Defensive takeaways from first half
A few defensive takeaways from the first half with the Giants leading 10-3:
Nothing makes Arvell Reese look taller than going against quarterback Kyler Murray. The rookie linebacker was active in his two series of play making two tackles. He got a nice ovation for his first one, too, coming up to plug a hole and stop Jordan Mason for a 1-yard run on second-and-8.
Most of the starters on defense played two series. The first lasted 10 plays and was capped by a field goal, the second was a three-and-out.
The exceptions to the playing time limits were in the secondary where Deonte Banks, Colton Hood and Tyler Nubin played every snap. That probably had more to do with the lack of depth at those positions than wanting to get them extended looks, but the extra snaps are also helpful. Banks was flagged for illegal contact penalties twice; one was declined and the other stuck. Banks clearly thought the second one was offensive pass interference. His reputation isn’t going to give him the benefit of the doubt on those calls. Hood meanwhile had three tackles.
Darius Alexander was credited with a sack late in the second quarter. Lots of excitement about what he can be in this second season.
Micah McFadden started at inside linebacker with Tremaine Edmunds one of the veterans who sat out. McFadden hadn’t played in almost a full year and it showed. He is definitely not the explosive player he was when last we saw him and he waffled a bit between looking hesitant and overly aggressive. He’ll find his footing certainly. Just being on the field was a big step for him.
One of the guys who stood out with the second group was Chauncey Golston. He came up and made a big tackle on a run by Demond Clairborne, brought Clairborne down in the backfield for a loss of 2, and had a hard quarterback hit on J.J. McCarthy to force an incompletion.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
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