Giants Report Card vs. Vikings

Passing Offense: D

Rookie Daniel Jones got his "welcome to the NFL" moment this week against a very tough Vikings defense that was too much for the rookie's offensive line.

The Giants allowed eight quarterback hits and four sacks as they had no answers for Minnesota's pass rush. The two tackles, Nate Solder and Mike Remmers, continued to struggle to keep their respective edges clean.

Jones himself was as solid as can be despite the duress he faced. With the Vikings having honed in on tight end Evan Engram this week, limiting him to six receptions for 42 yards and with no running game to speak of once Wayne Gallman left the game with a concussion, the rookie was faced with an uphill climb that he and his teammates just couldn't overcome.

Rushing Offense: F

Wayne Gallman only managed two rushes for 14 yards before a concussion ended his day early. Shame too, as Gallman looked much more comfortable running this week than he did last week.

Jon Hilliman and Eli Penny ended up splitting the rest of the running game reps, finishing 9 of 20 and 3 of 15 respectively, but to be fair, the run-blocking wasn't anywhere near as sharp as it should have been.

Penny, the team's fullback, is actually intriguing as a runner should the Giants be without Saquon Barkley and Gallman again on Thursday.

Penny was nearly spotless with his lead blocking, and his rushing stats might have been even better had it not been for a 13-yard outside run he picked up being called back on a penalty.

Run Defense: D

The Vikings racked up 231 rushing yards on 34 attempts, an average of 6.2 yards per carry. Dalvin Cook led the way with 132 of those yards on 21 carries as the Vikings went right after the Giants undermanned linebacker corps.

Perhaps the most disturbing thing about this weeks' run defense was that not only were there missed tackles galore--we're talking both as a result of poor angles and poor technique--but there were plenty of instances where Giants defenders couldn't get off blocks to even get into a position to make a play.

Pass Defense: F

The Giants' pass defense turned out to be the best cure for an ailing Vikings passing game. Embattled quarterback Kirk Cousins finished 22 of 27, 306 yards, 2 TDs as the Giants zone coverage was riddled with gaping holes int he middle of the field.

Six of the Vikings' 10 longest plays from scrimmage were big pss plays that went for 20 or more yards, with the longest of the bunch being a 44-yard reception by slot receiver Adam Thielen on a play Cousins even admitted after the game to being mystified over how Thielen was so wide open.

Of the Vikings 22 first downs, 14 came through the air as they averaged 9.3 yards per pass attempt.

Special Teams: B

With the exception of Ameer Abdullah's 33-yard kickoff return, the Giants special teams had a solid afternoon. Rookie Corey Ballentine delivered on a 52-yard kickoff return int eh second quarter which helped set the stage for the Giants' only touchdown of the game.

Punter Riley Dixon was a busy man but once again delivered some fine punting once again that was supported by some outstanding coverage that limited the Vikings to three returns for 15 yards.

And kicker Aldrick Rosas made his lone field goal attempt on the day, a 32-yarder.

Coaching: D

Just when you thought the Giants coaching staff got things figured out, along comes more head-scratching decisions.

Take, for instance running back Jon Hilliman's rushing attempt on 1st-and-10 at the Giants' 1-yard line. Pat Shurmur called for a heavy personnel set, which pretty much screamed "run," and sure enough, the Vikings read it and dropped Hilliman in the end zone for a safety on a play that Shurmur admitted he probably could have called something else on.

And was anyone else surprised that newly reinstated receiver Golden Tate wasn't more involved in the passing offense? Tate played in 46 snaps but was only targeted six times out of 38, catching three balls for 13 yards.

The Giants had no ground game after the Gallman injury, which handcuffed Pat Shurmur. Still, with the Giants having to play catchup all game, it was surprising that Tate, who comes with a reputation of being able to turn short passes into significant gains, wasn't more involved.

On defense, there were a lot of head-scratching decisions, none more significant than the decision to not bracket receiver Adam Thielen, who burned slot cornerback Grant Haley at least twice.

Yes, there were injuries to the linebackers, which is no doubt the reason why the Giants deployed single-high safety throughout most of the game.

But why not get creative and, for example, put Janoris Jenkins, the team's best cornerback, against Thielen to stop the bleeding? Jenkins has seen spot duty in the slot before, and considering the Vikings were gashing the Giants defense left and right to the tune of 490 yards, could such an outside-the-box strategy have made things any worse?