Three Plays That Doomed the Giants in Week 11 Against Green Bay

These three plays put points on the board, kept points off the board, and killed the team's overall momentum.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) and New York Giants quarterback Jameis Winston (19) shake hands after a game at MetLife Stadium, Nov 16, 2025, East Rutherford, NJ, USA. | Yannick Peterhans / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Week 11 saw the New York Giants drop another winnable game. There were opportunities on offense and defense that the team did not take advantage of at the moment. 

On a couple of occasions, when the team needed them most, either individual players or the unit as a whole did not play at a level that would result in a win. 

As always, there are specific plays that spell out success or doom for a team, and this game is no different. Let's look at three plays that led to the loss for the Giants in this Week 12 matchup against the Packers. 

Love Gets Injured

After the Giants scored on the opening drive of the game, the two teams exchanged punts, and the Packers were driving past the 40-yard line. 

On first down, they were called for holding and lost 10 yards. On first and 20, Love dropped back on a pass play, scrambled, and picked up four yards, but he was injured on the play. 

The Packers brought in backup Malik Willis on second and 16 on the Giants' 40-yard line. This was the Giants' opportunity to get the Packers' offense off the field. They picked up eight yards on second down, which brought up a 3rd-and-8. 

The Packers lined up in an empty set, motioned the back into the backfield, and ran a simple split-zone read concept. 

Abdul Carter went flat down the line of scrimmage, forcing the pull on the read from Willis with a blocker from the frontside tight end on the split action. 

From there, Dane Belton and Deonte Banks were unable to make the tackle or force Willis back inside, where the defenders were pursuing from. 

That third-down run picked up 16 yards, and five plays later, Willis threw a touchdown pass to Christian Watson. 

The Fumble That Wasn’t

With 38 seconds remaining in the first half, the Packers were trying to get into position for a field goal. They were on their own 33-yard line. 

Love threw a short pass to Luke Musgrave, who turned to make a move, and he lost the football. Giants linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles recovered the ball. 

The turnover put the Giants in position to add points to the board before halftime. A field goal would have given Big Blue a three-point lead heading into the break. 

Instead, during replay review, they determined that Musgrave never had possession of the pass, despite catching the football, turning, and attempting a move. 

The possession was returned to the Packers, and the half ended. It was an opportunity taken away from the Giants. 

At worst, it should have been a call stands, because they called it a catch-and-fumble on the field, and there was no conclusive evidence to justify reversing the call. 

Corner Route Interception

After the defense gave up a touchdown and two-point conversion on a seven-play, 65-yard drive to reclaim the lead, the Giants used a good mix of pass and run plays to march the ball 51 yards down the field. 

The offense picked up three first downs on the drive; it was third and six, and Big Blue needed 14 yards to score a touchdown and even up the score. They could also pick up a first down. 

Winston dropped back, and they ran a smash concept (hitch and corner routes) on the left side. 

The hitch drew the coverage of the corner and left Jalin Hyatt one-on-one with a safety sitting in the endzone. 

Winston threw the ball before Hyatt made his break, anticipating the route to be underneath the safety who was squatting two or three yards in the endzone. 

The safety saw the pass and started working towards the ball, and when Hyatt saw him, he broke off his route and never went to the corner. It was an easy interception for safety. 

Hyatt ran a “get open” route instead of the route scheme, and in doing so, he left his quarterback hanging and sealed the loss for the team.

If he runs the route, there is no guarantee that he catches it, but the play likely ends in an incompletion, and they get another chance to pick up the first down and continue the drive on fourth down. 

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