There’s a saying that bad teams will find new ways to lose. That perfectly describes the New York Giants (0-2) 21-18 loss to the Washington Commanders (1-1) on Sunday.
Unfathomably, they scored three touchdowns. They didn’t allow a touchdown. And still lost the game.
The team showed more effort than it did last week in their 28-6 loss to the Vikings. But playing with more effort provides no solace to a team that is now 0-2 and is about to enter the toughest part of the schedule.
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Not having another active kicker ultimately led to their demise
Kicker Graham Gano appeared on the injury report late in the week due to a groin injury. Head coach Brian Daboll thought Gano would be good to go and decided not to add another kicker to the roster. This would be a decision that would backfire on the very first play of the game.
Gano injured his hamstring on the opening kickoff chasing Austin Ekeler on what would have been a 98-yard touchdown if not for a holding penalty that nullified the score. Although the score was called back, New York suffered a huge blow in losing their kicker, which would comprise them for the entire game.
Following a Devin Singletary seven-yard touchdown run that put them up 6-3, Daboll elected to have punter Jamie Gillan try the extra point conversion. But the kick sailed wide right. Gillan would not attempt another extra point or field goal attempt for the rest of the game.
The Giants would score two more touchdowns on Daniel Jones passes to Malik Nabers and Wan’Dale Robinson. But both two-point conversion attempts failed leaving points off the board. In addition, the team was forced to go for it on fourth downs the remainder of the game when they were in field goal territory, particularly on their final offensive possession of the game.
Facing a fourth-and-four from the Commanders’ 22-yard line, Jones threw a perfect pass to Nabers along the right sideline that would have given them a first down. But the rookie receiver dropped the pass with 2:04 remaining in the game which proved to be the beginning of the end for New York.
Jayden Daniels would lead the Commanders on an eight-play, 65-yard drive that culminated in a game-winning 30-yard field goal as time expired. There are other factors that caused New York to lose this game. But not having a contingency at kicker was the biggest one.
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The New York Giants defense was more bad than good
When a defense keeps the other team out of the end zone, and forces them to kick seven field goals, you would think they had a dominant day. But that wasn’t the case for the Giants’ defense on Sunday.
Sure, they deserve a ton of credit for keeping Washington out of the end zone and sacking Jayden Daniels five times. However, that does not take away from the areas where they struggled mightily.
The defense allowed the Commanders to rush for 215 yards on 35 carries and did not force Washington to punt for the entire game. They also allowed Daniels to start the game completing his first 10 passes in just his second NFL start. The Washington signal caller finished the game completing 23-of-29 passes for 226 yards.
But perhaps what was most disappointing was how quickly they allowed Washington to get into field goal territory following Nabers drop. Had they been able to stop they could have given the ball back to their offense with an opportunity to score, or to at least force overtime.
Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen and his unit deserve credit for keeping Washington out of the end zone when they reached the red zone. But they also underperformed in some aspects of the game.
Malik Nabers brilliant performance will be overshadowed by his costly drop
Except for dropping a pass on the team’s final offensive play of the game, Nabers was sensational on Sunday. He caught 10 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown and was clearly the team’s best and most effective offensive player.
Nabers was the focal point of the offense as 18 of Daniel Jones’s 28 pass attempts went the sixth overall pick in the draft. Daboll designed plays to get Nabers open by having him run swallow crosses across the field to create separation.
But instead of being the game where he notched his first NFL touchdown and first 100-yard receiving game of his career, Nabers will be remembered most for his costly drop late in the game. You can expect the 21-year-old rookie receiver to try and atone for his drop next Sunday against the Cleveland Browns.