New York Giants Notebook | Going the Distance, The Engram Factor, and More
It's going to take a full 60 minutes from the Giants this week, an effort that they were unable to give against the Eagles back in Week 7.
The Giants certainly played with a winning effort for the first 55 minutes against Philadelphia in their first matchup, but a late-game collapse sunk them to a devastating loss.
Week 10 is an opportunity for them to avenge and correct what happened that night, and Giants' head coach Joe Judge will be sure his team understands what the last five minutes of a football game mean going forward.
"Those last five minutes are the most important part in that game," Judge said. "We have to finish as a team and play a complete game. You can't fall asleep on Philly.
"We've known this opponent for an amount of time. It really just confirms what you know about them already, about how dangerous they are and how they can score at any point in time. You really have to play a complete game to finish."
The Giants were able to make some progress toward becoming a full 60-minute team last Sunday against Washington when defensive backs Jabrill Peppers and Logan Ryan came away with a pair of late game-clinching interceptions as part of a five-turnover day against their division rivals.
This week, the Giants will need to depend on new playmakers against a much more complete Eagles offense and one that has proven to be efficient and explosive in late-game situations.
"They're an explosive team," Judge said. "They do a great job in situations. We already knew this team is a very good team on third down, in the red area, in two-minute drives. They do a great job in terms of scheming you up in the game plan element.
"[Eagles head coach Doug Pederson] does a great job in terms of starting the game out fast, creating explosive plays, and really finding things that you struggle with and looking to expose them."
The Engram Factor
Tight end Evan Engram has given the Giants' offense a lot of flexibility since joining the team in 2017, even if it hasn't manifested in premium receiving production on Engram's part.
For offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, having Engram on the field in a 12-personnel package opens up options typically reserved for an 11-personnel package due to Engram's athleticism and overall receiving ability.
"You can do a lot of different things with Evan," Judge said. He's a guy that we've used in some different roles throughout this season. Jason has done a good job of moving him around as a chess piece, playing him some in the backfield, flex him out wide like a receiver, and then playing him attached as a tight end.
"To have a guy like that on the field that you can do a lot of different things with really kind of presents some issues to the other team at times."
Engram's production hasn't been consistent, as he's only hauled in one receiving touchdown while making several costly drops throughout the season.
But even then, his presence on the offense is still a highly valued asset, especially with running back Saquon Barkley out for the year.
Engram draws attention on several different coverages, even getting the attention a wide receiver would get.
"The biggest thing is really identifying how they're going to play you within that game and your personnel sets," Judge said.
"How are they treating Evan on a game by game basis? That may change based on down and distance. First and 10, if it's 12 personnel, you may see a lot of nickel defense right there treating him more as a receiver.
"Whereas if it's third and short, you may see more base defense at times if it's 12 personnel to stop some kind of run game. It all depends on who the opponent is and how they're matching up, but he's definitely a guy that has a lot of versatility."
Batted Away
Defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson is known for his power and physicality on the interior at the line of scrimmage.
But Tomlinson has also shown an unexpected facet of his game in 2020: his pass defense.
Tomlinson has racked up five passes defensed, all of which being swats at the line of scrimmage.
While Tomlinson is not quite at the stage of dropping back to cover wide receivers and tight ends, his aggressiveness and dexterity at the line of scrimmage to knock away passes have made him an undeniable part of the Giants' pass defense this season.
"A big thing for a defensive lineman is you want to affect the quarterback in all phases," Tomlinson said.
"I just make sure I put a key emphasis on batting down passes or getting my hands up because that's just as effective as a sack or a tackle for a loss because it gets in their head a little bit."
For Tomlinson, batting passes down is nothing new. Before this year, he only had one pass defended at the NFL level, but his habit of getting his hands up at the line of scrimmage on passing plays was preached to him during college.
"I feel like I was pretty good at 'Bama, so it just carried over into drills you do in the offseason and things like that and throughout training camp and stuff," Tomlinson said.
Tomlinson is in the midst of a contract year and could be on track for a big payday if he keeps knocking passes away at the rate he is so far this season, which complements his dominance as a run defender and leadership as a defensive captain as well.
For now, Tomlinson isn't focused on that side of the business.
"I'm just focused on one week at a time," he said. "I'm just coming in every day trying to help the team as best as I possibly can, care for my teammates, and helping everybody across the board improve. I'll just let that take care of itself in the long run."
