Giants’ Week 13 Offense Among the Problems in Embarrassing Loss to Patriots

Youth truly is wasted on the young: New York Giants offensive edition.

Quarterback Jaxson Dart doesn’t seem to give a care in the world about playing it safe or smart. He doesn’t seem to understand that the hits he took in high school were like love taps compared to what he took in college and what he’s not taking in the NFL.

“We're not playing soccer out here,” he said after the Giants had a week's worth of lunch money taken from them by the New England Patriots. “You're going to get hit. Things happen. It's just part of the game.”

True, but why invite trouble, which is exactly what Dart continues to do with his reckless determination to don the superhero cape every time he takes off as a runner.

It’s a tricky line to walk, as on one hand, you want a guy willing to take chances, but on the other, you also want that guy around to be able to take calculated chances.

Dart, right now, doesn’t seem to understand the difference. As much as we hate to say it and see it, perhaps experience will end up being the best teacher in demonstrating to Dart that the hits he’ll take in the NFL aren’t the same as what he took in high school or college.

If he wants to have a long, Eli Manning-like career with the Giants, he needs to start exercising better judgment like Manning, who famously never missed a game due to injury, did in his career.

Onto the player reviews.

Quarterback

Jaxson Dart

Well, chalk this one up to the rookie, returning after two weeks off (concussion), shaking off some rust, and struggling to move the ball when the match-ups didn’t go his way.

As was the case with Jameis Winston the last two weeks, Dart didn’t get a whole lot of help.

This week’s special teams play was as much of a disaster as the weekly sieve that is this team’s pass defense. That’s a lot to overcome, especially with a set of receivers who had a lot of difficulty getting open and a little running game.

Dart was also part of the offense’s problems. He missed a couple of reads, he held onto the ball too long at times, and he missed on a couple of throws.

And yet, after the team’s disastrous start (a 17-0, first-quarter deficit), Dart did move the offense right down the field for a touchdown, a 30-yard quick and decisive strike to Darius Slayton to beat a blitz, which caught the Pats’ secondary off guard, making it 17-7.

After a rare defensive hold to force a punt, Dart moved his unit into scoring position again, but a third-down throw into the end zone went through Theo Johnson’s hands.

The resulting field goal attempt (which would have made it 17-10) was botched, the Pats used the short field to score, and the halftime score turned into a 30-7 debacle.

A second-half Giants drive composed primarily of runs made it 30-15, thanks to a wonderful 2-point conversion by Dart off a scramble. Of course, the Pats offense then ate up most of the fourth quarter clock against the soft Giants defense, while Dart couldn’t get anything done through the air.

Dart’s numbers were somewhat efficient but rather pedestrian – 17-of-24, 139 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions, and 20 yards rushing.

The good news is that he took care of the ball. The bad news is that he was once again reckless with his body.

The game’s first sack came after he bumbled about in the pocket and took a helmet hit. Soon after, he failed to get out of bounds on a scramble and absorbed a huge sideline hit that brought a penalty when Theo Johnson came to his defense, turning a 3rd-and-1 into a 3rd-and-16.

Invariably, when Dart is reckless with his body, it ends badly for his team. If he wants to be a team player, he’s got to be smarter with these mad dashes. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about it. He’s got to be smarter.

Want some good news? Dart continues to be very creative out there. On a 3rd down, he was being dragged to the ground in the pocket when he leaped and managed to complete a 5-yard toss while going down. It was a wonderful play.

One doesn’t want him to tone down the creativity while fine-tuning his development. We think Dart is very good outside the pocket; we’d like to see more rollouts and in-the-moment features.

However, his ultimate development is to become an NFL pocket passer. He is not that yet. With this group of receivers, the smart play may be to scheme a ball-control offense vs. the wide-open affair that Winston sustained the last two weeks.

The way to win big in this league is from the pocket. Hopefully, Dart can learn how to do it from Winston. Sprinkle in his mobility and off-the-cuff traits, and you may have something here.

Running Backs

Tyrone Tracy

We continue to be underwhelmed by Tracy’s rushing instincts.

He just wasn’t running it up in there between the tackles; he had to gather himself on some cutbacks that were lost to his lack of electricity, and he ran with power only on occasions.

He seems to be easily stopped in his tracks and rarely falls forward.

We suspect that the coaches were tired of his game and transitioned to the more direct approach of the veteran Singletary, who averaged 5.6 to Tracy’s 3.6. Tracy suffered a hip injury, so we’ll see what his status is in a couple of weeks.

Devin Singletary

We thought Singletary was much more decisive with the ball in his hands, which translated into a productive 68 rush yards on just 12 carries, and another 34 on three catches.

His blocking was once again superb, despite his smallish frame. It’s not the size that makes a good pass-blocking back; it’s toughness, smarts, vision, and technique.

Cam Skattebo, once he returns next year, can surely learn a lot from the tape of this solid vet, who played winning football out there, including his direct-snap touchdown run from 22 yards out, a brilliant play call and design by the interim head coach, leading to solid execution by Singletary.

Receivers

Dec 1, 2025; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton (18) catches a pass for a successful two-point conversion against New England Patriots cornerback Carlton Davis III (7) during the fourth quarter at Gillette Stadium. | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Wan’Dale Robinson

There wasn’t a lot of space out there for the Giants' receivers, Robinson included.

He led the offense in both targets (8) and catches (7), which sounds like an efficient night, but when you only gain 34 yards on those seven catches, it was like the old version of Robinson’s career when he was barely averaging 5 yards a catch.

The New England secondary suffocated the Giants' receivers all night long. Robinson had no drops, but he also made very little happen after the catch.

Darius Slayton

The veteran was the team’s best offensive playmaker this week. He caught his first target on a short slant for 11 tough yards, knifing into the teeth of the Patriots’ defense.

His best play was the 30-yard touchdown catch-and-run, where the veteran and his quarterback were on the same page. They beat a blitz, and Slayton actually ran to daylight into the end zone for the score.

Slayton came up big once more when he worked himself free in the end zone on the 2-point conversion Dart scramble.

Slayton did very well not only to present to his quarterback, but also to catch the ball with his outstretched hands rather than against his body.

That’s two big plays tonight bySlayton, who seems to be gearing up for his late-season surge to respectability long after the games stopped meaning anything.

Isaiah Hodgins

This veteran possession receiver’s lone target came via the scramble, a low throw that he gathered in just before it hit the turf.

Hodgins got so many snaps tonight because of his blocking, which was solid.

Tight Ends

Theo Johnson

After a string of very positive games, Johnson faltered a bit against this team’s very talented secondary.

An early false start did not bode well. Next came the personal foul while protecting his scrambling quarterback, a message Johnson might have been able to get across without crossing the line.

Johnson’s drop in the end zone was a tough catch, but the drop resulted from him not getting his hands up in time. The subtleties of the receiving tight end’s game are still developing in this talented young man.

On the fourth-down overthrow, he could have shortened his route and presented himself better to his quarterback.

Instead, he wandered several yards past the marker, which made it a tougher pass to complete against pressure. Johnson was once again a positive blocker throughout.

Daniel Bellinger

Bellinger had a lot more wins than misses with his versatile blocking assignments. Alas, he did not have a single pass thrown his way and remains a noncontributor in the passing game.

When and if the team’s receiving corps improves its talent level, perhaps then Bellinger will become that complementary option that he seems destined to become.

Chris Manhertz

Getting just a handful of snaps, Manhertz succeeded with all of his blocking assignments, including one of the better tight end pass-blocks that we’ve seen.

Offensive Line

Andrew Thomas

Though Thomas has played stellar football this entire season, this week might have been his best game to date.

His pass-blocking was once again suffocating, but what really made his game soar were the numerous dominating run blocks that he was throwing around out there all night long.

Every inside run seemed to go inside a Thomas power blast that created consistent space no matter who was lined across from him. He was a monster on every snap and was easily the unit’s highest-graded performer.

Jermaine Eluemunor

Though Eluemunor had a handful of positive second-half run blocks and stayed with his man on the pass block most of the night, he did bumble through several poor pass pros, falling flat on his back and yielding a handful of edge pressures that weren’t pretty.

It’s not easy playing opposite an All-Pro like Thomas because the opposition invariably throws their best players against the lesser player.

Eluemunor is not in Thomas’ league, but he is still very much a survivor out there, keeping his big frame between his quarterback and his man. He got pushed into his quarterback’s lap a few times, but for the most part, his man did not get home.

Jon Runyan

It’s the same weekly story with this veteran, who is regularly assigned true but loses a few too many one-on-one battles to power levels that don't suit our taste.

He lost a handful of pass pro assignments this week, which is unusual, but once again, the lack of power at the point of attack had him falling off too many blocks, which mucked up the inside running game, especially in the first half.

The offense’s second-half rushing success was more the result of New England taking its foot off the pedal than anything. They picked up the pace when they had to, and the running game petered away.

Greg Van Roten

We could report very similar grades to Van Roten as we did to Runyan. The only difference is that Van Roten’s misses are typically to speed and quicks, not power.

He continues to play tough at the point of attack, but the movement is inconsistent. For all his size and power, this veteran does not move people, though he does neutralize well enough.

The Patriots attacked Van Roten’s gaps with blitzes that caused way too much havoc. His pass-blocking was the poorest of the bunch.

John Michael Schmitz

Schmitz did not seem up to the early task, unable to keep up with the Pats’ interior intensity while also failing to hold up to power.

Former Giants defensive tackle Cory Durden was dominating Schmitz in the pit throughout the first half; Schmitz could not handle Durden’s power game or sustain a block.

As the game wore on, Schmitz began to turn the tables and eventually earned a positive overall grade, especially in pass pro.

Schmitz’s best moment of the night probably came on Singletary’s 22-yard touchdown run, Schmitz getting out and perfectly nailing a defender in space to spring the back to the end zone.

Schmitz may not be a power center, but he is an efficient one who turns his man most of the time. Where he really excels is in space, especially on screens.

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