What are some of the things to focus on Sunday when the New York Giants face the Detroit Lions? Here are five things to watch.
Matthew Stafford
Will his injured throwing hand impact his performance? Will Stafford, author of a record-setting eight fourth-quarter comebacks already this season, be able to do that to the Giants if the situation arises? Will Stafford be affected by the driving rain expected at MetLife Stadium?
As Stafford goes, the Lions go. So, he will have the Giants’ full attention Sunday afternoon.
Can Eli Manning elevate his game?
Giants’ quarterback Eli Manning has been the anti-Stafford in recent weeks. Manning has thrown for less than 200 yards in three straight games. The two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback, perhaps impacted by shoddy offensive line play, a sub-par running game and some inconsistency from his receivers, has not played well for most of the last two months.
Giants’ offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan, who was with the Giants when Manning won those two Super Bowls, remains optimistic.
“I think he's someone that has a track record of being able to play high-quality, championship football in December and January and February and we're optimistic about where he's headed and what lies ahead for him with the rest of our season,” Sullivan said.
Coming off perhaps his worst game of the season, in which he lost two fumbles, had an interception, and probably should have been intercepted on three other occasions, the Giants need Manning to give them better play. If he can’t, the struggling offense will never approach any level of competence.
The playoff race
In our poll this week, Giants’ fans expressed overwhelming confidence that their 9-4 team would reach the playoff. Ninety percent (2,600) of the 2,897 voters said they believed Big Blue would make the playoffs.
There is still, however, much work to be done. The Giants find themselves in a position where anything from winning the NFC East to missing the playoffs entirely is easily possible.
There are several Week 15 games that impact the Giants. The Green Bay Packers, 7-6, play the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Chicago. The Minnesota Vikings (7-6) host the Indianapolis Colts. The NFC East-leading Dallas Cowboys host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 8-5 and currently the sixth seed in the NFC. On Monday, the 7-5-1 Washington Redskins host the Carolina Panthers.
Individual matchups
There are three one-on-one matchups, perhaps four, worth focusing on.
- Giants’ left tackle Ereck Flowers vs. Detroit defensive end Ezekiel Ansah. We know Flowers is an inconsistent, confounding mystery. A guy with a ton of ability who can’t seem to maximize it. Ansah had 14.5 sacks last year and, somehow, none so far this year. He is better than that.
- Lions’ rookie left tackle Taylor Decker, who has had a good rookie season and whose play has been admired from afar by Giants’ fans, against the Giants’ best defensive lineman, Olivier Vernon.
- Odell Beckham Jr. against Detroit cornerback Darius Slay. Of course, nobody goes entirely one-on-one with Beckham, so we know Slay will get some help. Still, another good matchup.
- Detroit veteran wide receiver Golden Tate against Giants’ cornerback Janoris Jenkins.
Running or passing?
Giants coach Ben McAdoo was thrilled that the Giants ran the ball more times (33) against Dallas than they passed it (28) last Sunday. That was the first time this season the Giants had more rushing attempts than passes. Let’s see if that is something McAdoo and the giants try to continue with.