Week 3 Preview: Giants at Buccaneers
Sunday’s game
GIANTS AT BUCS
(0-2) (1-1)
Raymond James Stadium, 4:05 p.m.
VITALS
Line: Bucs by 6 1/2; O/U 47
TV: Ch. 5 (Kenny Albert, Tiki Barber, Ronde Barber)
Radio: WFAN-660 AM (Bob Papa, Carl Banks, Howard Cross); Sirius 127; XM 226.
INJURY IMPACT
Giants: WR Cody Latimer (concussion) out. WR Bennie Fowler (hamstring) probable.WR Sterling Shepard cleared from concussion protocol to play. WR Darius Slayton (hamstring) could make his NFL debut Bucs: LB Devante Bond (hamstring), CB Jamel Dean (ankle), QB Blaine Gabbert (left shoulder), LB Devin White (knee) out.
KEY MATCHUP
The quarterback change is the lipstick, the Giants defense is the pig. After allowing nine touchdowns with zero tackeaways in the first two games, it will be up to them to keep the Bucs and Jameis Winston within reach in rookie Daniel Jones’ first start. If they turn things around, halftime of last week’s Bills game might become the point when things changed. “I love how we played in the second half,” defensive coordinator James Bettcher said. “I loved the energy, I loved the way we challenged… That kind of got us going. We had a couple of good conversations in the locker room and our players played better. I expect us to keep improving and play better this weekend.”
QUOTABLE
“Daniel Jones is ready to play, and we are going with him.” – Pat Shurmur on Wednesday
INTANGIBLES
Because the Giants did not actually draft Eli Manning (he was selected first overall by the Chargers and the Giants traded for him), it’s been a while since they’ve had a quarterback they picked win a game for them. Danny Kanell led the Giants to a 34-7 victory over the Cardinals on Oct. 18, 1998, the last time the Giants won a game started by a quarterback they drafted and who had been with the team up to that point. Kanell was a fourth-round pick in 1996. In another weird asterisk, they have had a quarterback they drafted win a game for them since then, however. On Oct. 31, 1999, Kent Graham led them to a 23-17 win over the Eagles. Graham was an eighth-round pick in 1992, but left after three years to play for the Lions and Cardinals before returning to the Giants as a free agent.
NUMBER, PLEASE
36: Years since a Giants running back opened a season with two 100-or-more-yard rushing games the way Saquon Barkley has. The last to do so was Rob Carpenter in 1983; Eddie Prince also did it in 1952. Neither of them reached 100 rushing yards in their third game of those seasons.
— TOM ROCK
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.
