GIANTS SEASON CONTINUES TO DETERIORATE AFTER BLOWOUT LOSS TO RAMS
Al Thompson
The Giants season is spiraling out of control and there seems no end in sight.
Big Blue dropped a 51-17 decision to the Los Angeles Rams, their record fell to 1-7 overall and 0-4 at home, each for the first time since 1980.
To say second year head coach Ben McAdoo is embattled would be putting it kindly. Questions about effort and heart are mounting with the suspensions which seem to have had a disastrous effect.
McAdoo started his post game press conference stating the obvious.
“Well, when you play a talented football team and you handle the ball the way we handled the ball, you tackle the way you tackled today, We punted. We had a blocked punt and we struggled to cover a punt. Unfortunately, that’s what the scoreboard is going to look like.”
He was immediately asked if his team quit on him.
“No. The team didn’t quit today.”
What did you think of the effort?
“They were playing hard.”
Why didn’t it translate to a better score?
“I just gave you that answer.”
The Giants went into the game without starting cornerback Janoris Jenkins, who was serving a suspension for violating team policies regarding showing up for meetings.
A few weeks ago, CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie was suspended for violating similar team policies.
Jenkins seems to be having a less-than stellar relationship with McAdoo as they have reportedly been sparing all season.
This toxic atmosphere clearly affected the play of the secondary against the Rams.
One of the most embarrassing moments during the game went like this.
On third-and-33 from their own 48, Rams second-year quarterback Jared Goff threw to the left, hitting Robert Woods a yard behind the line, and Woods was off behind his blockers on a wide receiver screen. He hung a right just inside the Giants’ 45, then cut upfield approaching the 35 and hit another gear, splitting Landon Collins and Eli Apple on a sprint to a 52-yard score. Apple and Collins looked like they weren’t interested in making a play.
McAddeo was asked what he sees going on in the secondary? It seemed like Collins wasn’t taking the right drops. Not sure whether man or zone. What happened on the third and 33 conversion for a touchdown?
“Yeah. We’ll have to go take a look at the film on the play you’re talking about and the other one is just we got to get to the ball and we got to get them on the ground,” McAdoo said. “But I’m disappointed. I’m disappointed. Expected us to come out and play a better football game than we played. We have it is us. It’s my job to get it out of us.”
The Rams’ 51 points were the most by a Giants opponent since Nov. 28, 2015, when the Giants lost in New Orleans, 52-49. It was the highest point total they allowed at home since Dec. 12, 1964, in a 52-21 loss to Cleveland (which was also the last home game in which they trailed by at least 38 points, as they did when it was 48-10). It was the fifth highest total given up by the Giants at home (63 by the Chicago Cardinals in 1948, 56 by the Chicago Bears in 1943, 52 by the Rams in 1948 and the Browns in 1964). The last opposing team to score 50 points in a Giants home game was Washington on Sept. 19, 1999, in a 50-21 victory.
*The 34-point loss was the Giants’ worst since a 38-0 loss at Carolina on Sept. 22, 2013 and the most one-sided at home since Nov. 15, 1998 (37-3 to Green Bay). Their previous largest deficit in MetLife Stadium was 30 points (40-10) to Indianapolis on Nov. 3, 2014.
*The Giants fell to 11-18 (.380) in games following a regular-season bye.
*The Giants lost to the Rams for the first time since Oct. 14, 2001. They had won their previous seven games against the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, and now trail in the all-time series, 26-16.
* In a span of 1:52 in the second quarter, the Rams scored on Jared Goff touchdown passes of 52 yards to Robert Woods and 67 yards to Sammy Watkins. They were the first and third-longest plays allowed by the Giants this season. The second-longest was a 58-yard pass from Jameis Winston to O.J. Howard at Tampa Bay.
Manning completed 20 of 36 passes for 220 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He now has 332 career touchdown passes.
Rams quarterback Jared Goff completed 14 of 22 passes for 311 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. He is the third consecutive opposing QB and fourth this year to throw for more than 300 yards, joining Winston, Denver’s Trevor Siemian and Seattle’s Russell Wilson. Under Ben McAdoo, the Giants are 4-3 in games in which the opposing quarterback threw for at least 300 yards.
Goff is the first opposing quarterback to throw at least four touchdowns in a game since Carolina’s Cam Newton tossed five on Dec, 20, 2015.
The Giants’ inactive players were linebackers Jonathan Casillas (neck) and B.J. Goodson (ankle), offensive lineman Justin Pugh (back), defensive ends Olivier Vernon (ankle) and Kerry Wynn (knee), cornerback Donte Deayon (ankle) and quarterback Davis Webb.
Casillas missed his third consecutive game and Goodson missed his third game of the season; he sat out the Week 2 game vs. Detroit and the Week 3 contests on Philadelphia with a shin injury.
Pugh had started every game this season, three at left guard and four at right tackle. He was inactive for the first time since Dec. 11, 2016, when he sat out for the fifth consecutive game with a knee injury. Bobby Hart returned to the starting lineup at right tackle, his fourth start of the season.
Vernon was inactive for the fourth consecutive game. Wynn, who started each of the previous three games in his place, missed his first game of the season.
Geno Smith also made his Giants debut when he played quarterback for Manning in the Giants’ final two series. He threw two incomplete passes.
Head coach Ben McAdoo.