Giants news, 9/14: Kadarius Toney opinions, Brian Daboll, more

Good morning, New York Giants fans!

Giants’ Kadarius Toney is right back where he was a season ago | Big Blue View

BBV's Ed Valentine goes back to find the answers head coach Brian Daboll are similar to comments former Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett had last year when it comes to the playing time of wide receiver Kadarius Toney.

"It seems to me that we are in the same place," writes Valentine. "Toney is uber-talented. But, he really only started practicing a couple of weeks ago. He might know the playbook, but does he really KNOW the ins and outs of the various option routes in that playbook and have timing with and the trust of quarterback Daniel Jones on those plays? Probably not."

It’s time for Giants to unleash receiver Kadarius Toney | FOX Sports

It’s past time for new coach Brian Daboll to let him out of the doghouse, according to FOX’s Ralph Vacchiano This Sunday, when the 1-0 Giants return to the Meadowlands to face the Carolina Panthers, it’s time for the new regime to let second-year wide receiver Kadarius Toney play.

Toney touched the ball only twice on Sunday, and those were two of the most exciting plays in the game. Once he took off for 19 yards on an end-around. The next time he pulled up to throw on a wide receiver option, but pulled the ball down after seeing the coverage, ran all the way back to the other side of the field and somehow turned nothing into four yards.

One of two plays when wide receiver Kadarius Toney had the ball in his hands Sunday

After thrilling Week 1 win, things don’t just look different with the Giants — they feel different | SNY

Things don’t just look different with the Giants, according to SNY’s Connor Hughes. They feel different.

But it’s more than just what Daboll got out of his players — it’s the accountability he demanded from them leading into and during the game. The last regime drafted receiver Kadarius Toney in the first round last year. Toney seldom practiced throughout training camp before finding a healing elixir just before the opener. Toney had a scholarship with Judge and ex-GM Dave Gettleman — not Schoen and Daboll. If he wants to play, he has to earn it.

After Jones — who was handled with kiddy gloves by Pat Shurmur, Joe Judge, and Jason Garrett, threw that interception in the fourth — cameras caught Daboll giving him an earful on the sideline. Plays like that in situations like that are unacceptable, and will not be excused by this regime.

In one game, Daboll showed a level of accountability, competence and aggressiveness not seen with the Giants since Tom Coughlin roamed the sidelines.

‘Things I think’ as the 1-0 Giants head toward their home opener | Big Blue View

The Giants might he pointed in the right direction, but the road to get there is still a long one. It is a great time to think that maybe, just maybe, the arrow is finally pointing up for the Giants. Still, something head coach Brian Daboll said Sunday evening is worth keeping in mind.

“If things are going really well, you don’t get too high,” he said. “This league will humble you real quick. Trust me, I’ve been humbled a bunch.”

It is easy to overreact and think the Giants are fixed. They aren’t. They are still a work in progress.

Head coach Brian Daboll goes through a range of emotions after the Titans missed the game winning field goal

Brian Daboll wants Giants “turning the page as quick as we can” to facing Panthers | ProFootballTalk

On Monday, Daboll said “turning the page as quick as we can” to facing the Panthers is still what he wants the team to do.

“I’m happy we won but it’s one game,” Daboll said at his press conference. “If it was the other way around, it’s one game. We got to get ready to go on to the next week. It’s the first week of the regular season so we got a long way to go. You can watch the tape, there’s a lot of corrections that need to be made in this early part of the season and we got to be on top of it. That’s the mindset that we need to make.”

Giants’ Saquon Barkley rates Brian Daboll’s viral dance moves | New York Post

During his appearance on ESPN’s “Manningcast” with Eli Manning — whom he played with for two seasons — and Peyton Manning for the Seahawks-Broncos game on Monday night, Eli asked Barkley to judge Daboll’s dancing ability.

“I’d give him an eight, I gave him eight right there,” Barkley said on the broadcast. “I was impressed that he knew all the words, all the lyrics, he kind of wanted to put the song on, he told us that’s gonna be our song this year, hopefully we get that song rocking a couple more times.”

Eli and Peyton had some questions for Saquon about his reactions during Serena Williams last match at the U.S. Open

10 most surprising performances from NFL Week 1 | PFF

Arguably, the day’s best performance came from Saquon Barkley in Week 1. He finally looked like the player we saw back in 2018, totaling 194 yards and from scrimmage on 24 touches in addition to four forced missed tackles on the ground. His biggest play of the day was a 68-yard run that showcased his speed and explosiveness.

His long-term outlook in New York is still unclear. But this was vintage Barkley. And it was fantastic to see.

Notebook: Giants enjoy win, but ‘just one game’ | Giants.com

Was RB Saquon Barkley inspired by Henry’s presence?

“I’m very competitive. At the end of day, I guess probably a little bit,” Barkley said. “But the reality is, I’m not playing Derrick Henry. I have nothing but respect for him. He’s a heck of a player, one of the best players in the league. It’s not like just competing against him. I’m not looking to see what my numbers are, his numbers. It’s more like, you’re peeking a little bit more. Because you know that this guy, at any moment, can keep breaking a long one. That’s more of respect, I guess you can say.”

LT Andrew Thomas continues his ascension as a player

How Brian Daboll, Giants optimized Saquon Barkley and more thoughts from opener | The Athletic

The Athletic’s Dan Duggan offers that the Giant’s offensive identity will be a run-first attack that fits with the strength of the offensive line. The pass protection was spotty Sunday, as rookie left guard Joshua Ezeudu predictably struggled against Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, and the rest of the interior was leaky all game. But the line was effective in the run game, particularly when linemen were pulling on power and pin-pull schemes. Ezeudu’s athleticism was evident when he was leading the way as a puller.

The Giants had negative plays on a few zone-reads when there was instant penetration from Titans defensive linemen. Those types of misdirection plays will remain a staple of the offense, but getting Barkley and the linemen running downhill seems like the best recipe for this group.

Baldy: It's not a hole, it's a gorge

NFL power rankings 2022: Giants climb to No. 21 | Big Blue View

This week, BBV has aggregated nine power rankings and the average ranking for your New York Giants has risen to No. 21. The Giants will look to build off this momentum heading into their Week 2 matchup for their home opener against the Carolina Panthers.

The highest they are ranked is 14 by The Athletic; the lowest is the 25th by Pro Football Talk.

New York Giants sign OL KC McDermott to practice squad | USA Today

After losing Max Garcia to the Arizona Cardinals over the weekend, the Giants plugged that void with the addition of offensive lineman KC McDermott.

The 26-year-old McDermott was originally signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted rookie out of Miami in 2018. He spent his entire four-year career with the Jags before being released as a part of final cuts in late August.

---

SB Nation Reacts survey

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in New York Giants fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate.

---

This week’s opponent

One thing we learned about each NFL team in Week 1 | CBSSports.com

Christian McCaffrey didn't get the ball enough. Ben McAdoo needs to explain why McCaffrey had just 14 touches in a last-second loss to the Browns. McCaffrey had just 10 carries for 33 yards and a touchdown and four catches for 24 yards, which is simply not enough for a player that's healthy and a difference-maker on the field.

When the Panthers had just six yards in the first quarter, McCaffrey touched the ball only twice. He had just four touches in a first half where Carolina scored only seven points (which was his touchdown). Carolina hung Baker Mayfield out to dry with the high volume of passes. Those struggles could have been avoided by force-feeding McCaffrey for a stretch.

Matt Rhule disappointed, not discouraged by opening loss | ProFootballTalk

Rhule focused on the way the team bounced back from a bad start and figuring out how the Panthers could get that kind of effort on a more consistent basis.

“Every coach is upset with the result of the game,” Rhule said, via the team’s website. “At the same time, to play that badly on offense in the first half, and still came back and had a chance to win the football game. On defense, so many plays we want back and still have a chance to win the game. So we have to have a really good week, and we have to play much better. I think who we were in the fourth quarter is who we’d like to be. We just have to do it for 60 minutes. When we do that, we’ll be a good team.”

Five key stats from the Panthers’ Week 1 loss to the Browns| Cat Scratch Reader

it’s not surprising that the offense struggled early. The offense should get better from here though there are still some big red flags. First, there are zero playmakers outside of Christian McCaffrey, DJ Moore, and Robbie Anderson, assuming he keeps playing like “Good Robbie."

Defensively the Panthers secondary looked pretty good but, as previously mentioned, the front seven got manhandled in the run game. They also only managed one sack and four quarterback hits on 34 Jacoby Brissett passes. Outside of Brian Burns the Panthers defensive line lacks both quality and depth so this likely won’t be the last time Carolina gets worked on the ground.

Notebook: Panthers had a few issues on offensive line | Panthers.com

The Panthers put a lot of emphasis on upgrading the line, after using 14 different starting lineups in 17 games last year. In addition to drafting Ekwonu in the first round, they also signed guard Austin Corbett and center Bradley Bozeman in free agency.

"I think (we've) got a long ways to go, but I think we can be a great running team," left guard Brady Christensen said. "(We've) just got to keep at it and really play more physical up front, especially in the interior."

Around the league

Jerry Jones hopes Dak Prescott can play within the next four games | ProFootballTalk

Cowboys owner and General Manager Jerry Jones said today that the team is not going to put Prescott on injured reserve because there’s a chance that he could miss fewer than four games. Initial reports on Sunday night had Prescott missing six to eight weeks, but after Prescott’s successful surgery on Monday, the reports came in at four to six weeks.

“We want him to be in consideration for playing within the next four games,” Jones said. “We feel better about it than we did Sunday night.”

Former Giants offensive lineman finds a landing spot

Seattle Seahawks safety Jamal Adams suffers 'serious' quad tendon injury | ESPN

Seahawks safety Jamal Adams was carted off in the second quarter of Monday night's 17-16 victory over the Denver Broncos with what coach Pete Carroll deemed a serious injury to his left quadriceps tendon. After being examined in the medical tent, he was helped onto an injury cart. Adams was visibly upset, at one point appearing to burst out in frustration, as he was driven into the locker room and did not return.

"His quadricep tendon I think got damaged some tonight," Carroll said. "He got hurt. So it's a serious injury."

Chargers WR Keenan Allen (hamstring) unlikely to play Thursday vs. Chiefs | NFL.com

The Los Angeles Chargers likely won't have top wide receiver Keenan Allen on Thursday night in Kansas City due to a hamstring injury.

NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported that Allen is unlikely to play on the short week, but there is optimism after tests that his injury isn't a long-term issue, per sources informed of the situation. Allen missed the second half of the Chargers' Week 1 win over the Las Vegas Raiders after suffering the injury.

Yeah...no.

Heisman Trophy Odds, Watch, And Favorites Heading Into Week 3 | Pro Football Network

Caleb Williams has officially entered the Heisman Trophy watch. Williams came out firing in the Trojans’ All-Pac 12 prime-time clash with Stanford. The USC quarterback completed 13 of his 15 pass attempts, meticulously and surgically carving up the Stanford defense. By the time the sun had set in the sky over Stanford Stadium, Williams had racked up 341 yards and four touchdowns, completing 20 of 27 pass attempts, with a 75-yard long bomb that was part precision and part Jordan Addison‘s after-the-catch ability.

BBV mailbag

Have a Giants-related question? E-mail it to bigblueview@gmail.com and it might be featured in our weekly mailbag.

BBV podcast

You can find and subscribe to Big Blue View radio from the show’s home page

BBV social platforms

BBV on Twitter | BBV on Facebook | BBV on Instagram | BBV Radio (available on all of your favorite podcast platforms) | BBV on YouTube