Giants Q&A: Did defense take too long to adjust to Lamar Jackson and Ravens offense?
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) looks to throw a pass as Giants inside linebacker Blake Martinez (54) applies pressure during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 27, 2020, in Baltimore. Credit: AP/Gail Burton
After allowing 20 points in the first half, the Giants gave up seven in the second half. Did they wait too long to make changes to their schemes?
Joe Judge seemed to think so. Speaking after the 27-13 loss to the Ravens, the head coach mentioned more than once that he would have liked to have seen adjustments made sooner than they were. "We have to get to that earlier as a staff and as players," he said. He later added: "We got to see different coverages and fronts later in the game to slow them down and give our guys a chance, but we have to do things earlier in the game as coaches and players to start faster."
So why didn’t they?
Because they were so focused on stopping the run … and the running quarterback.
"We played a scheme early on to handle a lot more of the run and I think Lamar [Jackson] came out and did a really good job of throwing the ball," Judge said of the reigning MVP quarterback who found plenty of open targets in the Giants’ zone defense. "With this team the focus is to stop the run."
At least they were able to do that, right?
Well, no. The vaunted Giants defense was steamrolled for 432 yards, 249 of them on the ground. "That’s not us," defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence said of allowing three different players – running backs J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards along with Jackson – to each run for over 77 yards or more. "We don’t accept that," Lawrence added.
Besides scheme, what else went wrong with the Giants’ defense?
Judge said he thought they missed too many tackles, something that has not been an area of weakness for them this season. "It was surprising to see that," he said.
They also had way too many gaping holes in their zone coverages, including on the two touchdown passes they allowed when the receivers were virtually uncovered in the end zone. "Anytime someone is that wide open there is obviously some kind of breakdown within the scheme," Judge said. "We have to make sure we do a better job getting 11 guys on the same page … It’s tough to stop any team when you allow guys to run free, so we have to eliminate that."
Offensive coordinator Jason Garrett cleared the COVID-19 testing protocols on Saturday and called the game on Sunday. Was there any challenge having him on the headset despite his not having been on the practice field with the team all week?
Wide receiver Sterling Shepard said no. "We had Zoom meetings, Coach Garrett was with us just like he was whenever he was able to be in the room, so nothing was thrown off about that," Shepard said.
Where was Eli Penny?
He was inactive because of a non-COVID illness that popped up on Sunday morning. That left the Giants without one of their core special teams players and their short-yardage fullback. The Giants used Alfred Morris in that role on the one time they needed to convert a fourth-and-1 I the fourth quarter. He ran for a gain of 2.
How many consecutive field goals has Graham Gano made for the Giants?
Twenty-nine after his two on Sunday. That ties him with Josh Brown for the longest streak without a miss in franchise history.
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.
