New York Giants Week 5 Report Card: Honor Roll

Grading the New York Giants units on their 29-20 win over the Seattle Seahawks.

Oct 6, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; New York Giants defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches (93) celebrates following a sack against the Seattle Seahawks during the fourth quarter at Lumen Field. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The New York Giants went into Seattle, famous for having one of the loudest playing environments in the league, and came out a winner. Let’s break down the grades for the units from this uplifting win. 

Offense

No Malik Nabers, no Devin Singletary, no problem! The Giants, who always preach “next man up,” adapted with a perfectly balanced game plan (34 runs, 34 pass attempts), and the results were what a winning offense should look like.

Start with a much improved 5.1 yards per carry rushing offense, which meant fewer second- and third-and-long situations. 

East Rutherford, NJ -- July 24, 2024 -- Wide receiver Darius Slayton during the first day of training camp for the 2024 New York Giants. / Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

Add in some strong offensive line play in both run blocking and pass protection, a quarterback in Daniel Jones who for at least one afternoon silenced his harshest critics, and the resurgence of receiver Darius Slayton, whose 122-yard performance should put an end to talk of trading him, and you have one of the best and most efficiency offensive outputs from a Giants team in a long, long time. 

Want more in terms of the numbers? The Giants, who held the ball for 37:22, recorded 24 first downs, converted 43.8% of their third down plays, had three possessions of 11+ plays, and finished with 420 yards of total offense. 

Despite the noise level, no pre-snap penalties were called for false starts. Behind Grade A pass protection, Jones went through his progressions instead of hurrying balls into tight windows, and there was room for the backs to hit the second level. 

There were a few hiccups–the sack of Jones on the first play, which resulted in a fumble that the Giants fortunately recovered; a questionable call on Eric Gray’s fumble in the end zone that should never have been made had Gray held onto the ball; and some more dropped passes (two by Wan’Dale Robinson). 

But those little blips on the radar can be corrected (need to be moving forward). 

Grade: A-

Oct 6, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97) celebrates following a fourth down sack against the Seattle Seahawks during the fourth quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Defense

Don’t look now, but the Giants' defense leads the league in sacks with 22, adding another seven to their impressive total. 

Dexter Lawrence, perhaps still ticked over Pro Football Focus’s insistence that he was neutralized by Cowboys rookie center Cooper Beebee last week (We kid! We kid!), went on a tear that included three sacks and a bunch of other pressures. 

Youngster D.J. Davidson was the other defender with a multiple-sack game, adding two to the pile. 

Cornerback Deonte Banks responded to defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson’s public criticism of him last week with his best game of the season. 

Per NextGen Stats, Banks lined up against Metcalf on 35 of his 47 routes, and the second-year cornerback held the big play receiver to two receptions out of four targets for 24 yards, including forcing a fumble later in the game that the Giants recovered. 

Brian Burns came through in the clutch, sacking Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith on a fourth-down play. The Seahawks run game barely made a dent, and Seattle was held to a 27.3% third-down conversion rate.   

Grade: A 

Oct 6, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; New York Giants linebacker Isaiah Simmons (19) blocks a field goal kick attempt by Seattle Seahawks placekicker Jason Myers (5) during the second half at Lumen Field. / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Special Teams

Greg Joseph hit all his field goal attempts, the longest of the three going for 38 yards. Punter Jamie Gillan laid a beautiful punt inside the 20, which Dane Belton downed inside the 5-yard line. 

But the biggest play was the blocked fourth-quarter field goal attempt. Linebacker Isaiah Simmons burst through a gap in the Seahawk's protection and got a mitt on the 47-yard attempt, the ball landing in the arms of Bryce Ford-Wheaton, who ran it back 60 yards for the touchdown, giving the Giants a two-score lead with time running out.

If that play isn’t made, the game would have been up for grabs in overtime. 

Grade: A+ 

Oct 6, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll stands on the sideline during the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Coaching

Brian Daboll delivered a near masterpiece this week with a game plan that mixed in screens, attacked the edges, and got the tight end more involved.

Shane Bowen continued to mix a little more blitz into his pressure packages, seemingly finding a nice balance between being extra aggressive when necessary and not overdoing it as his predecessor did.

Credit special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial for coming up with the idea that led to the blocked field goal, which flipped the game around in the Giants' favor.  

Grade: A+

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