Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25 – New York Giants 23

Dion Lewis – © USA TODAY Sports

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 25 – NEW YORK GIANTS 23…
The New York Giants lost another heart breaker on Monday night, losing 25-23 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. With the loss, the Giants fell to 1-7 for the third time in the past four seasons. It was the third game in the last four where the Giants lost despite holding an 11-point lead against a favored opponent. Five of the team’s seven losses have been decided late in the game.

Two interceptions by quarterback Daniel Jones were instrumental in the defeat as the overall team statistics were evenly matched. The Buccaneers won the turnover margin 2-1.

Tampa Bay began the game on offense and drove 57 yards in 11 plays to set up a 37-yard field goal and a quick 3-0 lead. The Giants picked up two first downs on their first possession but were forced to punt. However two plays later, linebacker Blake Martinez forced a fumble that cornerback Darnay Holmes recovered at the Buccaneers 12-yard line. On 3rd-and-5, Jones threw a perfect pass to running back Dion Lewis for a 7-yard touchdown. The Giants led 7-3.

After two punts by Tampa Bay and one by New York, the Giants drove 77 yards in 10 plays later in the 2nd quarter, culminating with a 2-yard touchdown run by running back Wayne Gallman to give the Giants a 14-3 lead with 1:46 left in the first half. Once again, however, the Giants defense allowed points late in a half as the Buccaneers gained 53 yards in eight plays to set up a 40-yard field goal. Safety Logan Ryan made a sure tackle on 3rd-and-2 to prevent Tampa Bay from possibly finishing the possession with a touchdown.

At the half, the Giants led 14-6.

Dion Lewis returned the opening kickoff of the second half to the New York 44-yard line, but two plays later, Jones threw a bad interception that gave Tampa Bay the ball on their own 42-yard line. The Bucs then drove 34 yards in 10 plays to set up a 43-yard field goal. Giants 14 – Buccaneers 9. After a three-and-out by the Giants, Tampa Bay went ahead for the first time with a 5-play, 67-yard drive that culminated with a 3-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Tom Brady to tight end Rob Gronkowski. The 2-point conversion attempt failed and the Bucs led 15-14.

The Giants responded with a 10-play, 56-yard drive that unfortunately stalled inside the red zone. Still, place kicker Graham Gano’s 33-yard field goal regained the lead for the Giants, 17-15 near the end of the 3rd quarter.

The Giants defense, which played well most of the night, forced a three-and-out. Then came Jones’ second killer interception, turning the ball over at the Buccaneers 34-yard line. Aided by a questionable lowering the head to initiate contact penalty on cornerback Isaac Yiadom, Tampa Bay followed this turnover up with a 6-play, 66-yard drive, that ended with Brady’s second touchdown throw. Buccaneers 22 – Giants 17.

After a three-and-out by New York, the Buccaneers extended their lead to 25-17. Tampa Bay drove 47 yards in eight plays, setting up a 38-yard field goal with less than four minutes to play.

Down by eight points, the Giants began their last desperate drive at their own 30-yard line. Under heavy pressure, Jones miraculously converted a 4th-and-5 play for 12 yards to wide receiver Darius Slayton. Jones followed that up with a 15-yard scramble on 2nd-and-15. On 4th-and-16 from near midfield, Jones then completed a 20-yard pass to wide receiver Sterling Shepard. Three plays later, he found Tate for a 19-yard score with 28 seconds left in the game. Needing two points to tie the game, the conversion failed (the officials picked up a pass interference flag on the defense). Tampa recovered the onsides kick.

Jones completed 25-of-41 passes for 256 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. He also ran three times for 20 yards. His leading receivers were Shepard (8 catches for 74 yards), tight end Evan Engram (5 catches for 61 yards), and Slayton (5 catches for 56 yards). Gallman rushed for 44 yards on 12 carries and running back Alfred Morris chipped in with 28 yards on eight carries.

The defense held the Buccaneers to 344 total net yards (81 yards rushing, 263 yards passing) and forced one turnover. Defensive lineman Leonard Williams and linebacker Carter Coughlin each sacked Brady.

Video highlights are available on Giants.com.

PRACTICE SQUAD ACTIVATIONS, INACTIVES, AND INJURY REPORT…
Activated from the Practice Squad for this game were RB Alfred Morris, G Chad Slade (COVID-19 Replacement), and S Montre Hartage.

Inactive for the game were RB Devonta Freeman (ankle), WR C.J. Board (concussion), CB Ryan Lewis (hamstring), S Adrian Colbert (shoulder), TE Eric Tomlinson, OT Jackson Barton, and DE R.J. McIntosh.

No injuries were reported.

POST-GAME REACTION…
Transcripts and video clips of post-game media sessions with Head Coach Joe Judge and the following players are available in The Corner Forum and at Giants.com:

• Head Coach Joe Judge (Video)
• QB Daniel Jones (Video)
• WR Darius Slayton (Video)
• LB Blake Martinez (Video)
• S Jabrill Peppers (Video)

WHAT’S UP NEXT…
Head Coach Joe Judge will address the media by conference call on Tuesday.