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Nov 04, 2024

Studs and duds from New York Giants’ Week 9 loss to Commanders

The New York Giants fell to the Washington Commanders, 27-22, on Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It was the first season sweep for Washington since 2021. With the

The New York Giants fell to the Washington Commanders, 27-22, on Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It was the first season sweep for Washington since 2021.

With the loss, the Giants fall to 2-7 for the sixth time in the last eight years. They now have to gather themselves for an international trip as they take on the Carolina Panthers in Germany next Sunday.

Here’s a quick look at the studs and duds (and studly duds) from Sunday’s loss:

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Rookie running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. continues to make a weekly impact. On Sunday, he gained 66 yards on 16 carries (4.1 ypc) and hauled in his only target for three yards. It would have been a better statistical performance for Tracy but the Giants were forced to move away from the run after getting down by two scores and playing catch up.

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We generally try to avoid involving the referees in post-game analysis but their performance on Sunday was too egregious to ignore. Even if you dismiss all of the missed holding calls, there’s plenty more to pick from. The FOX replay showed Austin Ekeler was short on a second-quarter fourth-and-1 but they ruled it a first down. A play later, they allowed Washington to commit an illegal substitution and then negate it with a timeout. And we’d be remiss if we failed to mention that offensive pass interference call on Darius Slayton that took a touchdown off the board. Pathetic.

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There are other players arguably more deserving of this spot but Jude McAtamney is just a fun story. The Irish-born kicker joined the Giants via the International Player Pathway Program and injuries to Graham Gano and Greg Joseph led him to his first-ever start on Sunday. He connected on his sole field goal attempt and his only point-after attempt. His friends and family were back home going wild.

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Two things have defined cornerback Deonte Banks this season. The first is an embarrassing lack of effort that has drawn the ire of his coaches. He managed to put those issues on the backburner against Washington but the second concern reared its ugly head again. Banks seems entirely incapable of making a play on the ball. Too often he gets caught trailing, never turns his head, and never tries to break up the pass. Go back and watch the Terry McLaurin touchdowns. It’s like a broken record with Banks.

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Duck! We know the hate train is coming strong. After left tackle Chris Hubbard decided not to block and had Daniel Jones crushed early in the game, it was ruled a fumble and the criticism was on. Everything is DJ’s fault. We know. We get it.

However, the Giants stood no chance on Sunday without the performance of Jones. His pass protection was less-than-stellar, the play-calling and clock management were suspect, and his receivers dropped more balls than we can count. Despite that, Jones completed 20 of his 26 pass attempts for 176 yards and two touchdowns (a third called back on a bad penalty), while adding 54 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

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Rookies make rookie mistakes and those were plentiful for tight end Theo Johnson in Week 9. He was targeted six times and caught three passes for 51 yards and a touchdown. However, he’ll also be credited with three drops and his run-blocking grade is likely to be average at best. It could have been a big day for the rookie but instead, it’s one he’ll wish went differently. Very close to a massive breakout game.

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Speaking of rookies making rookie mistakes, wide receiver Malik Nabers had a few on Sunday. He was guilty of running routes short of the sticks on multiple occasions, had one drop, and tripped over his own feet on a key third down. Luckily for the Giants, it was challenged and Nabers was given a first down. On the plus side of things, he hauled in nine of his 11 targets for 59 yards and opened things up for other receivers.

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Read all the best Giants coverage at NorthJersey.com and Giants Wire.

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