New York Giants Notebook | Mentor's Guidance, Offensive Firepower and More
Around this time last year, Daniel Jones was named the Giants' starting quarterback, but he wasn't necessarily the big man in the room. Eli Manning was still there as the veteran for the Giants' offense, even if he was on the sideline.
Although the offense became Jones', he admitted earlier this year that he found it awkward to be a full-fledged leader with Manning still in the building. But with Manning having retired after last season, Jones has become more of a vocal leader.
But that doesn't mean that Jones doesn't still pick Manning's brain on various things when the two speak.
"I still stay in touch with Eli (Manning) fairly regularly," Jones said. "He's someone who I've learned a lot of football from. It's not necessarily this offense, but he's been in a number of them and knows the game, knows the position well.
"He's a guy I can talk to and ask questions. He's been extremely helpful in that regard. He's someone I have a good relationship with, and he's certainly offered his help and something I've used and certainly appreciate."
In times like this, all the advice Jones can get is valuable and should go a long way in helping him adapt to his role as a leader on an evolving roster, something Manning had to go through multiple times in his career, particularly at the end.
Offensive Firepower
With Saquon Barkley and Sterling Shepard on injured reserve, the Giants haven't been completely stripped of their offensive playmakers.
Wide receivers Golden Tate and Darius Slayton, and tight ends Evan Engram and Kaden Smith are still viable passing targets for Jones.
This week, the Giants have had the chance to work in a gameplan built around them assuming that Barkley and Shepard won't be available, whereas last week, they had to adjust on the fly after the injuries occurred.
Jones proved that he could lead an efficient passing attack without having one specific and consistent target at his disposal during the second half of last week's game against the Bears. With some added time to plan, the unit could revert to putting up big numbers even without two big stars.
"We talked a little bit about generating explosive plays as an offense and everyone doing their job," Jones said.
"We have a lot of guys who can make plays. It's about everyone doing what they have to do to execute as an offense. That's the way we are going to be most effective. It's not any one guy, it's not a couple guys. It's all of us."
The Giants put together drives of at least 75 yards on four possessions against the Bears, including a 95-yard touchdown drive. They also moved 50 yards in the game's last two minutes without a timeout before Tate's game-ending penalty.
"We've shown the ability to move the ball," Jones said. "We've had some long drives, lots of plays, moving the ball down the field. That's important to be able to do that and execute it.
"You also need to be able to have the chunk and create the explosive plays. That helps an offense as well. Being able to do both of those things, being able to consistently execute and have those explosive plays, get those chunk plays, is a big part keeping a defense on their heels."
Surprising Stoppage
The Giants' defense has shown a lot to like in the first two games of the season, particularly last week, as the unit appears to be trending in the right direction overall.
The Giants' defense will be going into their upcoming game against San Francisco coming off of two-straight scoreless quarters, and defensive back Logan Ryan believes that the unit can emulate how it looked in the second half of Week 2 on Sunday.
"I don't know what the hump is collectively. We had two turnovers in the second half, and we didn't let up a point," Ryan said. "We want to play like that this game. In the last two quarters, I want to continue to play like that.
"I want to find ways to get sacks and find ways to play better on third down and in the red area like we did in the second half. The great Dick LeBeau once told me, 'we didn't lose the game; we ran out of time.' Last week, we ran out of time. It's a loss, but hopefully, with four quarters of football, we can play like we did and we can win this game."
Two of the more surprising areas of the Giants' defense that have impressed thus far are the pass rush and the secondary, the two units that were seen as the Giants' most glaring weaknesses going into the season.
The Giants have tallied six sacks in the first two games, and the exceptional play by veteran cornerback James Bradberry has anchored a secondary effort filled with young players.
Ryan is the other veteran in that unit and is very familiar with what Bradberry brings to the table as a corner. The way Bradberry has played in 2020 is no surprise to Ryan, and believes the rest of the defense should follow Bradberry's example.
"I knew him in Carolina. He's an extremely big corner, great patience, physical," Ryan said. "We all need to start playing like him, for him to be consistent and to be solid for us to allow me to move around and do what I do to allow our defense to be our defense. I think it's building and the chemistry with the guys is building, but I think James has definitely done his job. We just need to translate it to wins."
