Giants Take Kick in the Pants in 21-18 Heartbreaker Loss to Commanders

Giants lack of a backup kicker comes back to haunt team.

Sep 15, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders place kicker Austin Seibert (3) celebrates with his teammates after making the game winning field goal against the New York Giants at Commanders Field. / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Kicker Austin Seibert hit a franchise record seven field goals as the Washington Commanders beat the New York Giants 21-18.

Seibert, signed this week to replace Cade York, hit the game-winning 30-yarder with 40 seconds left. He also had field goals of 27, 45, 26, 27, 29, and 33 yards in the game, accounting for all of the Commanders’ scoring.

The Giants, now 0-2, went through the game minus kicker Graham Gano, who was added to the injury report on Saturday with a groin issue but who then would pull his hamstring on the opening kickoff trying to chase down Austin Ekeler.

That left the place-kicking duties to punter Jamie Gillan, who didn’t attempt any field goals but who did miss a PAT on the Giants' first touchdown of the game, a 7-yard rush by running back Devin Singletary.

• RELATED: Giants K Graham Gano Suffers Hamstring Injury on Opening Kickoff

The place-kicker issue wasn’t the only thing that did the Giants in. A bigger problem for the Giants, though, was their defense. Shane Bowen’s group allowed a 50 percent conversion rate on third down (7-of-14), with the Commanders needing at least 10 yards on five of those seven third-down attempts. 

The Commanders also rushed for 215 yards on 35 carries, a 6.1 yards per carry average, with 133 of those rushing yards recorded by Brian Robinson, Jr. 

And while the Giants red zone defense shut the Commanders out in six trips, the Commanders, who dominated the time of possession, 37:32 to 22:28, scored on seven of their eight possessions, with each of those possessions going for at least eight plays. 

Giants rookie receiver Maik Naber had himself a big day, catching 10 of 18 passes for 128 yards and a touchdown. However, he also had a big drop on a 4th-and-4, that coming with  2:09 left in the game which, had he reeled in, would have kept the Giants scoring drive going.

If you’re looking for the slightest glimpse of hope, embattled Giants quarterback Daniel Jones likely quieted calls for his job for at least another week by finishing 16-of-28 (57.1 percent) for 178 yards and two touchdowns. The two touchdowns, to Nabers and Wan’Dale Robinson, marked Jones’s first two-touchdown game in nearly a year, the last time coming in Week 2 of 2023 against the Arizona Cardinals. 

Things won’t get any easier for the Giants, now 0-2, as starting next week, they have the toughest part of their schedule. It begins with a Week 3 game against the Cleveland Browns, who beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 18-13. That will be followed by a Thursday night home game against Dallas, who was blown out by the New Orleans Saints 44-19.

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