WHITE PLAINS, NY – I’m guessing the NFL ratings will be up now that we actually had a few good national games – Cowboys vs Steelers, Seahawks vs Patriots and the Jets vs Rams. Just kidding about that last one, of course, but I’m surprised the NFL didn’t save that snoozer for prime time. Man, other than the hook-n-ladder (my favorite playground play that never worked), it was like watching a dead mouse decompose. Maybe they’ll go down again when people find out Mike Evans took a knee during the anthem to protest President-Elect Turd? Is this a thing now? I’m gonna take a knee in my office cafeteria until the cook learns how to make a decent omelet. Pro-tip: before you protest the results of an election, make sure you voted.
Anyway, the Giants and Bengals played Monday night. The significance of the game increased for the G-men after all NFC East teams won on Sunday, against quality opponents to boot. No respect for the 5-3 Giants, as they were underdogs to the inconsistent Bungles at home. Next up for the G-men are the Teddy Bears and Cleveland Clowns queued up next, so they could be 8-3 two weeks from now. That would also mean some nice momentum heading into the final five, which includes their three division opponents, plus the Steelers and Lions. Catching the Cowboys for the division seems unlikely, but the Giants are the only team to have beaten them. So if the Giants can beat them again, they only need to gain one other game to take the division. I know I’m getting ahead of myself. A loss to Cincy would have dropped the Giants below the Redslurs and into a tie for last… with the lowly green pigeons from a state that gave us this turd President. First Santa and now this.
Preview: Tyler Eifert gives the Bungholes another dimension, takes some pressure off AJ Green, and opens things up for the two-headed RB beast of Bernard and Hill. But the G-men now have Keenan Robinson, the best cover LB they’ve had in years, and Landon Collins, the big hitting safety and winner of two straight Defensive Player of the Week awards. Hopefully they can shut down Eifert and exile Green to Jackrabbit Island. That’s a thing now. The Giants will look to get some kind of running game established behind a banged up OL. Expect some Paul Perkins action this week.
First Half: An exciting first half saw both teams score TDs on their opening possessions. The Giants scored first on an impressive drive with a lot of play-action passes. The Bengals D tightened up when they remembered the Giants are not a threat to run the ball. Geno Atkins was a beast in the middle and the Giant OL struggled. The Bengals touchdown was set up by a long reception by Tyler Eifert on a tricky formation. The Giants did a good job adjusting to the changing formations after that, and stood tall after an Eli Manning pick set the Bengals up in the red zone. The Giants scored again on their last possession on some nice throws by Eli, a few signs of life from the running game and a sweet, double move TD by Mr. Beckham. Odell also became the fastest WR to get to 3,500 yards in NFL history. The half ended with a strange lack of urgency by the Bengals, wasting a lot of time when they had enough to get into FG range. Ernie Accorsi, Justin Tuck, and Tom Coughlin were inducted into the Giants’ ring of honor. Respect.
Second Half: it looked like the turning point of the game would be a long kickoff return to start the second half. The Bengals scored easily and after some bad Giant drives, were in a position to turn the screw. But a Tyler Boyd catch/no catch play on the goaline held the Bengals to a field goal and a six point lead. From there the Giants took charge. Eli hit Sterling Shepard on a 4th and goal from the three with the Giants down 6 to cap off an impressive drive putting the Giants up one. Gutsy call by McAdoo as there as there was plenty of time left. The Giants got the ball right back on an interception by Collins, who is a force. Have they thought about trying Landon on offense? His interception returns are aggressive. Anyway, Eli gave it right back and it looked like they were going to have trouble closing this one out. But the D came up big with two huge sacks on the last Bengal drive, forcing a punt. Just outside of two minutes, it looked liked the Bengals would get one more chance to get in position for a FG. But much maligned Rashad Jennings ran for two big first downs to put the Giants into victory formation. God I love victory formation. Every time we’re ready to put Jennings out to pasture, he comes up big.
The Giants again lost the turnover battle but won the war. This doesn’t seem sustainable. They’re not getting a ton of sacks but the Giants D is getting it done. The big free agents are looking like wise investments – Jenkins has looked better than advertised, Vernon has been rock solid against the run, and Snacks is doing what he does. JPP was active tonight and Collins is an emerging star. The Giants O did enough, and their commitment to the run paid off in the end. But they might want to think about some new personnel packages. The Giants use a package of 1 RB, 3 WRs, and 1 TE on 95% of their plays. That seems easy on the defense. There is no FB on the roster and none of their TEs can block too well. I don’t know if the Giants are actually contenders, but there sure are more fun to watch. These are the games they would find a way to lose last year. Huge win.
Come back tomorrow for Angry Ward, but don’t ask him about the Vikings. Follow us on Twitter at @benwhit8 & @MeetTheMatts and like our Facebook page, Meet The Matts.
