Giants grades from Week 9 loss to 49ers
New York Giants linebacker Abdul Carter reacts after recovering a fumble by the San Francisco 49ers during the second quarter. Credit: AP/Seth Wenig
OFFENSE: D
After scoring a touchdown on an impressive drive to open the game, the Giants didn’t post another point until a third-quarter field goal and tacked on a pair of touchdowns in the fourth. Not getting anything out of the one big defensive play of the game late in the second quarter was crushing. Wan’Dale Robinson caught nine passes for 46 yards, which is very hard to do. Two key drops by Theo Johnson overshadowed his physical and acrobatic touchdown catch.
DEFENSE: F
Mac Jones completed his first 14 passes and finished 19-for-24 for 235 yards and two TDs, picking apart an undermanned defense in which rookie cornerback Korie Black made his first start and recently acquired Jarrick Bernard-Converse tried to keep up. Deonte Banks also started at cornerback and was run over by Brian Robinson Jr. for a late TD. Christian McCaffrey ran for 106 yards and caught five passes for another 67. Brian Burns recorded his 11th sack of the season and forced a fumble on it, too, but the Giants couldn’t even turn that into points.
SPECIAL TEAMS: D
Graham Gano missed a 45-yard field goal at the end of the first half (after Burns forced the fumble recovered by Abdul Carter) that robbed the Giants of points. Jamie Gillan’s second-half kickoff didn’t reach the landing zone and set the 49ers up at the 40. The punt and kickoff coverage teams that had been stellar have regressed in recent weeks; having Art Green go to IR is a big loss. The Giants gave Jalin Hyatt a whirl at kickoff returner. He didn’t make any big mistakes but was no revelation.
COACHING: F
The offense was far too conservative after the Burns/Carter fumble, starting the drive from the 49ers’ 27 with 32 seconds left with a run, then getting no yardage. In the third quarter, they also eased up; on fourth-and-goal from the 3, they kicked a field goal rather than try for a TD that could have made it a one-score game at that point. Teams have figured out that they can just run around the Giants’ defensive front and pick on the defensive backs on the edges. Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen has yet to come up with a counter to it.
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.
