Giants Week 1 Report Card: Harbaugh Era Opens With a Statement Win Over Dallas

East Rutherford, NJ – The New York Giants’ overwhelmed the Dallas Cowboys 28-20 in every phase to record their first Week 1 win at home since 2010, the year MetLife Stadium (then known as the New Meadowlands Stadium) opened its doors.

There was a lot to like about this week’s performance, as the grades will show.

Offense: A

When was the last time the Giants recorded 394 net yards of offense and an 81.8% third-down conversion rate in a game? It’s been a while, that’s for sure. And how about the running game, which extended its streak of 100+ yards rushing to ten thanks to its 165-yard performance this week.

What can be said of tight end Isaiah Likely, who looked like a younger, more spry version of Travis Kelce whom offensive coordinator Matt Nagy had in Kansas City? Likely caught all eight of his pass targets for 78 yards and two touchdowns in his first game back in almost a year.

Oh, and welcome back to Malik Nabers, who caught six of nine pass targets for 69 yards. Nabers said after the game he still has some more rehab left to do, but he’s certainly off to a promising start.

Jaxson Dart? He was practically flawless in that he didn’t play hero ball, and it paid off for him. Dart finished 23-of-29 for 230 yards and three touchdowns, and had a few designed runs that contributed to 54 yards on 11 carries.

Want more? Fullback Patrick Ricard delivered a big block on the team’s first touchdown run by Cam Skattebo and made a heads-up play on the Isaiah Likely fumble at the end of the first quarter.

The only negative—and it’s not enough to knock the Giants down a half grade—was Tyrone Tracy’s fumble, which landed him on the bench for the rest of the game and could lead to him being inactive next week.

Defense: A-

Good job by the Giants' run defense, which held Dallas to 69 yards on 18 carries (3.8 average). The top two tacklers were linebackers Tremaine Edmunds and Arvell Reese, which is how it should be. The two teammates combined for 13 total tackles on the night.

The Giants' pass rush, which featured a creative-looking formation in which there were no defensive linemen on the field, mustered up 11 pressures, but couldn’t get home with any sacks, a small nitpick. Deonte Banks was solid against CeeDee Lamb, limiting him to three catches on six pass targets. Greg Newsome II, on the other hand, had his hands full with George Pickens, though Newsome caught a break when Pickens dropped a couple of balls after beating Newsome.

Speaking of corners, Dru Phillips drew three defensive pass interference calls, two of which were ticky-tacky, but still helped the Cowboys. Safety Jevon Holland made a big interception that the offense turned into points.

Special Teams: A

The Giants beat the Cowboys in average starting field position off kickoffs, New York’s average starting possession being their own 26 and Dallas’s being their own 24.

Jordan Stout only had to punt once, and he managed to knock his punt into the end zone.

The only negative to speak of was a holding penalty on Elijah Campbell that wiped out a 34-yard return by Deonte Banks.

Coaching: A+

It's been a long time since their coaching staff deserved credit for its creativity, but this week, it’s warranted. Start with the design of the Giants' first touchdown of the game in which everyone except for fullback Patrick Ricard and running back Cam Skattebo went right.

Ricard, by the way, buried DeMarvion Overshown. And on defense, how about the Giants' no-defensive-line look, which meant that all pass rushers were put on the field to apply pressure against Dak Prescott?

Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson had outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux playing inside at defensive tackle, reminiscent of how Justin Tuck used to move inside on passing downs. There was even a tush push on a 3rd-and-1, which Dart converted.

Likely’s two touchdowns were another example of creativity where the majority of the offense went one direction, and Likely was one of the few who went in the other.

And yes, the Giants even ran their own version of a “tush push” twice and with success behind 300-pound fullback Patrick Ricard. In all, a fantastic game and a solid start for the John Harbaugh era.

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