Instant analysis of the New York Giants’ 26-7 Week 14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals at MetLife Stadium.
The New York Giants came into the game on Sunday with the Arizona Cardinals riding a four-game winning streak. The Cardinals were on a three-game skein.
That’s why the oddsmakers made the Cardinals three-point favorites in this game. Streaks don’t last long in this unusual NFL season and two of them were broken in one fell swoop at MetLife Stadium this afternoon.
The Cardinals routed the listless Giants, 26-7, and it wasn’t even that close.
The Giants got starting quarterback Daniel Jones (hamstring) back for this one after missing last week’s win in Seattle. He did not look right from the start. On the Giants’ opening series, Jones was sacked by former Giant outside linebacker Markus Golden, who picked up the fumble and ran it down to the Giants’ 9.
Arizona could not take advantage, however, getting stonewalled on three running plays before quarterback Kyler Murray tried to sneak a pass into Keesean Johnson in the back of the end zone on fourth down only to be swatted away by Giants cornerback James Bradberry.
The Cardinals, who lead the NFL in red zone scoring, were stopped again on their next trip later in the first quarter, settling for a 34-yard field goal from Mike Nugent (yes, that Mike Nugent) to give Arizona a 3-0 lead.
The Giants stopped the Cardinals again in the red zone in the second quarter, resulting in a second Nugent field goal to extend Arizona’s lead to 6-0.
On the ensuing kickoff, Dion Lewis fumbled the football on the 20 when a Cardinals player appear kicked the ball out of his hands. No penalty was called. This time the Cardinals capitalized when Murray threw a pass off his back foot to tight end Dan Arnold for a seven-yard touchdown and a 13-0 Arizona lead.
The Giant offense couldn’t have been flatter in the first half. Jones, deprived of his mobility, was forced to rely on his passing ability. His line was awful: 6-for-12 for 44 yards with six QB hits (three of which were sacks) and two fumbles (one lost).
The Giants gained just 58 yards in the first half with four first downs and ran just 25 plays. They went 1-for-6 on third down and did not run a single play in Arizona territory.
The second half brought more frustration. The Cardinals scored a touchdown and a field goal in their first three possessions while the Giants just one scoring drive, a four-play, 75-yarder that resulted in a Dion Lewis one-yard touchdown dive.
The final result was a troubling loss, leaving the Giants in a lurch to hope the rest of the NFC East keeps losing.
Jones (11-of-21 for 127 yards) was obviously impaired and his teammates and coaches did very little to pick him up. The offensive line had a rough day against the average Arizona front. Jones was sacked six times and hit a total of nine.
In the end it was a one-sided affair with Arizona (7-6) getting themselves back into the NFC playoff picture while the Giants dropped to 5-8 on the season losing a game they were never able to get into. Their offense was anemic and their special teams not so special. They had been playing close games for most of the year but this one was never in doubt.
Notes
- For the second consecutive week the Giants went scoreless in the first half.
- Their streak of 100-yard rushing games ended at seven as they gained only 78 yards on the ground against the Cardinals’ 21st-ranked rush defense.
- The Cardinals rushed for 163 yards against the Giants’ fourth-ranked run defense, the most by an opponent this season.
- The time of possession told the story of the game: Arizona 37:52, Giants 22:08.
- The Giants had a turnover ratio of +6 during their four-game winning streak. Today, they went minus-3. Jones fumbled three times and lost one. Colt McCoy also lost one. The Cardinals fumbled three times and lost none. There were no interceptions in the game.
- Arizona linebacker Hassan Reddick recorded five sacks, which is a Cardinals’ franchise record.
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