FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Daniel Jones and the beginning offense’s two drives had been characteristically up and down in Thursday night time’s Giants preseason opener in opposition to the New England Patriots, a 23-21 win.
Jones drove the Giants 68 yards in 13 performs on the sport’s opening drive earlier than a Kenny Golladay drop stalled the possession and compelled a Graham Gano area objective.
Then Jones was below siege by the Patriots’ move rush on his second and remaining drive with left deal with Andrew Thomas, Saquon Barkley and left guard Shane Lemieux (toe) pulled out.
“There’s gonna be good, there’s gonna be dangerous,” Barkley mentioned. “We gotta watch movie and study from it… One thing that simply retains taking my thoughts, the primary drive, discover a solution to get greater than three. That’s all of us. We gotta discover a means to try this.”
The plan was for Jones and the starters to play a few quarter, and that’s what they obtained. He completed 6-of-10 for 69 yards passing, with six yards dashing and a sack.
“I assumed we moved it properly and executed properly,” Jones mentioned. “In order that builds confidence, and we’ll clear up what we didn’t do properly down there.”
Daboll mentioned there have been “some good and a few issues we might have had again” with Jones’ first-string offense.
“We threw a pair vertical performs there [and] had a pair free runners relative to the safety,” he mentioned. “However I assumed he operated the offense properly. He obtained them down there on the primary drive. We stalled there within the purple zone. Good begin however definitely issues to wash up.”
Backup Tyrod Taylor performed the second quarter and accomplished 13-of-21 passes for 129 yards and a seven-yard TD move to large receiver Richie James.
Extensive receiver Collin Johnson was energetic with seven catches for 83 yards, a drop and a fumble.
On the sport’s first drive, Jones accomplished 3-of-6 passes for 42 yards working Brian Daboll’s offense and transformed a primary down along with his legs. He delivered a pair of 17-yard completions to Darius Slayton and Johnson.
The bubble display to Slayton, with Kenny Golladay and massive rookie proper deal with Evan Neal out in entrance blocking, was a artistic name by offensive coordinator Mike Kafka and good execution by the gamers.
Saquon Barkley touched the ball 5 occasions in 12 offensive performs, highlighted by an 8-yard catch on third-and-five to maintain the drive alive.
“I felt fairly good,” Barkley mentioned. “I assumed the O-line did an ideal job. We had been capable of transfer the ball. I used to be capable of get a catch on third and 5 to maintain the sticks transferring. Nice ball by DJ, nice learn by DJ.”
However he gained solely 12 yards dashing on 4 carries. And the drive ended with Kenny Golladay dropping a Jones move on third and 6 from the New England 7-yard line. Jones took a shot to the again from free blitzer Anfernee Jennings, a Patriots linebacker, instantly after he threw.
So Graham Gano booted a 25-yard area objective for the early 3-0 lead.
After a fast cease by the protection, although, the second drive was a battle with Devery Hamilton at left deal with and rookie Josh Ezeudu at left guard.
Thomas, who's getting back from offseason ankle surgical procedure, seemingly had his snaps restricted as a part of the plan. Lemieux was pulled because of an harm on the primary drive.
Ezeudu, Neal, Hamilton and tight finish Chris Myarick all missed blocks on Jones’ second drive.
So after one other Jones-to-Johnson first down, he was sacked by Josh Uche on first down, smashed by Raekwon McMillan driving a Large into his lap on second down, and flushed from his left for an incompletion on third down earlier than a punt.
Patriots QB Brian Hoyer, who began the sport, then responded with an eight-play, 55-yard landing drive, choosing on Giants nook Aaron Robinson all the way in which down the sphere.
He accomplished a 33-yard move on Robinson to Kristian Wilkerson. Robinson was known as for taunting after breaking apart a move ultimately zone. Then he was flagged for holding on Hoyer’s 2-yard TD move to Tyquan Thornton.
Johnson, a standout at receiver throughout Giants’ camp, then fumbled the ball away to New England on Taylor’s first drive changing Jones.
Third-string QB Davis Webb mopped up within the second half. Operating again Antonio Williams punched in a two-yard TD run on Webb’s first drive.
Linebacker Austin Calitro intercepted Patriots rookie QB Bailey Zappe, organising a Graham Gano 40-yard area objective for a 20-14 lead.
However Zappe’s 20-yard TD move to WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey with 4:51 to play gave the Patriots the lead once more. Zappe fired shortly up the seam over the person protection of nook Zyon Gilbert.
However Sandro Platzgummer carried 3 times for 21 yards through the remaining drive to arrange Gano’s 24-yard game-winning area objective as time expired.
The Giants’ Lemieux, backup proper guard Jamil Douglas (ankle) and rookie nook Cor’Dale Flott (groin) all left the sport with accidents.
Jones and security Xavier McKinney had been the Giants’ captains for the sport.
TONEY MISSES OPENER
Extensive receiver Kadarius Toney, defensive lineman Leonard Williams, center linebacker Blake Martinez, defensive deal with Justin Ellis and working again Matt Breida had been among the many injured or resting gamers that didn’t make the journey.
“All people that was injured or working rehabbing, no matter it could be, that weren’t capable of play, they had been going to remain house and rehab with the trainers,” Daboll mentioned when requested about Toney.
Daboll mentioned solely “I hope so” when requested if Toney shall be on the sphere subsequent week.
“I’m simply not going to get into the specifics of it actually with anyone. He's working again,” he mentioned.
Martinez is working his means again from a torn ACL. Williams had missed Tuesday’s follow with an undisclosed difficulty. Breida has missed a pair latest practices, too. Ellis’ state of affairs isn’t clear.
Toney, coming off an offseason knee process, has had a lowered workload in 4 of the Giants’ 11 practices thus far. He additionally appeared to presumably tweak one thing throughout Tuesday’s jog-thru in New Jersey.
Wideouts Austin Proehl and David Sills, tight ends Andre Miller and Ricky Seals-Jones, nook Rodarius Williams, security Dane Belton and linebacker Carter Coughlin additionally didn’t make the journey.
Wideout Sterling Shepard and O-linemen Nick Gates and Matt Peart stay on injured reserve. And edge Azeez Ojulari is on the non-football harm listing.
JUDGE SHOWS CLASS, CALLS SOME PLAYS
Former Giants head coach Joe Choose, now a Patriots’ offensive assistant/quarterbacks, appeared to alternate play-calling duties for New England’s offense with Matt Patricia, a senior soccer advisor/offensive line.
Patricia known as the performs early with Hoyer within the sport, after which Choose known as some performs for rookie Bailey Zappe.
Choose exchanged handshakes and hugs with some Giants gamers and entrance workplace members on the sphere pregame.
Not many gamers had been on the sphere but, however linebacker Cam Brown and long-snapper Casey Kreiter each greeted Choose warmly. Director of personnel Tim McDonnell, senior VP Kevin Abrams and particular groups coordinator Thomas McGaughey additionally mentioned howdy.
Jones and Barkley then had been among the many myriad gamers who approached Choose for a hug after the sport.
Daboll, in the meantime, was greeted by Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft and Invoice Belichick previous to his first NFL sport as a head coach in opposition to the franchise that jump-started his profession.
()