Giants embarrassed by rival Cowboys in nightmare season-opening loss
The best thing about the way the Giants opened up their 2023 season was that the abuse they took and the sacks they allowed and the embarrassment they should feel resulted in only one loss.
One big, fat, desultory, disgusting loss.
It is difficult to conceive of a worse way to embark on a season.
The slop the Giants served up to their fans Sunday night at MetLife Stadium and a national television audience was unacceptable on every level.
The rain started falling prior to kickoff and the Giants proceeded to douse the anticipation of the paying customers with a display of inept blocking on offense in front of Daniel Jones and sheer folly in their field-goal operation.
This was men versus boys, or, more accurately, ’Boys versus boys, as the Giants put up no fight in a 40-0 loss to the Cowboys that was as bad as it gets for the home team.
“We got skunked here 40-0,” coach Brian Daboll said. “When you play a game like that, coach a game like that there’s nothing that’s good enough.”
It was the third-worst shutout loss in franchise history, the worst since a 42-0 beating by the Raiders in Oakland during the 1973 season.
The 40-point margin was the eighth-largest loss ever for the Giants.
“We got our teeth kicked in,” receiver Sterling Shepard, the longest-tenured Giants player, said.
“It’s embarrassing, but it’s over with now,” safety Xavier McKinney said.
McKinney admitted it was “shocking” to lose so decisively.
“We got a long way to go,” he said. “It’s that simple. This was a wake-up call for us. It’s definitely humbling but we’ll figure it out. We’ll be a lot better next week. We won’t look like this next week.”
The Giants play against the Cardinals in Arizona in Week 2.
The depressing beat goes on for the Giants in this decidedly one-sided NFC East rivalry.
This was the fifth consecutive loss and the 12th loss in the last 13 games to the Cowboys, a team that undeniably owns the Giants.
It is actually either a source of encouragement to the Giants or a warning to the Giants that the Cowboys were not exactly overwhelming on offense, with only 265 total yards.
Of course, they did not need to be to breeze by the overmatched Giants with the greatest of ease.
The much-ballyhooed upgraded weapons for Jones?
Ever try to start a car with a dead battery?
Jones, in his first game after signing a four-year contract worth $160 million, was harassed from start to finish, sacked seven times, with the familiar offensive line problems resurfacing with troubling frequency.
Jones was intercepted twice — one returned for a touchdown on a pass Saquon Barkley did not secure after a big hit — and took a beating.
A promising opening drive for the Giants turned embarrassing and costly after a series of miscues.
The legs of Jones and Barkley got the Giants to the Dallas 8-yard line but that’s when things went awry.
The next three plays: Andrew Thomas was called for a false start. Rookie center John Michael Schmitz sent a shotgun snap on a bounce to Jones, who chased the ball down and fell on it for a 14-yard loss.
Graham Gano’s 45-yard field-goal attempt never materialized when Juanyeh Thomas blocked the kick and Noah Igbinoghene turned the recovery into a 58-yard touchdown return.
Rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey missed the extra point but the damage was done.
It never got any better for the Giants.
Jones had no chance.
He was sacked by Micah Parsons, who ran past right guard Mark Glowinski for a loss of 10 yards.
The first time the Giants’ defense took the field, a complete coverage bust left CeeDee Lamb all alone on the left sideline and Lamb then juked McKinney on a 49-yard pass play.
That led to a field goal for a 9-0 Cowboys lead.
The next offensive series was dismal.
Jones was sacked by DeMarcus Lawrence for a 9-yard loss.
Jones had to throw the ball out of bounds under pressure.
On third-and-19, his dump-off pass to Barkley should have been sent to the dumpster.
Barkley caught the ball, turned and was leveled by Trevon Diggs.
The ball popped into the air and into the hands of DaRon Bland for an interception.
Bland motored 22 yards for a touchdown, which went down as the first pick-six given up by Jones in his career.
It was 16-0 and the juice in the building was getting squeezed away.
“I think we had the right coverage, Diggs made a great play and I got to do a better job of holding the ball,” Barkley said.
Jones tried to do too much and forced a throw while rolling to the right side.
The ball needed to drift out of bounds, but instead Jones tried to find tight end Darren Waller but cornerback Stephon Gilmore stepped in for an interception.
That put the Cowboys on the Giants’ 38-yard line and before long Tony Pollard was in the end zone for a 26-0 cushion early in the second quarter.
The parking lots would soon begin to empty.
“It was one game,” Daboll said. “It wasn’t a good game. Don’t sugarcoat it. It was a bad game and that’s on me.”
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