WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE OFFENSE
Daniel Jones, who was limited in practice this week due to a neck injury, missed his second consecutive game. The Giants listed the quarterback as questionable heading into Sunday, but Jones was ruled out on the inactive list, which is released 90 minutes prior to kickoff.
Backup Tyrod Taylor again started in place of Jones. Tommy DeVito, an undrafted rookie and the third-string quarterback since the summer, was activated from the practice squad on Saturday, along with offensive lineman Jalen Mayfield.
The Giants had five different starting offensive line combinations, tied for the most in the NFL entering Week 7. From left to right, the starting lineup on Sunday was Justin Pugh, Marcus McKethan, Ben Bredeson, Mark Glowinski, and Tyre Phillips, who reunited with the Giants this week after he was signed off the Eagles’ practice squad.
Coach Brian Daboll said this week that rookie wide receiver Jalin Hyatt has “got to play.” He added, “You can go out here and practice and do that, which is important, but you’ve got to get some game reps and run routes against DBs that are playing in the NFL in a competitive way.” The third-round pick and Biletnikoff Award winner continued to see his role expand and kicked off Sunday with a 33-yard reception in the first quarter on third-and-long. Hyatt later hauled in a clutch 42-yarder down the right sideline in the fourth quarter.
Taylor completed 18 of 29 passes for 279 yards and two touchdowns. He was sacked four times.
The Giants ended their touchdown drought with a 15-yard pass early in the second quarter from Taylor to tight end Darren Waller, his first score as a member of the Giants. The offense had not found the end zone since the third quarter of Week 3 at San Francisco. Waller finished with 98 yards on seven receptions.
The first touchdown drive was propelled by back-to-back 22-yard receptions from Wan’Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton.
Running back Saquon Barkley added to his storied history with Washington on a 32-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown in the second quarter, his longest score since the 2021 season. Barkley averaged 129.4 yards from scrimmage in his previous seven games against the Commanders. On Sunday, he rushed 21 times for 77 yards and caught three passes for 41 yards, including the score. However, he lost a fumble on the Washington 8-yard line with the Giants trying to extend the lead to two possessions midway through the fourth quarter.
The Giants were outscored 94-25 in the first half before Sunday, when they took a 14-0 lead into the locker room.
The Giants had ruled out three players with injuries on the final injury report of the week, and they were all offensive linemen – center John Michael Schmitz (shoulder) and tackles Andrew Thomas (hamstring) and Matt Peart (shoulder). Right tackle Evan Neal was listed as questionable with an ankle injury but did not dress for Week 7.
Earlier in the week, the Giants placed versatile offensive lineman Joshua Ezeudu (toe) on injured reserve and signed Justin Pugh “straight off the couch” to the 53-man roster. Pugh, a former first-round draft pick, had been on the practice squad and elevated for last Sunday night’s game in Buffalo, where he started at left guard and had to switch in-game to left tackle after Ezeudu went down.
Guard Shane Lemieux was placed on injured reserve this week after tearing his biceps in practice.