Tag: Giants

Darren Rizzi says he’ll ‘have the blinders on’ vs. his childhood team

Darren Rizzi reflected on returning home ahead of Saints vs. Giants, but says he’ll ‘have the blinders on’ coaching against his childhood team:

Darren Rizzi opened up his head coaching career with three consecutive home games. The New Orleans Saints go on the road for the first time under Rizzi’s leadership on Sunday.

Rizzi follows up three games in the Caesars Superdome with his own homecoming against the New York Giants. He’ll be coaching the Saints against the team he grew up cheering for.

Rizzi has never been quiet about his northeastern roots. He’s told us Younghoe Koo went to his rival high school. During a presser this week, Rizzi bragged about his own high school defeating Tommy DeVito’s high school in the New Jersey state championship.

Being raised in New Jersey makes this game different. Rizzi told reporters he has to “practice what I preach with the players. I can’t get too wrapped up in the moment.” The Saints are playing at MetLife Stadium, about 15 minutes from where Rizzi grew up. He grew up rooting for the Giants and reflected going to their playoff games.

These memories are things he’s pushing to the back of his mind until after the game. Right now he is prioritizing having “the blinders on like everybody else and just trying to coach the game.”

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New Orleans Saints WR predicted to have a monster game in Week 14

This NFL writer’s bold prediction is that Marquez Valdes-Scantling will pull off something he’s never done before against the Giants:

Marquez Valdes-Scantling has overproduced in a way since joining the New Orleans Saints. He was brought in for one purpose, give Derek Carr another deep threat after Rashid Shaheed went out for the season with injury. Valdes-Scantling has done that.

As the Saints prepare to take on the New York Giants, Michael F. Florio compared the production of Valdes-Scantling and Shaheed as he made a bold prediction. Florio believes Valdes-Scantling will catch two touchdowns of more than 50 yards.

Shaheed caught three passes that traveled over 20 yards in the air. Those three catches resulted in 172 yards and three touchdowns. Valdes-Scantling has caught the same amount of passes for 135 yards and two scores. That’s slightly less yards and one less touchdown, but comparable production.

Being a step below Shaheed still makes Valdes-Scantling a solid deep threat. The Giants have allowed the highest completion percentage on throws over 20 yards.

This is a great set of circumstances for the Saints. Two fifty-yard touchdowns is certainly bold, but the Giants allowing completions on 70 percent of deep targets at least suggests New Orleans can stretch the field consistently. It’ll be on Valdes-Scantling to make the most of those opportunities and on Carr to get him the ball.

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Saints DC Joe Woods on facing Giants star rookie Malik Nabers: ‘He’s special’

New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Joe Woods has high praise for Malik Nabers. The rookie is a special talent, and could be a problem on Sunday:

It didn’t take New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Joe Woods long to praise Malik Nabers. When asked about the New York Giants rookie wide receiver, the first thing out of Woods’ mouth was, “He’s special.”

Nabers was described by Woods as possessing “slot receiver movement skills, but has the size to play outside.” The combination of those skills makes him a difficult player to defend.

What may be the most concerning is Nabers’ ability to get yards after the catch. This is one of the wide receiver’s traits Woods singled out. The Saints have to be tight at the catch point and be a sure tacklers.

Woods reflects on seeing Nabers when scouting for defensive backs. “Part of when you’re evaluating guys coming out of college, like defensive backs, you want to see them play against the best receivers. A lot of defensive backs that I looked at if they played LSU, I was watching that game. I noticed him right away.”

If Nabers is able to play, he’ll be a challenge for Woods and his defense to slow down. The wideout is dealing with a hip injury suffered in practice this week that may keep him on the sidelines for Week 14.

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Giants star wide receiver status in question vs. Saints due to injury

Malik Nabers suffered an injury during practice this week that leaves his availability against the Saints up in the air:

Malik Nabers suffered a hip flexor injury in practice on Thursday that puts his ability to play against the New Orleans Saints in question, per Jordan Schultz. At the end of Friday’s injury report, teams are required to give players injury designation. This will reveal more information to form expectations.

Injuries in the middle of the week can be difficult to project, because players don’t have the full week to recuperate. Nabers could end up being a game-time decision.

Nabers has transformed into the New York Giants’ go-to receiver as a rookie. Quarterbacks Drew Lock, Tommy Devito, and Daniel Jones have all looked for Nabers at the end of games. That’s a trait of your top receiver. Despite missing a pair of games, he is still the Giants leading receiver in yards, targets, and catches by a good margin.

If Nabers is unable to play on Sunday, attention will spin to veteran wideout Darius Slayton. In the two games Nabers missed, Slayton recorded his season-high of 122 receiving yards against the Seattle Seahawks.

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Darren Rizzi highlights battle in the trenches for Saints vs. Giants

Darren Rizzi knows stopping Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns is imperative. Taliese Fuaga and Trevor Penning must rise to the occasion:

A lot of pressure rests on the New Orleans Saints’ young offensive tackles as they take on the New York Giants’ duo of Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns on the edges.

Interim head coach Darren Rizzi understands the importance of Taliese Fuaga and Trevor Penning protecting Derek Carr in Week 14. Rizzi told the media earlier this week, “We got to do a great job of protecting the edge this week. That’s going to be a big part of what we do.”

Rizzi continued: “They have two playmakers on the edges between Burns and Thibodeaux. We’ve known Burns in this division for a long, long time. He’s wrecked a lot of games for people. They just got Thib back on the other side. Those guys are a problem.”

For Fuaga, this continues a stretch of facing formidable pass rushers. He’s stood up to Myles Garrett, Jared Verse and now this duo in consecutive weeks, with a bye week in that span. Penning struggled against the Rams as Verse racked up a multitude of pressures. The offensive tackle is looking to bounce back.

As for the offensive interior? The Saints are hoping to get several starters back from injury, including Erik McCoy and Lucas Patrick, but that’s where the Giants may be weakest up front. A potentially season-ending injury to Dexter Lawrence puts the focus concretely on New York’s edge defenders. Fuaga and Penning must be on point this Sunday.

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Saints injury report: Starting offensive line coming into focus vs. Giants

The New Orleans Saints could have their starting offensive line together for the first time since Week 3 against the New York Giants. More on Thursday’s injury report:

There weren’t many changes for the New Orleans Saints on Thursday’s updated injury report, but the news we did get was mostly positive ahead of Sunday’s game with the New York Giants. The Saints announced that right guard Cesar Ruiz (concussion) returned to practice on a limited basis after sitting out on Wednesday, and he would bring a big boost to an offensive line already dealing with several high-profile injuries.

If Ruiz is able to go along with left guard Lucas Patrick (calf) and center Erik McCoy (groin), each of whom also practiced limited reps, the Saints would have their starting five together again for the first time since Week 3.

Of course it wasn’t all good news. Rookie wide receiver Bub Means (ankle), still on injured reserve, did not participate in Thursday’s practice after seeing limited snaps to start the week. Whether he’s experienced a setback or was held out of an abundance of caution remains to be seen.

As for the Giants? They added three players to their already-heavy injury report, most notably rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers (groin). His status is worth monitoring in the days ahead. For now, here’s the full Thursday injury report from both teams:

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Saints-Giants TV coverage limited to each team’s home market in Week 14

TV coverage for Saints-Giants is limited to each team’s home market in Week 14. There won’t be a lot of eyes on MetLife Stadium:

There won’t be many eyes on MetLife Stadium this Sunday when the New Orleans Saints kick off with the New York Giants. That’s to be expected when the two teams have combined for six wins going into Week 14, but it’s still a disappointing turn of events.

Broadcast coverage on FOX will be limited to each team’s home market this week; that means Eastern New York and Long Island plus Vermont, Connecticut, and Western New Hampshire for Giants fans. For Saints fans, areas in and around Louisiana as well as most of Mississippi, Southern Alabama, and the Florida panhandle will have the game on.

If you’re out of market, look into a streaming service like Fubo, NFL+, or NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV and see which best suits your needs.

Kickoff is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 8 at Noon CT/1 p.m. ET. Here’s a map from 506 Sports reflecting coverage for this week’s Saints-Giants game:

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Alvin Kamara set to hit an important new milestone in Week 14

Alvin Kamara is only 39 yards away from setting a new single-season high in rushing yards. He’s on pace for his first 1,000-yard season, too:

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara is on pace to set a new single-season high in rushing yards against the New York Giants this Sunday. He set his previous personal-best back in 2020, when Kamara rushed for 932 yards. That was by far the best season of his career. He balanced a heavy workload and rare explosiveness, while also delivering the most touchdowns in the league (16).

The Saints haven’t been able to surround Kamara with the best pieces this season due to injuries. The offseason addition of Klint Kubiak, however, has clearly paid off. Kubiak’s new run scheme was one of the biggest selling points of the hire.

Kamara has produced despite injuries to blockers Erik McCoy, Cesar Ruiz and Lucas Patrick. Taysom Hill was the best secondary running threat. He’s missed time throughout the season and Jamaal Williams hasn’t been much help. The offense has ran through and leaned on Kamara all season, and he’s more than delivered. He’s up to 894 rushing yards through just 12 games.

With another 39 yards, Kamara will have his highest rushing total of his career and is likely going to surpass the 1,000-yard mark for the first time ever. He may achieve that in Week 14, as well, with a strong performance. He’s averaging 74.5 yards per game on the ground this season and just put up 112 on the Los Angeles Rams, the fifth-ranked defense in rushing yards allowed per game (144.2). The fourth-ranked squad is Kamara’s next opponent, the New York Giants, who have averaged 145.8 yards per game. That’s looking like a favorable matchup.

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Saints injury report: Latest on Taysom Hill, Kendre Miller, Bub Means vs. Giants

New Orleans Saints injury report: Latest on Taysom Hill, Kendre Miller, Bub Means vs. New York Giants in Week 14

Wednesday’s initial New Orleans Saints injury report was a mixed bag of news ahead of Sunday’s game with the New York Giants. Last week’s brief injury report was nice while it lasted — the list has since grown from six names to twelve, doubling in size.

Some of these developments are positive, but not many. Running back Kendre Miller (hamstring) is one of the new additions as he returns to practice in anticipation of being activated again from injured reserve. Another new listing is rookie wide receiver Bub Means (ankle), who was limited.

But losing impact players like tight end Taysom Hill (knee) and right guard Cesar Ruiz (concussion), neither of whom practiced, is worrisome. Key starters like center Erik McCoy (groin) and left guard Lucas Patrick (calf) were each limited to start the week.

Here’s the full injury report from each team:

Giants coach Brian Daboll announces starting QB for Week 14 vs. Saints

Giants coach Brian Daboll announced his starting QB for Week 14 vs. Saints. Ironically, they already cut the only QB on the roster with a win against New Orleans:

There it is. New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll announced Drew Lock, not Tommy DeVito, will be his starting quarterback for Week 14’s home game with the New Orleans Saints. DeVito has been dealing with a forearm injury and the Giants clearly feel a healthy Lock gives them a better chance to win.

But Lock won’t be the only backup starting for Big Blue. Daboll added that the starting offensive tackles will likely be Josh Ezeudu and Chris Hubbard due to injuries. That’s a favorable matchup for the New Orleans defensive line.

Ironically, the Giants already cut the only QB on the roster with a win against the Saints: Daniel Jones, who led a fourth-quarter comeback to force overtime against them back in 2021. DeVito is 0-1 against New Orleans, but this will be Lock’s first start against the Black and Gold. Let’s see what he’s made of.

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