What a difference a week makes for New York Giants rookie quarterback Tommy DeVito.
In his second career start, the undrafted rookie free agent completed 18 of 26 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns against the Commanders(4-7). Two of his touchdown passes went to Saquon Barkley, and the third went to Darius Slayton. The Giants (3-8) forced a season-high six turnovers, including an Isaiah Simmons pick-six to seal the game late in the fourth; New York would end their three-game losing streak and defeat Washington 31-19 at FedeXField on Sunday.
DeVito gets his victory as starter in the NFL.
“It means a lot. It means a lot to a sports team, right?” DeVito said after the win. “After the last couple weeks of not getting the result we wanted, just to have that feeling in this game which is not getting the result we wanted in the end, you know, it means a lot. We’re going to enjoy it. We’re gonna celebrate it but we know what it takes.”
The Livingston, New Jersey native, who became the first Giants quarterback with at least five touchdowns in his first two NFL starts since 1950, took a beating on Sunday. He was sacked nine times. This is the first victory in Giants history in a game when their quarterback(s) was sacked at least nine times.
“I hate to put it back to my college days, but I got beat up a little bit when I was in college,” DeVito said. “So I’ve kinda been in some similar situations like that before but I mean that’s part of the quarterback position. You have to stand in there and you’ll take those hits and deliver the ball to your teammates and do that element of it. I mean, I continue to trust in those guys.
Giants head coach Brian Daboll added: “Yeah, I mean, he’s tough. He’s a tough guy. Again, when you have that many sacks, and they weren’t all on the offensive line, I’ll tell you that right now. We could have done some things better, but we did a good job of sometimes capitalizing on them. In terms of getting backed up, a lot of times we had to punt the ball because we got behind the sticks, but he’s a tough-minded guy.”
Despite DeVito’s struggles against the Jets and Cowboys, the Giants stuck with DeVito, and Daboll has been happy with his work ethic and progress.
“Yeah, I mean I was asked a fair amount of questions about bringing in some older guys and thought this guy was a good young player to work with,’ Daboll said. “Again, he’s played in two and a half games, so there’s a lot of work that needs to be done, but he certainly has put the work in… There’s a lot of things he did good and a lot of things we can help him improve on.”
Notes:
The Giants improved to 2-2 in NFC East games. Including their 14-7 victory last month in MetLife Stadium, the Giants swept the season series against Washington for the first time since 2020. The Giants are 8-2-1 in their last 11 games against Washington. Both losses occurred in 2021.
The Giants last had three interceptions in a game on Nov. 21, 2021, in a victory against Philadelphia. Darnay Holmes had one of the picks in that game and one Sunday. *The Giants’ three fumble recoveries were their highest total since they had three on Oct. 2 2022, against Chicago.
The New York Giants fell to 2-8 after getting routed by the Dallas Cowboys 49-17 at AT&T Stadium on Sunday.
Without their two top quarterbacks, Daniel Jones and his backup, Tyrod Taylor, the Giants were forced to go with undrafted rookie free agent Tommy DeVito, and the offense struggled. DeVito was under constant pressure, and he was sacked five times. The Giants finished with only 172 total yards.
Defensively, New York had no answers for the Cowboys. Dallas scored 49 points and had 640 total yards. The 640 total yards were the second-most ever allowed by the Giants. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott completed 26 of 35 passes for 404 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. In addition, Prescott had a rushing touchdown.
New York was beat up and beat down by the Cowboys. They got embarrassed.
“It’s definitely tough right now,” Giants running back Saquon Barkley said. “Losing like that, get embarrassed week after week, but you got to be a man about it, obviously you can be in your feeling about it for a short time but you got to get ready for the next week, that’s NFL.”
The Giants were noticeably frustrated on the sideline. Wide receivers Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton were seen having an animated discussion on the sideline. Head coach Brian Daboll and DC Wink Martindale reportedly had a long discussion; Barkley and Daboll also reportedly had an exchange after New York failed to convert on a fourth and two deep in Cowboys’ territory.
Daboll downplayed all those sideline interactions.
Shepard said he was trying to motivate Slayton.
“Yeah, just trying to motivate him and keep him going,” Shepard said. “It’s frustrating obviously look at the score board and how the game went down it’s frustrating, but I was just trying to motivate him to keep on going and fighting through it really.”
Slayton said Shepard was trying to settle him down after Slayton was having what he called a ‘spirited conversation’ with wide receives coach Mike Groh.
Barkley said he was not arguing with Daboll.
“I mean, we didn’t get the conversion on the fourth and three, and was I frustrated we didn’t get it, yes,” he said. “So maybe it was a sign of frustration but there was no argument or nothing like that, it was football.”
This season, the Giants were swept by the Cowboys and were outscored 89-17. Last season, they were o-4 against the Cowboys and Eagles, and it appears they’ll have a similar record against both teams in 2023. Ultimately, Barkley knows if New York ever wants to make noise in the NFC East, they have to beat the Cowboys and Eagles.
“I don’t think it was more or less because it was the Dallas Cowboys, but it’s a bit tough,” Barkley said. “You know my six years here going against Dallas and Philly and coming up short and getting our butt whooped against them, but if we want to be the team that we want to go to, those are the teams that we have to match-up against and win, and we haven’t been doing that since I’ve been here.”
New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones’ season ended on Sunday after he left in the second quarter of New York’s 30-6 loss to the Raiders.
Jones, who signed a four-year, $160 million contract with the Giants in the offseason, suffered a torn right ACL when he went down without being hit.
The 26-year-old missed the previous three games because of a neck injury, and now, he will miss the rest of the season and possibly parts of next season.
On Wednesday, Jones discussed how he injured his right knee.
“That play before the end of the first quarter, I just tried to make a cut, felt my knee kind of shift a little bit, kind of buckle in a different way,’ Jones said. “Wasn’t exactly sure what it was, just knew it kind of felt different. And then, tried to jog on it, do some light cutting in between the quarters and it felt okay, so I went back out there. I got to the top of my drop, felt that same kind of kind of shift and buckle in my leg, my knee kind of gave out a little bit there. So, I knew something was up at that point. I had to go in and get checked out.”
According to Jones, he has not set a date for surgery, but he expects to have the surgery in the coming weeks.
After making the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and winning a postseason game for the first time since 2011, many expected the Giants to be playoff contenders in 2023; however, injuries have hurt this team. Their best offensive lineman, LT Andrew Thomas, just returned after missing multiple games with a hamstring injury. In addition, Saquon Barkley missed a few games with an ankle injury, and tight end Darren Waller was placed on injured reserve last week due to a hamstring injury. Plus, multiple offensive linemen have gone down with injuries, and now they lost their starting quarterback.
Jones talked about how he’s feeling emotionally after the injury.
“I mean, it’s tough, for sure,” Jones said. “You put a lot into the season; you put a lot into preparing to play, and to get it taken from you through an injury is definitely tough. That’s real, and that’s something that you deal with as a player, but it’s part of the game at this level. At any level, really, it’s something that you have to deal with, and part of it. I understand that, and it’s unfortunate, but I can’t afford to feel sorry for myself or sulk. It’s part of it, and I’ll be fine. I’ll bounce back, attack the rehab process like I have anything else, and come back stronger.”
Giants coach Brian Daboll says Tommy DeVito will be the team’s starting quarterback when the Giants head to Dallas to face the Cowboys on Sunday. At this point, the 2-7 Giants are one of the worst teams in football and will probably be in line for a high pick in the 2024 draft, which means they could grab USC’s Caleb Williams or North Carolina’s Drake Maye, which could mean that Jones may have played his last down in New York.
However, at this point, Jones is just focused on getting healthy.
“I’m focused on what I’m doing right now and what I can control and what’s in front of me, and that’s this rehab process, my knee, healing that up and then doing everything I can to help this team finish strong and play well,” Jones said. “That’s what I’m focused on, and I’m excited to watch these guys finish.”
It wasn’t pretty, but in the end, the New York Giants(2-5) ended their four-game losing streak and got their first home win of the season after defeating the Washington Commanders(3-4) 14-7 at MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
New York’s offense has been anemic this season, but they scored their first touchdown in the second quarter on Sunday after Darren Waller’s 12-yard touchdown reception, which was his first touchdown of the season
The touchdown broke two long streaks. The Giants had not scored an offensive touchdown since Matt Breida’s eight-yard run in the third quarter in Week 3 against San Francisco; the Giants went 220 minutes and 42 seconds of game time, 14 quarters, 38 possessions, and 252 plays between offensive touchdowns.
In addition, the Giants had not thrown a touchdown pass since Jones and Isaiah Hodgins combined for an 11-yard score with 4:25 remaining in the victory at Arizona. The measurables between touchdown passes were 260 minutes and seven seconds, 17 quarters, 44 possessions, and 291 plays.
After Saquon Barkley took Tyrod Taylor’s short pass and turned it into a 32-yard touchdown, the Giants led 14-0 at halftime.
One week after they led at the end of the second quarter in Buffalo, 6-0. It was the first time the Giants held their opponent scoreless in the first half of consecutive games since 2005.
Taylor started for the injured Daniel Jones for the second straight game and was solid. He completed 18 of 29 passes for 279 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions for a passer rating of 116.9.
Following the win, Giants head coach Brian Daboll was asked if Taylor had done enough to be the team’s starter going forward.
“I would just say Tyrod had a good game this game, and he’s a true pro, and I’m glad we’ve got him,” Daboll said.
Taylor added: “That’s up to coach. Obviously, if DJ (quarterback Daniel Jones) is healthy, he’s a captain on our team, captain of our team, a leader on the offense, and I am here to support in any way that I can.”
This was Taylor’s first win as a starter since 2021, and at this stage of his career, the 13-year veteran is happy for the opportunity to play.
“It’s been fun just to be out there with the guys,” he said. “Obviously, quarterback, there is only one that can play per week. Other positions have rotations, whether a guy needs a blow or not, but just staying true to the preparation. Since I got drafted in 2011, I’ve always prepared myself week in and week out as if I was a starter. Whether that was the case or not, my attitude has never changed. It’s motivated me along the way, whether I was number two or number one, but just thankful for the opportunity. More importantly, thankful for the guys competing and playing the way that they did today and last week as well, too. Overall, it’s just fun to be out there competing.”
It appears if Jones is healthy, he’s still the guy for New York. However, with the success Taylor is having, maybe New York won’t rush Jones back.
The Giants hope to build on this win as they host the Jets next Sunday in the battle of New York City.
Notes:
-The Giants’ defense came up big on Sunday. New York sacked Sam Howell six times, including five in the first half. Dexter Lawrence tied his career high with 2.0 sacks.
-Washington’s 273 total yards were the second fewest allowed by the Giants this season.
-The 14 points were the fewest the Giants have scored in a victory since they defeated Philadelphia, 13-7, on Nov. 28, 2021.
The New York Giants(1-2) ended their two-game West Coast road trip 1-1 after falling to the San Francisco 49ers(3-0), 30-12, on Thursday night.
New York was without star running back Saquon Barkley(ankle) and left tackle Andrew Thomas(hamstring), and that vaunted 49ers’ defense gave the Giants fits.
Without those two critical pieces, the Giants rushed for only 29 yards and had 150 total yards, their lowest output since 2013. In addition, they had only ten first downs.
“No excuses,” Giants head coach Brian Daboll said after the game. “We could do a better job.”
Daniel Jones, who struggled on Thursday night, completed 22 of 32 passes for 137 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception. According to him, the team could not take advantage of opportunities.
“We just didn’t make enough plays,” Jones said. Obviously, it’s a good defense, going up against them and credit to them. They play well, but we have to convert a couple of those opportunities. When you play a good team like that, you have to be crisp. We have to be clean, and we didn’t do that.”
For the third straight week, the Giants have trailed at halftime; they have been outscored 63-6 in the first half this season. Those bad starts are hard to come back from. Jones says the team has to figure it out.
“Yes, it’s not what we’re trying to do, so we have to find a way to figure that out,” he said. “Execute better early in the game, finish in the end zone, take advantage of opportunities, but it comes down to making plays and executing better in those situations.”
After three weeks, the Giants have fallen to two teams, the Cowboys and 49ers, who are two of the better teams in the NFC; in reality, both games were not very close, so it’s safe to say this team is just not as good as the top teams in the NFC. However, there’s still a lot of football to be played.
The Giants get back at it next Monday night at home against the Seattle Seahawks at MetLife Stadium.
On Sunday, the New York Giants(1-1) went into halftime trailing the Arizona Cardinals(0-2) 20-0. At that point, it appeared that the Giants were on their way to falling to 0-2.
The Giants, who were routed by the Cowboys 40-0 in Week 1, were the first team to surrender at least 60 points in a season before scoring since 1978.
However, the second half was a much different story for the Giants. New York trailed 28-7 in the third quarter, but they would score 24 straight points and take the lead on a Graham Gano 34-yard field goal as they defeated Arizona 31-28 at State Farm Stadium.
The last time New York came back from a 21-point deficit was in 1949.
Giants quarterback Daniel Jones and the offense struggled mightily in the first half. The team had zero points and had only 81 yards of total yards.
However, n the second half, Jones woke up. He completed 17/21 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns. In addition, he scored a touchdown on the ground. Jones ended the night completing 26/37 passes for 317 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception(first half). He also added 59 yards on the ground.
The Giants finished the game with 439 total yards, the second-highest total of the 21-game Brian Daboll era and the most they’ve had in a victory.
Daboll was happy with how Jones finished the game.
“Yeah, I thought he finished strong,” Daboll said. “Played a really good second half. We had a couple of things that we could have improved on in the first half, (we) talked about those. But he is a resilient young man who went out there and played well along with, I’d say, a number of people.”
Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard was also impressed by Jones’ resiliency.
“It’s resiliency,” Shepard said. “It’s something that we talk about all the time too. Those are two guys that are very competitive and want to win, and they play with a lot of heart and passion. That’s exactly what was just played.”
Jones, who improved to 8-1-1 in his last ten games following a loss (since Week 7, 2021), felt the team needed to execute better in the second half, which they did.
“I think it’s about execution, and you can’t really afford to think about any of that or get emotional or think about anything outside of what your job is, and that’s to execute and focus on one play at a time and being right there in that play and making sure you’re taking advantage of it and making good decisions, giving guys chances to make plays. That was my focus, and I thought we did that well as a team.”
New York avoided disaster on Sunday. This would have been a terrible loss but credit to Jones and the rest of this team for getting things right in the second half.
Saquon Barkley:
Barkley led the Giants with 63 rushing yards on 17 carries, including a one-yard touchdown run, and tied with Darren Waller for the team lead with six receptions (for 29 yards, including a nine-yard score).
However, late in the game, Barkley injured his right ankle. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Barkley is scheduled to undergo an MRI on the ankle Monday in Arizona to determine the severity of his injury and how much time he could miss.
Entering the 2023 NFL season, there was a lot of excitement surrounding the New York Giants. However, that excitement has been quieted down for now after New York(0-1) was routed by the Cowboys 40-0 in the season opener at MetLife Stadium on Sunday night.
Dallas(1-0) scored its first points of the season after a block field goal that Noah Igbinoghene returned 58 yards for a touchdown; after a field goal that made it 9-0, the Cowboys would score again as DaRon Bland picked off Daniel Jones and returned it 22 yards for another touchdown.
The Cowboys extended their lead to 26-0 at halftime, and the rout was on.
Everything the Giants did on Sunday went wrong. They couldn’t protect their quarterback; Jones was sacked seven times. They didn’t protect the football; New York had three turnovers. It was just a lousy opening night for the Giants.
“It sucks,” Giants running back Saquon Barkley said after the loss. “We got skunked in the National Football League against Dallas and at home, but I don’t think that takes away anything from what we did in training camp. I feel like we had a good week of practice; we came out, and we just didn’t execute and play to the level we could play to.”
Jones, who finished the game completing 15 of 28 passes for only 104 yards and two interceptions, was disappointed by the team’s performance.
“We are certainly frustrated and extremely disappointed with how we performed tonight, and I know I certainly am with myself, so a lot to work on and clean up,” Jones said. “We are going to be critical of ourselves and look to correct it and get back on the right page.”
Giants head coach Brian Daboll added: “We just got skunked here, 40 to nothing. When you play a game like that and coach a game like that, there’s nothing that’s good enough. Our job is to go back and look at it with a critical eye, just like we would do in any game, but 40 to nothing is not a good score, obviously. So, a lot to work on, and that’s what we’ll do.”
It’s only one game, and there is a lot of season left, but if you want to make noise in the NFC East, you have to beat the Cowboys and Eagles, and the Giants know that, which makes this performance even more disappointing.
The New York Giants were a much-improved team last season; they made the playoffs for the first time in a long time(2016), and the play of Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley was a big reason.
After a down season in 2021, Barkley was big-time in 2022. The Pro Bowl running back rushed for a career-high 1312 yards. Regarding Jones, he threw 15 touchdowns and had a career-low five interceptions. In addition, he had career-highs of 708 yards rushing and another seven touchdowns on the ground.
Jones and Barkley are entering Year two in Brian Daboll’s offense, and they are entering this season with more weapons, including tight end Darren Waller. With the addition of the one-time Pro Bowler, things could open up even more for both Jones and Barkley.
“I think adding (tight end) Darren (Waller) definitely helps, being able to bring a little to attention to him and all the guys,” Barkley said on Wednesday. “All the wide receivers, not just DJ (quarterback Daniel Jones), stepping up to another level but (wide receiver Darius) Slay(ton), (wide receiver) Isaiah (Hodgins), (wide receiver) P(arris Campbell), Belly (tight end Daniel Bellinger), (wide receiver Sterling) Shep(ard), all those guys, the O-line. I think we feed off each other really well, and I feel like last year we really showed that, being a team that, whatever it takes to win, and that’s what I am excited for—just going out there and competing at a high level with all the extra talent that we have.
“With DJ showing the type of player that he is and him taking it to another level, it forces you to take it to another level, too. I just feel like me being in the second year, understanding the offense a little bit more, knowing the scheme, knowing where to block, being able to time it better is just going to help my game.”
The Giants offense should be better in 2023; Barkley wants a big contract, and he’s going to be motivated to play at a high level. In addition, Waller, if he can stay healthy, will help. The offense line is solid. If Jones is what the Giants think he could be when they gave him a big contract in the offseason, things could be great for New York on offense, which could mean even better days for the Giants.
The New York Giants released its initial 53-man roster on Tuesday. To get down to 53 players, the Giants waived 15 players and terminated the contracts of six vested veterans.
New York waived the following players:
Quarterback Tommy DeVito, who played most of the Giants’ preseason snaps; running back Jashaun Corbin; wide receiver Kalil Pimpleton; tight end Ryan Jones; tackle Tyre Phillips; defensive tackles Ryder Anderson and Kobe Smith; defensive end Habakkuk Baldonado; linebackers Darrian Beavers, Tomon Fox, Ray Wilborn and Dyontae Johnson; cornerback Gemon Green; safety Alex Cook; and long snapper Cameron Lyons.
Those whose contracts were terminated were linebacker Oshane Ximines, wide receivers Jamison Crowder, Cole Beasley, and David Sills, cornerback Amani Oruwariye, and center Sean Harlow.
Tight end Tommy Sweeney was placed on the reserve/non-football list (NFI), and wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson, who is returning after tearing his ACL as a rookie last November, was activated off the physically unable to perform list (PUP) after he passed his physical.
In addition, third-year cornerback Aaron Robinson was moved from active/PUP to reserve/PUP and must miss at least the season’s first four games. The team’s third-round draft choice in 2021, Robinson was limited to two games last season because he had his appendix removed and tore his ACL.
This is the initial 53-man roster, so a lot can change, which Giants head coach Brian Daboll discussed.
“Long couple of days here, obviously made some cuts,” Daboll said. “I’m not going to talk about who was released today. It’s kind of still a fluid situation right now, so really all-encompassing – the roster, whether it’s the practice squad, who we have so that’s really more for tomorrow.”
Giants name team captains:
Daboll today announced the team’s 2023 captains, which consists of 10 players: Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley, Andrew Thomas, Darren Waller, Dexter Lawrence, Leonard Williams, Bobby Okereke, Adoree’ Jackson, Xavier McKinney and Graham Gano.
Barkley is a captain for the fifth consecutive season, the team’s longest active streak. Jones is a fourth-year captain, and Gano is in his third season in the leadership position. Thomas, Lawrence, Williams, and McKinney are second-year captains. Jackson, Waller, and Okereke were selected captains for the first time, the latter two players in their debut season with the Giants.
“The way we do it is I have six slots, and I have all the players vote, and then if you get a certain amount of votes, then you are named captain,” Daboll said. “I think there were 22 people on the team that received votes, which to me is good for our team in terms of the way players perceive other players in leadership roles. Just because you are not a captain doesn’t mean you are not a leader on the team. There was a considerable number of guys who got, maybe it was five votes or three votes. Some guys got over 50 votes, but that was all by the players.”
Earlier this week, the New York Giants and RB Saquon Barkley agreed on a one-year deal.
Some expected the two-time Pro Bowler to skip training camp after he did not sign the franchise tender he received on March 7 and did not reach an agreement with the Giants on a long-term contract by the July 17 deadline, but he’s at camp and on Thursday, Barkley explained why he reported.
“The reality of it is, I mean, one, I kind of just followed my heart,” Barkley said. “Obviously, I heard what everyone was saying in the news and on social media, but I kind of just followed my heart. And then you’ve got to look at it from a business point, from a business view, I felt like, what’s the best thing that I can do? Some people may agree or disagree with this, to sit out or sit in, and I feel like for this year specifically, the best thing that I can do for myself would be coming back, going out there, and play the game that I love, playing for my teammates, doing something that I’ve wanted to do since I was a little kid.”
The six-year running back said he was seriously considering sitting out; however, in his mind, he believed that would not have been the right move for many reasons.
“Yeah, I was,” Barkley said. “That’s a play that I had, but I’ll be completely honest, if I sat out this year and, say, the New York Football Giants and I sat out, and we didn’t have a good record, do you think that’s going to make another team in free agency or the Giants want to have me come back the next year after I sat out a whole year? And be like, ‘Oh, we want to give you 15 million dollars a year now?’ I don’t think that’s how it’s going to work. After having conversations and really breaking it down – when you sit there, and you break it down like that, it’s like, the only way that I’m going to make it change or do something that’s going to benefit myself and my family is doing what I do best. And that’s showing up and playing the game I love and do it at a high level.”
Recently, running backs around the league discussed the devaluing of the position in the league. As we know, it’s difficult for running backs to get big contracts. Going forward, Barkley is hoping to change the narrative.
“Obviously, I know what’s going on with the running back situation and me being tagged and the value of the running back continually going down,” he said. “The only way that I feel like that’s going to change is someone has to make it change. God willing; hopefully, I can be one of the people to do it.”
The 26-year-old says he was disappointed that the two sides could not agree on a long-term deal, but he’s put that behind him and is ready to win a championship in New York.
“I could sit here and lie to you and be like, ‘I wasn’t disappointed; I wasn’t this and that and the third.’ I mean, that would just be a flat-out lie,” Barkley said. “But I am mature enough to understand that it’s a business and understand that deals don’t get done every year. Specific to my position, we didn’t get a deal done. Me and my team felt like we were in good faith trying to get a deal done, the Giants feel they were in a good faith trying to get a deal done, and that’s life. Sometimes you don’t come to an agreement. I had to come to a decision. Like I said, I had an epiphany.
“I had a mindset of what I was going to do, but I changed my mind. Wise words of a lot of vets who’ve reached out to me and who have said some stuff on the news and media, ‘When you show up, you can’t have that in your heart.’ It’s not a good thing to have in your heart. So, I put all that aside. My focus is on my teammates, everyone in that building, and the fans, and to go out here and have a hell of a year.”
