New York Giants Competitive Edge Week 4: Giants Offense vs. Saints Defense

Olivier Dumont breaks down the New York Giants offense vs. the New Orleans Saints defense. Who has the competitive edge in each key area of the game? Read on to find out who and why.

The New York Giants had a golden opportunity to secure their first win last Sunday, that in part, was too good to be true.

From two-time Super Bowl Champion Eli Manning being inducted into the Giants' Ring of Honor at halftime to playing at home versus an 0-2 Atlanta Falcons team, that game was meant for the Giants to win, except they didn't get it done.  

Sitting at 0-3, the Giants have now dug themselves a pretty big hole to climb out of. Following their Week 4 matchup against the New Orleans Saints, the Giants will face the Cowboys, Rams, Panthers, Chiefs, and Raiders before their Week 10 Bye.

To add to the sizable mountain they have to scale, the Giants lost game-changing defensive captain Blake Martinez to a season-ending ACL tear and have two receivers, Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard, dealing with hamstring injuries.

That said, each game week grants the Giants a fresh slate to prove their worth and hone in on their strengths and weaknesses that will provide them a chance to come away with a win. 

Though playing the Saints on the road just might be the most formidable challenge they’ve encountered so far this season, the talent is there for the Giants to find a way to put an end to their slide if they can execute on offense.

Here is our Week 4 competitive edge breakdown looking at the Giants offense vs. the Saints defense. Part 2, Giants defense vs. Saints offense, will be up Saturday.  

Giants Pass Offense

• Quarterback (Daniel Jones)
• Running Backs (Saquon Barkley, Devontae Booker, Eli Penny)
• Tight Ends (Evan Engram, Kyle Rudolph, Kaden Smith)
• Wide Receivers (Sterling Shepard, Kenny Golladay, Darius Slayton, Kadarius Toney, Collin Johnson, C.J. Board)
• Offensive Line (LT Andrew Thomas, RT Nate Solder, RG Will Hernandez, OC Billy Price, RG Matt Skura (projected), Wes Martin, Matt Peart)

Just when Week 3 was supposed to provide this Giants passing offense a chance to come into its own, this group somehow managed to go from bad to worse. Though it wasn’t a substantial drop, it was noticeable with Jones front and center of this concern.

Outside of improving his completion percentage average from 24th (63.8) in the league following Week 2 to now 19th (65.4) after Week 3, Jones is ranked 21st in passer rating (94.3) and 17th in passing yards per game (242.7), and did not have a single touchdown pass against the Falcons.

In all fairness, injuries to his supporting cast haven’t made life easier for Jones, particularly following the departure of two of his top receivers. But this unit is jam-packed with plenty of talent and playmakers--Barkley, Golladay, Toney, Rudolph, and Engram come to mind--leaving Jones no excuses.

With that said, the Giants' passing offense hasn’t been all that bad, particularly since  Jones has yet to throw an interception.

The Giants pass protection has also been improving by the week. Against the Falcons, the Giants offensive line allowed Jones to sit in the pocket for 2.85 seconds, after only giving him 2.5 seconds against Denver and 2.76 seconds against Washington.

That’s huge for Jones, and as a result of the extra time, he’s gotten better at moving the chains. The Giants are ninth in the league in offensive third-down conversions (44.7%), and Jones’ time in the pocket has played a significant role in that, as he's collected 12 of those 17 third downs through the air.

Saints Pass Defense

Pass Coverage

• Cornerbacks (Marshon Lattimore, Paulson Adebo, Desmond Trufant, Bradley Roby)
• Safeties (Malcolm Jenkins, Marcus Williams, P.J. Williams, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, J.T. Gray, Jeff Heath)

If there’s one unit that might end Jones’ zero interception streak, it could be this Saints' passing defense. The Saints are tied for first in interceptions (6), and are third in  the league in opponent passer rating (67.1) and sixth in opponent completion percentage (61.3). The defense has also only allowed three touchdown passes in three games this season.

Leading their group of cornerbacks is Lattimore, their newly resigned, three-time Pro Bowler and 2017 Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Though he sometimes will fall under the radar when the premier cornerback discussion arises, Lattimore is as talented as they come and is undoubtedly one of the more underrated shutdown corners in this league.

In 2021, Lattimore already has an interception, three pass breakups and leads the team in reception percentage (42.9) and passer rating against (31.5).

Rookie Adebo and veteran Trufant round out the top three corners for the Saints. Adebo has conceded two touchdowns, but he also secured his first interception and has allowed 63.6 percent of the pass targets against him to be completed.

Despite Trufant playing only 57 snaps this season, he’s a veteran presence that elevates any group of corners. He is averaging a 59.2 reception percentage over his nine-year career and has collected a total of 14 interceptions.

As for their safeties, the Saints are led by versatile veteran Jenkins. The two-time Super Bowl Champion has proven to be one of the most reliable safeties in the league and has surpassed expectations time again over his 13-year career.

Last year alone, Jenkins had 91 total tackles, ten passes defensed, three interceptions, 2.5 sacks, and a fumble recovery.

This year, Jenkins already has 16 total tackles (2nd on the team), an interception, and has a 61.1 reception percentage to show for on 18 targets this season. 

Pass Rush

• Edge (Cameron Jordan, Carl Granderson, Tanoh Kpassagnon, Payton Turner) 
• Defensive Line (Christian Ringo, Shy Tuttle, Malcolm Roach, Albert Huggins, Montravius Adams)

The Saints pass rush has collected six sacks in three games, none of those by Jordan, their best pass rusher.

Despite that, Jordan is still a major pass rush threat. The 2017 All-Pro defensive end has posted double digit sacks in five of his ten full NFL seasons, and hit a new career high only two years ago with 15.5 sacks. 

Though he’s off to a quiet start in the sacks department, Jordan leads the Saints defense in pressures (15) and is tied in second in stops (6).

Outside of Jordan, the Saints still have plenty of talent off the edge in guys like Granderson and Kpassagnon. Following a sharp performance last season where he recorded a total of five sacks, Granderson is off to a bit of a slower start in 2021, but has still illustrated plenty of growth. He's recorded five tackles and is currently second on the team in pressures (7).

Kpassagnon, on the hand, has hit the ground running in his first season as a Saint. The former Chiefs defender is tied with Granderson in total pressures (7) and currently leads the team in sacks (2) and forced fumbles (1). 

Competitive Edge: Saints

This Giants passing offense has plenty of potential and talent at their disposal to be quite effective. Not only did Barkley see an increase in targets against Atlanta, tying a team-high (7) while reeling in six receptions for 43 yards, but Toney had two receptions for 16 yards after only having two receptions for negative two yards in the first two weeks.

However, not only have we yet to see this group reach anywhere near its apex, but this week, they will be facing one dauntingly dangerous Saints pass defense that has just about everything in its favor to keep this Giants pass offense at bay.

In addition, the Giants offense is banged up. Besides Shepard and Slayton dealing with nagging hamstring injuries, the Giants are looking at having their fourth different starting left guard in as many weeks as Bredeson is dealing with a hand injury. 

The Giants are also fourth in the league in sacks allowed (8) and just so happen to be going up against one of the league’s best pass rushers in Jordan. With Solder already conceding a sack to Von Miller in Week 1 and Dante Fowler in Week 3, Jordan could very well get his first sack against the veteran.  

Giants Run Offense

• Quarterback (Daniel Jones)
• Running Backs (Saquon Barkley, Devontae Booker, Elijhaa Penny)
• Tight Ends (Evan Engram, Kyle Rudolph, Kaden Smith)
• Offensive Line (Andrew Thomas, Nate Solder, Will Hernandez, Billy Price, Ben Bredeson, Matt Peart)

Entering Sunday’s matchup against the Saints, this Giants run offense comes with good news and bad news. 

The good news is that Barkley got his first touchdown of the season last week against the Falcons and showed a handful of encouraging signs of being his former, healthy self. 

The bad news though, is that the Giants run offense is facing a Saints defense that’s third in the league at stopping the run.

At the core of this concern, is a group of offensive linemen that has really struggled to provide the running lanes Barkley needs to succeed, particularly on outside run plays. 

On 39 total attempts, Barkley has only managed to suffice 3.4 yards per carry and has just two explosive runs over ten plus yards.

However, the offensive line is not solely to blame here and a brunt of the responsibility for this Giants run game’s shortcomings does fall on Barkley’s shoulders. 

Collecting a total of only five missed tackles forced so far this season, despite gathering a total of nine in each of his first three games in both 2018 and 2019, Barkley has had a challenging time regaining the same edge and vision he once had a couple of years ago.

Though Jones’ RPO play integration could give this Saints run defense some problems, the Giants run offense could be in store for a long and frustrating day.

Saints Run Defense

• Defensive Line (Shy Tuttle, Christian Ringo, Malcolm Roach, Albert Huggins, Montravius Adams) 
• Linebackers (Demario Davis, Zack Baun, Kaden Elliss, Andrew Dowell, Pete Werner)
• Safeties (Malcolm Jenkins, Marcus Williams, P.J. Williams, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, J.T. Gray, Jeff Heath)

If you think the Saints' pass defense is good, just wait till you see their run defense in full swing on Sunday. This group is second in the league in opponent yards per attempt allowed (2.8), third in yards per game allowed (60.3), and it has only conceded one rushing touchdown in three games.

Leading the pack is Davis, a 2019 All-Pro linebacker and run-stopping specialist. Since he arrived in 2018, Davis has led the Saints defense in total tackles and stops for the last three seasons. 

With already a team-high in total tackles (24) and a team-high in stops (11), expect Davis to be at the forefront of the Saints run defense.

Kwon Alexander is currently on IR with an elbow injury he suffered in Week 1. So look for Elliss and Baun, an imposing one-two punch that has collected a combined total of 18 tackles and six stops, to fill the void.

The Saints might not have the flashiest names on the defensive line, but they certainly have a solid group that has proven to be influential at stopping the run inside, led by the space-clogging strength and resilience of Tuttle and Huggins. 

Throw in the presence on the line of scrimmage from safeties Jenkins and P.J. Williams, and this Giants run offense could be in for a long day Sunday.

Competitive Edge: Saints

If this Giants run game struggled to get much going against an Atlanta run defense allowing an average of 118.3 yards per game, the likelihood of this group garnering much more against a Saints run defense that allows just about half of that is quite unlikely. 

The Giants have so much still to prove in the running game, as when your quarterback is your leading rusher (and is not named Lamar Jackson), that’s not what you want to see when you have a Barkley on your roster.

The Giants' offensive line has struggled with its run blocking this year. Though tight end Smith has helped the run blocking, the Giants' offensive line still has to do better moving forward.

Even with Alexander injured, the Saints run defense has a significant competitive edge against this Giants run offense, as it has all the talent and athleticism it needs to silence a struggling Giants rushing attack. 

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