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The first half of Geno Smith’s first start for the New York Giants is in the books, and it went about as expected.
Smith looked not-bad, but the Giants’ offense was mostly bad.
Smith completed 9 of 15 passes for 93 yards, though he was sacked and fumbled. By far his best receiver was Evan Engram, who caught 3 of 5 targets for 60 yards, including a great 29 yard catch and run.
That play was instrumental in the Giants’ touchdown drive, which saw two catches by Engram, a nice run by Wayne Gallman, and a great catch by Sterling Shepard on a fade thrown inexplicably short of the goal line.
But other than that drive, the Giants largely struggled on offense. Especially along the offensive line, where Ereck Flowers and Chad Wheeler could not hold up against Bruce Irvin and Khalil Mack on islands, resulting in a pair of sack-fumbles.
The Raiders didn’t fair much better. Marshawn Lynch broke a long 51-yard touchdown run to open the game. But after that, the Giants’ defense stood strong, limiting the Raiders to just two-of-eight on third-down conversions and 21 total rushing yards on 14 rushing attempts.
The Raiders will get the ball to start the second half.