Grading the Giants
Seattle Seahawks defensive end Chris Clemons (91) forces a fumble by New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) during the first quarter. (Oct. 9, 2011) Credit: AP
OFFENSE: D
There were certainly some electrifying plays, including amazing catches by Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks and two pile-pushing catches and runs by Jake Ballard. But even though Eli Manning threw for 420 yards and three touchdowns, he was sloppy with the ball. He had three interceptions and fumbled twice, losing one of them. The Giants just can't seem to run the ball as Ahmad Bradshaw had 58 yards on 17 carries.
DEFENSE: D
The players and coaches said they were ready for the Seahawks' hurry-up game, but it rarely looked that way. While the Giants managed three turnovers, including two fumble recoveries inside their own red zone in the first half, they allowed at least three potential interceptions to sail through their hands. They did a good job of putting pressure on the quarterbacks, sacking Tarvaris Jackson four times and Charlie Whitehurst twice. But they allowed 145 rushing yards and 315 passing yards.
SPECIAL TEAMS: C
Even without their long-snapper for most of the second half, the execution on the kicking plays was solid, including a nice job by Steve Weatherford to get a high snap down for a go-ahead field goal with 4:49 remaining. Weatherford had seven punts, six of which were returned by the dangerous Leon Washington and none downed inside the 20. Washington had 69 return yards in the punt game. Devin Thomas tried to spark the Giants with a 37-yard kickoff return that led to the Cruz touchdown.
COACHING: D
It was pretty clear what the Giants' staff was working on this week: getting their own running game going and stopping the opponents from running on them. Neither goal was accomplished. Perry Fewell and Kevin Gilbride now must go back and come up with better fixes for the key issues that have dogged the Giants the last three games.
