Articles

By Michael Stewart@TheTruthNYG

The New York Giants are returning home to face the Washington Commanders after suffering a heart breaking loss to the Buffalo Bills 14-9. In a nut shell, the Giants defense played their best game of the year; especially Bobby Okereke along with fellow ILB Micah McFadden. However; the Giants inept offense led by Tyrod Taylor failed miserably in the red zone resulting in no touchdowns to go along with a botched up call on the last play in the first half. The Giants will now face a division rival in Washington, a team they have had recent success over. Here are my top 3 ways the Giants could win or lose this game.

Top 3 ways they could win!

  • Defense Repeat Performance: For the first this season, the Giants defense showed passion and urgency and held a high powered offense of the Bills to only 14 points. If the Giants expect to string a few wins together this season, they need to continue this trend for the remaining games and it starts against Washington.
  • Offensive Line Resurrected: The insertion of Justin Pugh gave the Giants bewildered offensive line some positive energy and the results were their best performance thus far this season. Once again, this unit must continue effort against a very formidable Washington defensive seven. If not, it’s going to be a long afternoon.
  • Balanced Attack: The return of Saquon Barkley helped to lessen the load on quarterback Tyrod Taylor and the Giants offensive unit. Barkley needs to be the team’s primary weapon on Sunday, but not exclusively. The Giants offensive Coordinator Mike Kafka must orchestra a balance attack to keep Washington’s defense on its heels by utilizing wide receivers Jalin Hyatt and Wan’Dale Robinson, along with Tight End Darren Waller.

Top 3 ways they could lose!

  • Red Zone Failures: This has been one of the most consistent failures for the Giants offense since their last Super Bowl Victory. The Giants are ranked near the bottom in red zone efficiency and if they expect to start winning some games, this trend has to stop. The Giants must convert more opportunities for touchdowns in the red zone.
  • Turnovers: Over the last two games, the Giants have gotten better in the takeaway/Giveaway department; however, they still find ways to lose. Washington has been very giving in this department thus far and if the Giants want to get a much needed win, winning the turnover battle is a good start.
  • Minimize Big Plays: In the Giants last two losses, they surrendered a handful of big plays against the Dolphins and were never really in the game. However, against the Bills, their defense did a great job eliminating any big plays by Buffalo’s offense and had a chance to win the game on the final play. If the Giants can grind it out with the Commanders and make Washington’s offense work for every yard, they will have a solid chance of winning this game.

It is unclear if Daniel Jones will be activated for this game, if not expect Tyrod Taylor to get another start. According to the schedule, the next few games seem to be makeable wins for the Giants, however; based on the team’s overall performance over the first 6 games, I’m not sure how anyone could tab the Giants as favorites. The Commanders might be Dallas, 49ers, Miami or Buffalo, but they are certainly not a team that the Giants can’t ignore.