Giants vs. Texans: What you need to know for gameday
Giants cornerback Adoree' Jackson smiles during a preseason game against the Bengals on Aug. 21, 2022. Credit: AP/Vera Nieuwenhuis
TEXANS (1-6-1) AT GIANTS (6-2), METLIFE STADIUM, 1 p.m.
VITALS
Line: Giants by 5 1/2; O/U 41 1/2
TV: CBS (Ian Eagle, Charles Davis)
Radio: WFAN-660 AM; Sirius 108 or 230; XM 225
NOTABLE INJURIES
Giants: OUT: TE Daniel Bellinger (eye), OT Evan Neal (knee); QUESTIONABLE: DB Cor’Dale Flott (calf), WR Kenny Golladay (knee), LB Oshane Ximines (quad).
Texans: OUT: LB Neville Hewitt (hamstring); QUESTIONABLE: WR Brandin Cooks (wrist); DL Maliek Collins (chest); WR Nico Collins (groin); LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin (groin)
ADOREE’ ON RETURNS?
Richie James’ term as the Giants’ punt returner could be over in the wake of his two fumbled returns in Seattle two weeks ago.
The question is: Who will replace him? Cornerback Adoree’ Jackson is a logical candidate; he returned 53 punts between 2017 and ’19 when he was with the Titans. But would coach Brian Daboll be willing to risk someone so important to his defense in a special teams role?
“That wouldn’t (stop us),” Daboll said. “He’s been a good returner in the past, and if we think that’s the best thing for our team, we would use him.”
Asked how he balances the risk/reward calculation, Daboll cited other examples of star players returning punts, including Patriots receiver Troy Brown.
“You put your best guys that you think are going to give you the best chance back there,” Daboll said. “So whoever that is, that’s what we’ll go with.”
DEEP IN THOUGHT
The Giants mostly have relied on the legs of Saquon Barkley and Daniel Jones to generate offense, with relatively little in the way of long pass completions.
Would coordinator Mike Kafka like to see more deep shots in the season’s second half?
“Absolutely,” he said. “I think you’ve got to find ways to create explosive (plays). It definitely helps an offense. It’s hard to put together a 13-, 14-play drive and finish and go on to score.
“You’ve got to find a way to generate explosives in the run game, the pass game. Yeah, we’ve definitely evaluated that.”
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
