Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The New York Giants ended their primetime curse and stayed alive in the NFC Playoff hunt with a 24-22 upset of the Packers on Monday night.
The New York Giants hosted the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football at MetLife Stadium in a Week 14 matchup between two of the NFC’s hottest teams.
The Giants sported their ‘classic’ uniforms from their 1980s heyday under Bill Parcells and local hero Tommy DeVito started once again at quarterback.
MONDAY. NIGHT. FOOTBALL. pic.twitter.com/TuyWJnBzms
— New York Giants (@Giants) December 12, 2023
Here’s how things turned out…
The New York Giants have listed NT Dexter Lawrence as questionable in Week 14 but are “hopeful” he will play on Monday Night Football.
The New York Giants closed out their practice slate on Saturday afternoon, wrapping up their third session in four days.
Nose tackle Dexter Lawrence, who is nursing a hamstring injury, was a practice participant for the second straight day (and third as a projected participant). Head coach Brian Daboll said he will be listed as questionable and stands a chance to play in Week 14.
Daboll was equally hopeful for fellow defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson, who has also been hobbled by a hamstring issue.
Meanwhile, tight end Daniel Bellinger missed his second consecutive day of practice due to an illness. He is questionable but should play assuming his health improves over the next 48 hours.
As anticipated, right tackle Evan Neal remains out and it’s unclear when (or if) he’ll return to the field this season.
Full injury reports for both the Giants and Packers can be found below:
For the second straight day, New York Giants NT Dexter Lawrence was a limited participant in practice. TE Daniel Bellinger was added as DNP.
The New York Giants returned to the field on Friday for their second of three full practices ahead of a Week 14 game against the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football.
Once again, all eyes were on nose tackle Dexter Lawrence and right tackle Evan Neal.
As expected, Neal did not participate in practice and is unlikely to play on Monday night. However, as head coach Brian Daboll previously alluded, Lawrence saw his workload increase and could, potentially, be available against Green Bay.
Lawrence was officially limited, which was the same as his Thursday projection.
The Giants’ full Friday injury report can be found below:
Did not participate: OL Evan Neal (ankle), TE Daniel Bellinger (illness)
Limited participant: NT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring), DL A’Shawn Robinson (hamstring), LB Isaiah Simmons (ankle)
Full participant: QB Tyrod Taylor (ribs), LB Carter Coughlin (hip)
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New York Giants NT Dexter Lawrence was projected as limited in practice on Thursday, while RT Evan Neal continues to sit out.
The New York Giants returned to the practice field on Wednesday and then had off on Thursday ahead of a Week 14 game against the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football.
On Wednesday, nose tackle Dexter Lawrence and right tackle Evan Neal were not participating due to their respective injuries.
Head coach Brian Daboll did express hope that Lawrence could return to practice on Friday, but shared far less optimism as it related to Neal.
“Yeah, I’m hopeful. I’m hopeful he’ll be out here on Friday. That’s what I’m hoping,” Daboll said told reporters.
True to his word, Lawrence took a projected step forward on Thursday and was listed as a projected participant in practice. Neal, on the other hand, remained out.
If Neal misses Monday night’s game, it will be his fourth in a row and sixth in seven games.
Meanwhile, Daboll indicated that tight end Darren Waller would remain on injured reserve (IR) for one more week and hinted that cornerback Aaron Robinson may not play at all this season.
“Not sure,” Daboll said when asked if Robinson would come off the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.
The Giants’ full (projected) Thursday injury report can be found below:
Did not participate: OL Evan Neal (ankle)
Limited participant: NT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring), DL A’Shawn Robinson (hamstring), LB Isaiah Simmons (ankle)
Full participant: QB Tyrod Taylor (ribs), LB Carter Coughlin (hip)
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Whose stock is up and whose is down following the New York Giants’ 10-7 victory over the New England Patriots in Week 12?
The New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots, 10-7, in an ugly and raining game at MetLife Stadium on Sunday afternoon, improving their record to 4-8 on the season.
It’s now back-to-back wins for the Giants as they head into their bye week and while it hasn’t been pretty, it has been a nice change of pace from the 1-7 stretch they had been on prior to Week 11.
Whose stock is up and whose is down after the Week 12 win? Let’s take a look.
New York Giants NT Dexter Lawrence missed his second consecutive practice on Thursday due to a hamstring injury.
The New York Giants held a brief practice on Thursday morning before players and staff were permitted to leave early and attend their respective Thanksgiving celebrations.
“We’ll bump it up a little bit,” head coach Brian Daboll said of Thursday’s practice. “I talked to the captains last week relative to how they wanted to approach the week, if they wanted to push it up and practice on Tuesday, give them off on Thursday.
“They wanted to keep it a normal week. So, we’ll push up the time that we start, and then they’ll get out a little bit earlier than they would. Fairly normal.”
East Rutherford facilities were closed to the media, so there were no press conferences or Zoom calls held, while practice was closed.
The Giants’ full Thursday injury report can be found below:
Did not participate: NT Dexter Lawrence (hamstring), OL Evan Neal (ankle)
Limited participant: WR Darius Slayton (neck), LB Bobby Okereke (rib/hip), DL A’Shawn Robinson (back), CB Tre Hawkins (shoulder)
Full participant: OL John Michael Schmitz (finger), RB Saquon Barkley (rest), LT Andrew Thomas (knee), RB Eric Gray (ankle), OL Tyre Phillips (knee), WR Sterling Shepard (hip), CB Adoree’ Jackson (concussion), S Bobby McCain (illness)
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The New York Giants need to replace Leonard Williams after trading him away on Monday and they have several in-house options.
The New York Giants traded veteran defensive lineman Leonard Williams to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday in a move that was somewhat expected given Williams’ contract status.
The Giants didn’t get much cap relief as a result of the trade. In fact, they got very little. It is estimated they will only clear $647K of cap space by moving Williams.
They did, however, get a 2024 second-round and 2025 fifth-rounder in the process, so the trade appears worth it. They’re going nowhere this year and Williams is not in their long-term plans. This was a good deal for the Giants.
Who will replace Williams in the defensive line rotation is now the remaining question.
Dexter Lawrence has played 72 percent of the defense snaps followed by Williams at 70 percent, Rakeem Nunez-Roches (34 percent), and A’Shawn Robinson (33 percent).
D.J. Davidson has played 15 percent and rookie Jordon Riley only four percent. Riley has been a healthy scratch most of the season, only dressing for two games. He’s highly regarded by the team and this could be his big break.
It would make sense that Nacho (Nunez-Roches) and Robinson get a small bump in snaps but the real solution will likely come from the Oregon two — Davidson and Riley.
The Giants also have Ryder Anderson on the practice squad. Anderson was a final cut in trying camp this summer.
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The Vikings could end up being buyers at the trade deadline and there are plenty of targets that could help them this season and beyond
The Minnesota Vikings not only saved their season by winning against the San Francisco 49ers 22-17 on Monday night, but they arguably changed their strategy at the trade deadline.
After a 1-4 start, the Vikings were rumored to trade multiple players, most notably Danielle Hunter. In the last year of his contract, it’s easy to see why the Vikings might be willing to trade him, but they aren’t the kind of team to just sell off parts when they have a chance to make a run.
This season, the Vikings have played better than their record indicates. They are 16th in overall DVOA while being 14th on offense and 15th on defense. That’s a massive improvement over last season and you can see i in the on field product.
The Vikings make an aggressive move last year in acquiring T.J. Hockenson at the trade deadline with the idea of signing him to be a pillar of the Vikings’ future. Could they try that again this season? There are players available that fit the bill, along with others that would be inexpensive one year rentals
The team really has only one area they need is up front on defense. The defensive line is undermanned and the pass rush needs depth with Marcus Davenport being unreliable so far this season.
Even with Hunter on the team, he can’t rush the passer by himself. Getting him a long-term running mate or replacing him long-term needs to be a priority and there are options in the trade market to do just that.
Who could the Vikings target at the trade deadline to bolster their team for the rest of the season and beyond? We identified eight players the Vikings could potentially make a move for.
The NFL has hammered the New York Giants with several big fines after a Week 3 game that saw the San Francisco 49ers play very, very dirty.
Following a Week 3 game between the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers, it appeared inevitable that several fines would be handed down from the NFL.
After all, the 49ers played a very dirty game that saw offensive lineman Trent Williams punch defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson in the face and center Jake Brendel deliberately injure defensive tackle D.J. Davidson.
Williams was penalized but not ejected for his flagrant personal foul, while Brendel didn’t even draw a flag.
After the game, the NFL offered up a lame excuse for why Williams wasn’t ejected.
“When we have a flag thrown on the field for unnecessary roughness, members of the officiating department are able to review available video, Rule 19, to determine if there is a flagrant action that should result in a disqualification,” NFL senior vice president of officiating Walt Anderson said after the game. “We ended up looking at the video we had available to us, and we just didn’t see anything that rose to the level of flagrant, which is the standard that we have to apply to disqualify the player.”
The league’s clown show continued this week as Brendel somehow escaped both a fine and a suspension. And while Williams was fined $11,473 for his punch, he also avoided a suspension.
Adding to the circus, the NFL fined A’Shawn Robinson the same $11,473 for unnecessary roughness and also hit linebacker Jihad Ward with a $8,139 fine for unnecessary roughness.
Still not laughing at the show? Well, the NFL decided to hit Giants defensive lineman Leonard Williams with the game’s biggest fine, slapping him with an invoice for $16,391. The reasoning? Because he made a very normal, everyday football play.
Just to recap: Robinson was fined the same amount as Trent Williams after getting punched in the face.
And this “penalty:”
Leonard Williams got fined $16,391 for this hit lol pic.twitter.com/XTZezSPLhe
— 𝙻̷𝚞̷𝚜̷ 📯 (@Theylovelus) September 30, 2023
Was fined more than this non-penalty:
Dirty play by @49ers Jake Brendel to injure @Giants DJ Davidson dragging him to the ground after the play. #ThursdayNightFootball #trash pic.twitter.com/EI7ODBC4de
— Jason (@goldeneagleFB) September 22, 2023
Okay then.
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How did Trent Williams not get ejected for landing a punch on a Giants player?
The San Francisco 49ers have one of the best left tackles in the game with Trent Williams, but he lost his cool in the most surprising way against the New York Giants on Thursday Night Football.
In a brief scuffle just before halftime, Williams landed a literal punch on Giants defensive tackle A’Shawn Williams that got flagged for unnecessary roughness by the referees. However, a Giants player also got the same flag, so it wound up being offsetting penalties.
Williams had been unusually flagged three times by halftime, but this punch could’ve gotten him ejected for the rest of the game. The 49ers have to be lucky that the refs thought both teams were at fault for this scuffle.
Trent Williams just punched A'Shawn Williams in the face lmao pic.twitter.com/TgaxaZJ5fX
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) September 22, 2023
That’s just not the kind of play you want to see from a future Hall of Fame veteran like Williams, but he was able to brush off the lapse in judgment with just a foul that didn’t bother his team either way. However, we wouldn’t advise any punching for any NFL players anytime soon.
