Last Thursday, the New York Giants(0-2) fell to the Washington Football Team in heartbreaking fashion 30-29. New York was on the verge of winning after Dustin Hopkins missed a 48-yard field goal with no time left on the clock. However, New York’s Dexter Lawrence was offsides, and Hopkins got another shot. This time, from 43 yards, and he would make it!
Before those issues, Giants wide receiver Kenny Golladay was seen shouting at his quarterback Daniel Jones on the sidelines. Many thought Golladay was shouting at Jones, but on Monday, he clarified what happened.
According to Golladay, he was talking to OC Jason Garrett, not Jones.
“Pretty much just me talking to JG (Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett) a little bit, and that’s two competitive guys right there,” Golladay said. “Moreso, just me wanting to do anything I can. Not so much, ‘Give me the ball more,’ though…
“Division game. Wanted to leave that spot with a win if anything.”
Golladay, who signed a four-year, $72 million deal with New York in free agency, said he never reacted like that before in his career.
“Really, I’ve never done anything like that either – but really just passionate, just being a competitor,” he said. “I love just doing anything I can to help the team. I let the emotions get the best of me.”
In two games, Golladay has seven catches for 102 yards. Despite what we saw against Washington, Golladay is happy with his role with New York.
“I’m happy with the role,” he said. “I’d say I’m happy with the role. I’m getting put in some tough situations and (I’ve) got to make some tough catches, and that’s all I could ask for.”
Football is a game full of passion, and sometimes that passion gets the best of players, and it got the best of Golladay last Thursday.
At this point, New York has to put this behind them. Maybe, this incident brings the Giants together, and hopefully for them, they can get right at home against the Falcons.
Watch as Golladay talks incident with Jones, Garrett:
For the fifth straight season, the New York Giants are 0-2 after falling to the Washington Football Team 30-29 on Thursday night at FedExField.
This was a game the Giants should have won.
New York was on the verge of winning after Washington’s Dustin Hopkins missed a 48-yard field goal with no time left on the clock. However, Giants DT Dexter Lawrence went offsides, and Hopkins got another chance and connected from 43 yards.
On Friday, Lawrence discussed what went wrong.
“That’s on me,” he said. “I’ve got to be more disciplined in that time at the end of the game like that in a critical situation. That’s why I’m on the field. It was unfortunate to have it happen then, and he missed it, but I’ve just got to do better….
“I hold myself to a high standard. I don’t play for myself; I play for my brothers on the field with me. For things like that, it is part of the game, but at the same time, for me, I can’t make that mistake. I don’t want to let my brothers down. I don’t want to let my family down. It’s just an unfortunate turn of events. The frustration is there on myself, not because of the call or anything like that.”
Lawrence was not the only one that let the Giants down on Thursday night. With the Giants up 23-20 in the fourth, wide receiver Darius Slayton dropped a wide-open pass in the end zone. If Slayton makes that catch, the Giants probably win.
Slayton described what happened on the play.
“Tried to run it down, probably should have dove,” Slayton, who had three catches for 54 yards, including a 33-yard touchdown reception, said on Friday. “Didn’t quite make the play…
“It’s a play that I 100 percent expect to make. Like I said, (I) tried to run it down; I should have ran it down. I’ve ran down a lot of balls in my life. At the end of the day, it’s a four-quarter game, and the game was far from over at that point. Had to move on quick and today is a new day; next week is a new week. Move on quick and make it back in the future.”
New York wasted a very good performance from quarterback Daniel Jones, who threw for 249 yards and one touchdown. Jones also ran for 95 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Most importantly, Jones had no turnovers. In addition, wide receiver Sterling Shepard had nine grabs for 94 yards, and Graham Gano made five field goals(35 straight made field goals).
Coming into the 2021 NFL season, Washington Football Team quarterback Taylor Heinicke was slated and prepared to be the backup to Ryan Fitzpatrick. However, things have now changed.
Fitzpatrick could reportedly miss 6-8 weeks due to a right hip subluxation that he suffered on Sunday in a loss against the Chargers.
If the 28-year-old Heinicke plays well, this could be his job for the rest of the season and beyond. In four seasons, Heinicke has started just one regular-season game in 2018 with the Panthers and started a playoff game for Washington last season, where he threw for over 300 yards in a losing effort to the world champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild-Card round.
At this point, with Fitzpatrick out, Washington has not brought in another veteran quarterback, which means Washington is giving Heinicke a chance to shine.
“I think someone asked me the question after the game, you’ve had a lot of doubters out there, stuff like that, and I don’t care about the doubters outside the facility,” Heinicke said on Tuesday. “It’s the people in the facility that I care about. If they have confidence in me and they believe in me, that’s all that I care about. Like you just said, that kinda tells me they have that confidence in me. So, it means a lot to me; it helps me play better. It gives me a lot more confidence, and I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Heinicke has been dreaming about being a starting quarterback in the NFL, but for Heinicke to keep the job, his mindset has to be one play at a time.
“Something I’ve been dreaming about my whole life, being a starting quarterback in the NFL, and here we are,” he said. “So, I really try and take it one day at a time, one meeting at a time, one play at a time. I feel like if I just live in the moment, everything else will take care of itself. I don’t try and get too ahead of myself. When we’re at practice, I just listen to the play, remember what we talked about — meetings, what we’re trying to get accomplished, and really take it one play at a time. We’ll worry about the other stuff later.”
Look, you never want to see anybody get injured, but it’s next man up in the NFL, so Heinicke has to seize the moment. If he wants to be a starting quarterback in the NFL, he must play well during this stretch, which begins on Thursday night at home against the New York Giants.
Many people call Giants quarterback Daniel Jones’s 2021 season a make-or-break year, and yesterday epitomized what we have seen out of Jones in his short career.
We saw some decent moments from Jones, including a 37-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Shepard that gave the Giants an early 7-3 lead. However, in the third quarter, with New York trailing 17-7 and driving deep into Broncos’ territory, Jones fumbled after a 15-yard scramble, which Denver recovered.
After the fumble, the Broncos would add a field goal to take a commanding 20-7 lead.
“Yeah, turnovers are always going to hurt you at any point in the game, and they’re big plays,” the third-year quarterback said. “We’ve got to do a good job of taking care of the ball, and you’ve gotta do a good job. But we’ll keep moving forward and keep improving.”
Giants head coach Joe Judge added: “We’ve got to do a better job as a team eliminating the penalties and turnovers. That’s a team focus right there, so this isn’t about any one player. It’s about a team improving and, look; good teams improve week to week. As I talked to the team, that’s what our focus has to be, to be a better team in Week 2 and a better team in Week 3. It’s a long season. We literally have an entire season ahead of us, okay. Any other year, it was 16 games; we have 16 games ahead of us that we have to improve week by week and keep climbing and make sure we’re the best team we can be.”
This loss is not all on Jones. The Broncos were able to move the ball against the Giants effectively. Broncos quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was 28/36 for 264 yards with two touchdowns, and Melvin Gordon had 101 yards rushing, including a 70-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Denver converted 10 of 18 third and fourth-down opportunities, and according to Giants safety Logan Ryan, the defense did not play well on Sunday.
“It wasn’t our standard,” Ryan said. “We were terrible early last year in a similar way on third and fourth downs. We have to be better.”
Disappointing game for the Jones and the Giants’ defense, but fortunately for them, they get back at it on Thursday night in D.C against the Washington Football Team.
The New York Giants have signed special teamer Nate Ebner, the team announced on Tuesday.
The 10-year veteran joined the Giants as a free agent last year. He participated in a team-high 328 special teams snaps and tied for second with six special teams tackles.
Ebner, who was a team captain in his first season with the Giants in 2020, was a free agent after trying out for one of the 12 spots on the United States National Rugby Team that competed in the Tokyo Olympics this summer. The 32-year-old Ebner participated in the Games in Rio in 2016.
When Ebner was an Olympian five years ago, he played for the New England Patriots. Giants head coach Joe Judge was the team’s special teams coordinator at the time.
“He’s a guy that’s very locked in and focused,” Giants head coach Joe Judge said about Ebner in May. “He was a captain last year and is a great team leader. This team, what he’s helping build, is very important for him, and while I don’t speak for anyone else, I don’t mind echoing that for Nate because I know I can speak very directly and honestly. But look, he’s a very important part of this team, and we look forward to getting him back.”
Ebner has played in 143 NFL games, including 16 in the postseason. A special teams’ standout since entering the NFL in 2012, Ebner played on the Patriots teams that defeated Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX, Atlanta in Super Bowl LI, and the Rams in Super Bowl LIII.
On Monday, the New York Giants announced the following seven players will be team captains this season: Quarterback Daniel Jones, running back Saquon Barkley, center Nick Gates, linebacker Blake Martinez, safeties Jabrill Peppers and Logan Ryan, and kicker Graham Gano.
Barkley is a third-year captain; Jones, Martinez, and Peppers were selected for a second season; and Gates, Ryan, and Gano received the honor for the first time.
Giants head coach Joe Judge explained what he wants to see from his captains.
“To me, the important thing for a captain is they’ve got to set the tone for the team in how they work, how they perform, and also how to put the team first,” Judge said on Monday. “They have to be the example of the most unselfish players on the team. The other important role for captains in any locker room is they’ve got to be the voice of the team directly to the head coach. So, if there’s an issue, or if there’s something that needs to be addressed, they’ve got to be someone who the team trusts to speak for them on their behalf and make sure that the issue is getting addressed. It’s important that these guys are good players who put the team first, and also have good communication as well and are not afraid to speak their mind.”
Ryan, who joined the Giants last season, was very impressed by Jones’ offseason, and he discussed what went into the selection of the Giants’ captains.
“Daniel (Jones), obviously. He did a great job; he deserves that. He worked his butt off. I’ll probably give him the offseason award winner – I think he outworked me this offseason,” Ryan said. “He really put a lot of work in. (Running Back) Saquon (Barkley), (Center) Nick Gates, obviously great players for our offense. On the defensive side, Myself, Jabrill (Peppers), Blake (Martinez), and then Graham Gano… The one thing I like about here is, Joe says, like last year I got to the team like two days, and he’s like, ‘You don’t know anybody here, don’t even vote for captain. Don’t waste a vote.’ If you’re new here and you haven’t been here, you don’t really know who the captains are, who’s earned it – we’re not going to have everyone just vote. It’s not going to be a popularity contest.
Ryan also discussed what being a team captain means to him.
“I just try to do a good job of serving my teammates, anything the younger guys asking me from my years in the league, I try to be an open book,” he said. “I’m not worried about those guys in terms of holding everything to myself and really just try to put my teammates in the best positions to succeed because we all need each other. I’m honored to be a captain, I take it very seriously, and I’m going to try to do my best with it.”
The seven captains match the 2019 team for the Giants’ highest number since they began selecting season-long captains in 2007
On Sunday, Giants starting quarterback Daniel Jones got his first action of the preseason. Jones played the whole first half for New York against the Patriots, and there was some bad and some good.
The third-year quarterback threw a bad red zone interception as he attempted a pass across his body early in the second quarter. Later in that quarter, Jones made it right by throwing a beautiful 23-yard touchdown pass to TE Kaden Smith.
All summer long, Jones did not get hit, and he was happy for that to happen on Sunday.
“Yeah, it was good to be back out there on the field and feel the game, feel the pass rush and get hit a couple times,” Jones said on Wednesday. “Felt good to be back out there.”
At this point, Jones has been without many of his weapons. Some are old in Saquon Barkley, who is recovering from ACL surgery; some are new in WR Kenny Golladay and TE Kyle Rudolph. Jones is happy to have all those guys on the practice field together.
“It’s been good,” Jones said. “Like we’ve said, they’ve worked so hard to get back and are continuing to work hard with the trainers. It’s been good to have them on the field, and I know those guys are ready to work.”
As they enter the regular season, Jones believes the Giants’ offense will be able to do a lot different things in 2021.
“I think versatility,” Jones said about the offense. “First and foremost, it’s a tough, smart group. I think it starts up front; all those guys are tough, physical football players, and from there, we can attack a lot of different ways – downhill running the ball, vertically stretching the field, and getting the ball in space. I think that’s what we want to be as an offense is first, physical and tough, smart and an offense that’s versatile and can attack a lot of ways.”
If the weapons are healthy, and the offensive line, which looked shaky against New England, can be better, the Giants could have an explosive offense in 2021, but Jones has to protect the football. If he does that, New York could win the very winnable NFC East.
Hall of Fame defensive end and New York Giants great Michael Strahan will have his number 92 jersey retired on November 28 when the Giants host the Philadelphia Eagles, the team announced on Wednesday.
Strahan, who spent his entire 15-year career(1993-2007) in New York and joined Eli Manning, Phil Simms, and Mel Hein as the only players in franchise history to wear a Giants uniform for at least 15 seasons, was a captain on the Giants’ 2007 Super Bowl XLII championship team. That Super Bowl against New England was Strahan’s final game.
He made many plays with the Giants, which led to him being a seven-time Pro Bowler and the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2001 when he set the league’s single-season record with 22.5 sacks, a mark that still stands 20 years later. Strahan owns the franchise career record with 141.5 sacks. It was the fifth-highest total in NFL.
“Michael’s career was defined by his achievements, his consistency, and his leadership. Very few defensive ends played the position as well as Michael. He was a tremendous run defender as well as a great pass rusher. And he realized a goal every player aspires to, but few achieve, winning a Super Bowl in his final game. We are grateful for all his contributions and are happy to officially say no Giants player will ever wear No. 92 again.”
Strahan’s jersey will be alongside Eli Manning’s number 10, which will be retired on September 26. Manning will also be inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor on that day.
The 49-year-old is also making his mark off the field and currently hosts Good Morning America and an analyst on FOX NFL Sunday.
The Giants acquired OL Billy Price, a former first-round draft choice, from the Cincinnati Bengals in exchange for defensive lineman B.J. Hill and a 2022 conditional seventh-round draft choice, the teams announced on Monday.
The 26-year-old Price(6-4, 310 pounds) was selected out of Ohio State by the Bengals 21st overall in the 2018 draft. He played in 42 games in three seasons, including 19 starts at the center and guard spots
Hill, 26, did not play last night in New York’s preseason finale against New England.
Giants head coach Joe Judge praised Hill on Monday, but he believes adding Price was too good to pass up.
“Honestly, he’s a guy that there has drawn a lot of interest,” Giants coach Joe Judge said. “I have a lot of respect for B.J. as a player. I think he’s a starting defensive lineman in this league. He’s in a unique position in the room he’s in. He’s in the last year of his contract, and I think this is an opportunity to improve our team and also put a player that we have a lot of respect for in a position to go out there and get paid starter money.”
Hill, who played collegiately at North Carolina State, was originally a third-round draft choice by the Giants in 2018. Last season, Hill played in all 16 games for the third consecutive season and tallied 32 tackles (15 solo) and 1.0 sack.
Giants have been busy in the month of August:
Including Monday’s trade, New York has made four in August. On August 16, the Giants acquired cornerback/special teamer Keion Crossen from the Houston Texans for a 2023 sixth-round selection. They acquired Josh Jackson from Green Bay for Isaac Yiadom in a swap of cornerbacks the following day. Last Thursday, they traded kicker Ryan Santoso to the Carolina Panthers for a conditional 2022 seventh-round draft choice.
New York Giants RB Saquon Barkley got his first full team reps on Thursday. However, he was treated like a quarterback. Barkley wore the red jersey, which means hands-off, don’t touch.
While it’s for his protection, Barkley did not like it.
“I hate it, I hate it,” Barkley said about wearing the red jersey after the team’s last joint workout with the Patriots outside Gillette Stadium. “You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I said something in the locker room today, ‘I don’t care if it’s pink, orange, yellow, whatever color is on, as long as I’m going to be able to get out there. I’m going to take some reps for my team, and that’s the only thing that matters to me.'”
Barkley passed his physical and began practicing on AugUST 9. On Thursday, Barkley, who tore his ACL in Week 2 against the Bears, took his first reps in seven-on-seven drills and then his first four in 11-on-11.
“It feels good being with the team, feels good to get a couple of team reps,” Barkley said. “It’s just fun to be able to play football again, feel like a little kid, and just taking it day by day.”
According to a press release from the Giants, Barkley caught two passes in a two-minute drill, where he had some light contact from a Patriots defender.
The fourth-year running back, who rushed for 2344 yards and 23 touchdowns on the ground in his career, can’t wait to get hit.
“I definitely want to get hit again,” he said. “To me, it’s not just the hitting; it’s just playing football. Even though I only took two reps and a couple of reps in seven-on-seven, those reps are so valuable right now and going to help me in the long run.”
When healthy, the 24-year-old Barkley is a big-time running back, which helps make the Giants’ offense more dynamic. Personally, Barkley, whose fifth-year option was picked up by the team in April, which guaranteed his salary for 2022, would like to get a contract extension at some point, and if he proves that he’s completely healthy, he will get paid.
