Ideas to Help Boost the Giants Running Game

If the Dallas Cowboys offense under Jason Garrett did anything, it's that they gave us reason to hope that the Giants offense might follow suit.

"It’s across the board," Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett said when asked what the problems have been with the running game.

"It starts with the guys up front, but everybody is a part of the running game. The offensive linemen, the tight ends, the receivers, the backs, us as coaches putting them in a great position, calling the right stuff at the right time. We just haven’t consistently blocked them well enough and run well enough across the board."

No, they have not, which is why they're averaging just 56.7 net rushing yards through three games.

But there's a smidgen of hope this weekend when they face a Los Angeles Rams team that has allowed opponents an average of 119 rushing yards per game, 18th in the league.

Running back Devonta Freeman figures to see a heavier workload in this, his second week with the team, so that will hopefully help. So too might the following suggestions.

Run to the Left

Interestingly, teams have had better success running to the formation's left side against the Rams.

According to league stats, teams have averaged 7.0 yards per carry running to the left end, 4.9 yards per carry at the left tackle, and 4,0 yards per carry at the left guard this season against Los Angeles.

To counter that, one of the things the Rams have done is move defensive lineman Aaron Donald all over the formation. Still, even that hasn't necessarily helped them, not when teams successfully double team Donald and run right at him.

The Giants? They haven't run the ball well at all, regardless of which hole they try to exploit, but it might be encouraging to know that they've averaged a team-best 5.2 yards per carry when running to the left end this season.

Find (and Use) the Fullback

Thus far, the Giants have executed 53 rushing plays this season. Of those, they've deployed fullback Eli Penny on nine of them, which begs the question as to why even carry a fullback if you're only going to deploy him on special teams?

Maybe Saquon Barkley, when he was in the lineup, didn't need a fullback as much, but given the struggles of the tight ends to block at the point of attack, particularly on short yardage, could it hurt to try the fullback?

Get Creative

One of the problems of the first few weeks is that the running plays called have been of the slow-developing variety. Against a faster flowing defense, this is a recipe for a disaster.

So why not try faster-developing plays where you're matching your team's speed against the opponents'? One tactic worth considering is jet motion, which can get a runner into space before the defense really has time to process what's happened.

The Receivers Need to Do Their Part, Too

One of the forgotten, yet critical roles of a wide receiver is to block downfield. And while the Giants haven't had many downfield runs this season, their receivers as a whole have been middle of the road when they've been asked to run block on the edges.

Per PFF, Sterling Shepard, currently on injured reserve, has been the best of the Giants run blockers, followed by C.J. Board.

"All we can do is try to get the safeties and corners blocked, and when it calls for it maybe a linebacker or something, and just make sure we get our guy when it’s our turn," said receiver Darius Slayton, who ranks fourth out of the five Giants receivers in run blocking.

According to Slayton, the good news is that although not many big-play runs have come to the second level or beyond, the receivers have at least been in a position to make the necessary plays.

"We haven’t necessarily broken a lot of long runs, so I guess you can say our downfield blocking hasn’t necessarily been tested yet. But I believe we’ve been in a position to make those blocks if the situation had arisen."

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