He was primarily used on vertical routes, using his speed to stretch the field on Post and Go routes. In fact, Slayton helped set up the Giants' win when the Buccaneers' zone defense keyed on him running vertically down the field.

Rather than picking up Sterling Shepard and potentially disrupting that long reception, the corner and safety on that side of the field covered Slayton and left Shepard completely alone.

Slayton will need to work on his hands and consistently catching the ball cleanly, but once the ball was in his hands, he showed good strength, not letting the ball move despite defenders hacking at it while he was being tackled. 

This was a great debut for the rookie and something to build on in the coming weeks.