In front of legends celebrating the team’s 100th season, the New York Giants were utterly embarrassed on Sunday afternoon in East Rutherford, falling to Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings, 28-6.
The loss came after Vikings defenders literally laughed at any notion the Giants would challenge them offensively.
Things got so bad that fans waited an hour after the game — having left the stadium in the third quarter — just to heckle quarterback Daniel Jones on the way to his car.
It was a rock-bottom moment for a franchise that has had entirely too many rock-bottom moments over the past decade-plus. But Sunday’s failure began long before anyone took the field.
Entering the game, the Giants had just 51 players on their 53-man roster, leaving them shorthanded out of the gate.
“It was roster management relative to some of the guys that we released or put on the practice squad. We’ll revisit that (on Monday),” head coach Brian Daboll told reporters after the game.
Things got even worse for the Giants during pre-game warmups when wide receiver Gunner Olszewski, who was already nursing a groin injury, suffered a setback and was unable to play. That left the team with just 50 players plus their two practice squad elevations.
Knowing that Olszewski had been limited all week and was hurt, one would think Daboll had a backup plan. He didn’t.
With Olszewski out, the Giants thrust wide receiver Darius Slayton into the role of punt returner. He responded with a fumble.
Then came something even more bizarre — the snap counts.
Offensive snaps: 71
Defensive snaps: 55
Special teams snaps: 24
Wide receiver Jalin Hyatt took just four snaps through the first three quarters and finished with 16. He was targeted just once, leaving his field-stretching ability on the cutting room floor.
And how about “money backer” Isaiah Simmons? After serving as a defensive focal point and impact player all summer, he took a grand total of zero defensive snaps in the game.
Rookie linebacker Darius Muasau drew the start over Micah McFadden, who had a breakout campaign in 2023, while Cor’Dale Flott was shifted into the slot where he saw no action throughout training camp and the preseason.
Then there was Dexter Lawrence. After weeks of speculation that he would play close to 100 percent of the snaps, he took just 37 on Sunday — three more than Rakeem Nunez-Roches. Each time he left the game, the Giants were dashed.
Maybe the Giants are trying to tank. What other explanation could there be?
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