Aug 112022
 
Richie James, New York Giants (August 11, 2022)

Richie James – © USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK GIANTS 23 – NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 21…
The New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots 23-21 on a walk-off field goal at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts on Thursday night. The Giants and rookie Head Coach Brian Daboll begin the 2022 preseason 1-0.

In penalty-filled contest (Giants were flagged eight times, the Patriots 12 times), New York out-gained New England in total yards (418 to 308), rushing yards (177 to 52), and time of possession (33:59 to 26:01). The Patriots sat their first team while the Giants first teamers played one or two drives, minus a long list of injured players kept out of the game.

The Giants received the ball first and promptly marched down field on a 13-play, 68-yard drive that stalled inside the 10-yard line when quarterback Daniel Jones’ 3rd-down pass was dropped at the goal line by wide receiver Kenny Golladay. Place kicker Graham Gano kicked the 25-yard field goal to give the Giants a 3-0 early lead. The key plays on this possession were back-to-back 17-yard passes by Jones to receivers Darius Slayton and Collin Johnson.

After both teams traded punts, the Patriots’ second-team offense took the lead against the Giants’ second-team defense by driving 55 yards in eight plays and finishing with a 2-yard touchdown pass by quarterback Brian Hoyer who successfully targeted cornerback Aaron Robinson a number of times. Patriots 7 – Giants 3.

The Giants’ second-team offense crossed midfield on a quarterback Tyrod Taylor pass to Johnson, but Johnson fumbled after gaining 17 yards and New England recovered the ball at their own 31-yard line. After two punts by the Patriots and another by the Giants, New York got on the board again with an 11-play, 86-yard possession that resulted in a 7-yard touchdown pass from Taylor to wide receiver Richie James with under four minutes to play before halftime. James also made a 26-yard circus catch off a deflection on this drive.

Neither team scored on their final two possessions of the half, and the Giants led 10-7 at the break.

The Patriots regained the lead on their first drive of the second half, when they marched 84 yards in eight plays, capping off the possession with a 3-yard touchdown run up the gut. Patriots 14 – Giants 10. However, New York immediately responded with a touchdown drive of their own with Davis Webb now at quarterback. It took nine plays for the Giants to move the ball 51 yards, with running back Antonio Williams scoring up the middle from two yards out. Giants 17 -Patriots 14.

Both teams punted on their next possessions. Early in the 4th quarter, quarterback Bailey Zappe was intercepted by linebacker Austin Calitro on 4th-and-1 at the New York 43-yard line. The Giants only moved the ball 29 yards in nine plays, but they were able to set up Gano for a 40-yard field goal that gave New York a 20-14 lead.

After both teams exchanged punts again, the Patriots drove 69 yards in nine plays, finishing with a 20-yard Zappe touchdown pass on 3rd-and-10 to give New England a 21-20 lead with just under five minutes to play.

However, on the final possession for either team on the evening, New York responded with an 11-play, 69-yard drive of their own. This set up Gano at the New England 6-yard line with four seconds left. He nailed the 24-yard field goal as time expired.

At quarterback, Jones finished 6-of-10 for 69 yards. Taylor was 13-of-21 for 129 yards and one touchdown. Webb was 8-of-16 for 51 yards. The leading receiver was Johnson, who caught seven passes for 82 yards. At running back, Williams carried the ball nine times for 61 yards and a touchdown. Gary Brightwell carried the ball seven times for 40 yards.

Defensively, safety Trenton Thompson had New York’s only sack. Calitro had the team’s only turnover with his interception.

Video highlights are available on YouTube.

https://twitter.com/Giants/status/1557928395920523264

INJURY REPORT – LEMIEUX, FLOTT, AND DOUGLAS HURT…
RB Matt Breida (unknown), WR Kadarius Toney (unknown), WR Sterling Shepard (PUP – Achilles), WR David Sills (unknown), WR Austin Proehl (unknown), TE Andre Miller (broken arm?), TE Ricky Seals-Jones (unknown), OC Nick Gates (PUP – leg), OL Matt Peart (PUP – ACL), DL Leonard Williams (unknown), DL Justin Ellis (unknown), LB Azeez Ojulari (NFI – hamstring), LB Blake Martinez (returning from ACL), LB Carter Coughlin (unknown), CB Rodarius Williams (returning from ACL), and S Dane Belton (broken left collarbone) did not play.

LG Shane Lemieux left the game early with a left toe injury and did not return. He was spotted in a walking boot and will undergo more tests. OL Jamil Douglas (ankle) and CB Cor’Dale Flott (groin) also left the game in the second half and did not return.

HEAD COACH BRIAN DABOLL’S POST-GAME PRESS CONFERENCE…
The transcript and video of Head Coach Brian Daboll’s post-game press conference is available in The Corner Forum and on YouTube.

WHAT’S UP NEXT…
Head Coach Brian Daboll and select players will address the media by Zoom on Friday.

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Eric Kennedy

Eric Kennedy is Editor-in-Chief of BigBlueInteractive.com, a publication of Big Blue Interactive, LLC. Follow @BigBlueInteract on Twitter.

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