The New York Giants are now sitting at 1-3 and last in the NFC east. If that isn’t bad enough, they now must face the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills over the next two weeks on the road. Perhaps playing away will be a blessing for the Giants as they have actually played better on the road with their only win coming in Arizona (31-28) and an expected loss to the San Francisco 49ers (30-12).
Offensively, the Giants are averaging only 7.5 points at home and 21.5 on the road. However, it gets worse as the Giants defense has surrendered an average of 32 points at home and 29 points per game on the road. Here are my top 3 ways the Giants could win or lose against the Dolphins.
Top 3 ways they could win
- Where are you Offensive Line? A large percentage of Giant fans had concerns with the offensive line in the off season and with good reason. It’s been over a decade since the Giants had a solid offensive line. I understand there’s injuries and lack of experience. However, at some point we need to place some blame on the coaches who are teaching them.
- Balanced Attack: With or without Barkley, the Giants must establish some sort of a running game while mixing in the passing game. Easier said than done when the offensive line continues to struggle. Regardless, if the Giants want to have any chance of competing against the Dolphins, they need to find a way to have a balanced attack.
- Defense needs to Wake Up: Some Giants defenders played better against the Seahawks than others, but I’m referring to the defense as a collective. The Giants defensive front 7 faced a Seattle offensive line comprised of 2nd and 3rd string players and failed to dominant the trenches. The Giants secondary didn’t fair too well either as they gave up too many uncontested catches and yards after the catch. All this must change against the Dolphins.
Top 3 ways they could lose
- Pass Rush, M.I.A: Playing against mostly 2nd and 3rd string linemen, the Giants pass rush was pathetic. The Giants should have gotten 10 to 11 sacks and not the Seahawks. If the Giants can’t generate any type of productive pass rush, this game will be over by halftime.
- Extending Drives: The Giants have not been able to shutdown teams on 3rd down conversions, whether if it’s short or long yardage. The Dolphins have a potent offense and anytime the Giants defense can get them into 3rd and long situations, they must stop them.
- Poor Tackling Continues: This has been the most frustrating category for the Giants as they continue to display poor tackling technique and it usually results in a touchdown for the opposing team. The Giants have got to somehow find the willingness to make tackles and perhaps that starts with their mind set. If they allow the Dolphins offensive weapons to break tackles at will, the Giants will suffer another embarrassing loss.
The Giants sideline against the Seahawks showed a lot of players frustrated along with the coaching staff. It will be interesting to see if this team can regroup quickly and put forth a solid effort against a Miami team that is clearly more talented. The Giants need to take one game at a time and more importantly play with more passion and urgency which has been missing thus far. I’m certainly not throwing in the towel, although it’s extremely frustrating to watch this team play.
There’s enough blame to go around and the problem is not because of one individual. This is a team sport and there’s an old saying “you win and lose as a team” The Giants must find a way to not point fingers and to unite and play as a team.