Even as a new reporter on the Giants beat, I thought I had an idea of what to expect when it came to how this season would play out.
A 3-1 start in Year 1 of a rebuild was not what I had in mind. But it’s a new era in the Meadowlands under coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen. The Giants are winning, and their fans are having fun.
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Amidst the optimism, the Giants are dealing with a deluge of injuries (making their record all that much more impressive). Starting quarterback Daniel Jones exited Sunday’s win over the Bears with an ankle injury but had to return, hobbled, once backup Tyrod Taylor suffered a concussion — though the Giants had to get creative behind center so as not to expose Jones to further injury.
GO DEEPER
Daniel Jones (ankle) will likely push to play, but he needs to be mobile to be effective
Their statuses for the Week 5 game in London against Green Bay are not yet known. Waiting on the practice squad is quarterback Davis Webb, who will likely be elevated if one of the two is not available. The wide receiver corps also has been through a revolving door of setbacks — most notably Kenny Golladay’s ineffectiveness and losing Sterling Shepard to a torn ACL in Week 3.
At an interesting point of the season with some tougher games on the horizon, the Giants first quarter(ish) is done. Let’s reflect:
Record
3-1, tied for second place in NFC East. (1. Eagles, 2. Cowboys, 2. Giants, 4. Commanders)
Is team better, worse or about where expected after four games?
The Giants have been better than expected.
This team has been good because it’s found ways to win close games where past iterations might not have. Even the lone loss to the Cowboys on Monday Night Football felt within reach until the very end when an interception ended a comeback attempt. Weird to think this team could easily be 4-0.
Team MVP: Saquon Barkley
Who else? There is no denying Barkley is all the way back. The superstar running back leads the league in rushing yards (463) and set the franchise record for most rush yards through four games. Not only that: He’s also a fill-in quarterback, taking three snaps in Sunday’s win in the absence of a healthy Jones and Taylor.
GO DEEPER
With QBs injured, resilient Giants find creative ways to gain yards, score points
Barkley is doing everything in his power to help the Giants win, and he’s looking better than ever. He’s already recorded two of his four highest career rushing games ever (164 yards vs. Titans and 146 yards vs. the Bears). Beyond what he contributes on the ground, Jones has counted on him to be a reliable pass-catching target in an offense lacking them. He’s tied with Richie James for the most receptions (15), and his 107 receiving yards rank third.
Not many like him 🤷♂️
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/oW2BWFT5IL
— New York Giants (@Giants) October 2, 2022
Breakout player: Dexter Lawrence
While Lawrence was good last year, the defensive lineman has taken his game to a different level this season. Perhaps it’s more noticeable in the absence of fellow lineman Leonard Williams, who has missed two games with a knee injury. But on Sunday, Lawrence was nearly unstoppable, bursting through double teams to harass Bears quarterback Justin Fields on his way to a career-best two-sack day.
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Lawrence’s 15 QB pressures this season rank 10th among all defensive lineman. For reference, three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald has 16 QB pressures so far this year. Lawrence’s 17-game pace is 64 pressures, which would easily top his career-high mark (43). He’s also tabbed seven quarterback hits, tied for fifth-most among defensive linemen. Those looking for reasons why Wink Martindale’s Giants defense is playing better than expected can start with the play of Lawrence.
According to @PFF
✔️ Andrew Thomas is the highest graded OT
✔️ Saquon Barkley leads the league in explosive rushes of 15+ yds)
✔️ Dexter Lawrence is the highest graded pass-rusher at DT
— Nick Falato (@nickfalato) October 4, 2022
Top rookie: Daniel Bellinger
Given injuries and the rookie adjustment period, tight end Daniel Bellinger made more sense here than more obvious names. While all eyes are on No. 5 pick Kayvon Thibodeaux and No. 7 pick Evan Neal, Thibodeaux has only played two games due to injury, so it didn’t feel fair to even really think about selecting him. His progress in a few more games will be interesting to watch.
Meanwhile, after Neal’s performance against Dallas, he couldn’t be the choice.
In the absence of a reliable wide receivers, Jones has turned fairly often to Bellinger. Behind Barkley and two receivers (one being Shepard), Bellinger has recorded the next most receiving yards (79) and receptions (eight) in an otherwise bereft passing attack. He paced the Giants on Sunday with a three receptions for 23 yards in a run-dominated game.
I took a look at the @Giants win against the Bears through the lense of some advanced numbers and the All-22.
📰Read and 📽️watch: https://t.co/tLb71aJAgU
A taste of what is inside:
A look at how play action created opportunities for the @Giants in the first half. pic.twitter.com/3VxjUvKUCL
— John Schmeelk (@Schmeelk) October 4, 2022
In addition to receiving functions, Bellinger is part of a tight end trio (which also includes Chris Myarick and Tanner Hudson) that has been instrumental in opening up rush lanes for Barkley and Jones. There wasn’t more proof on display than Sunday, which featured two- and three-tight end personnel groupings on Jones’ bootlegs. With the Giants finding creative ways to win, Bellinger has found a way to contribute.
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Key player who needs to improve: Kadarius Toney
Did we mention the Giants desperately need some spark from their wide receivers? It took until a minute remained in Sunday’s first half before a wide receiver recorded a catch.
The Giants wideouts have accounted for 409 yards, which ranks 31st in the NFL. Only the Bears (282 yards) are getting less production from their wide receivers. And even when Jones connects with them, it isn’t very efficient or explosive. Giants receivers are averaging just 10.22 yards per reception and have racked up just 127 yards after the catch, both ranking 29th in the league.
Initially this designation was a tossup between Golladay and Toney. Both spotlighted receivers have underperformed in New York, and both have injury histories that haven’t helped their causes. Now they are struggling through injuries once more. Toney, who has just two catches this season, has been dealing with a hamstring issue, though Daboll said he’s making progress toward a return. Golladay left Sunday’s game with a knee injury, and his status for this week doesn’t look promising.
So we’ll defer to Toney, who has displayed electricity in the open field, which, could be hugely helpful to a Giants offense struggling to find yardage through the air.
Is head coach on hot seat or looking good for 2023 season?
In his first season, Daboll has exceeded expectations given the situation he found himself in. By going for a two-point conversion in the season opener and adjusting on the fly with Sunday’s quarterback conundrum, Daboll is quickly earning the respect of his players. It’s important to keep perspective, however. Despite their early success, Daboll and the Giants remain in the early stages of a rebuild, and this offseason will be huge in determining how quickly they can become true NFC contenders again.
Toughest stretch of remaining games:
The Giants are heading into one of the most difficult portions of their schedule with a trip to London face the Packers. After that comes Martindale’s revenge game against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. The Giants finish up the tough trilogy with a trip to Jacksonville and a date with Trevor Lawrence.
This is a real defining point of the season, and even if the Giants do lose the first two games, they’d still be sitting at .500. This stretch, especially with the quarterback injury situation, will tell us a lot about what to expect the reason of the season.
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Playoff contender? Or pipe dream?
The fact that this a tough call for the Giants this season is wild, given preseason speculation. It’s early, but hey, they’re 3-1. How they survive October will tell us if the playoffs are realistic or just September dreams. But with a strong start in the weaker of the two conferences, it’s not crazy to think this could be a team still contending for a spot come December.
(Photo: Danielle Parhizkaran / USA Today)
Charlotte Carroll covers the New York Giants for The Athletic. She previously covered the University of Connecticut basketball and the WNBA's Connecticut Sun for The Athletic and wrote for Sports Illustrated. She interned at The Denver Post and Field & Stream magazine. Follow Charlotte on Twitter @charlottecrrll
