3 Takeaways from Giants' Week 13 Loss
Every time the New York Giants seem to be turning things around this season, they are unable to capitalize on the momentum. In Week 12, they notched their first NFC East win of the year by beating the Philadelphia Eagles. On Sunday, they didn't play nearly as well.
The Giants lost 20-9 to the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, falling to 4-8 during a week when the other three teams in the NFC East were all victorious.
New York's offense couldn't get going with backup quarterback Mike Glennon at the helm. The Giants never got into the end zone, with their nine points coming on a trio of Graham Gano field goals. And they had only 250 total yards and trailed for the entire second half.
Here are three takeaways from New York's Week 13 loss.
With Garrett Gone, Offense Still Can't Get Going
In the two games since Jason Garrett was fired as offensive coordinator, the Giants offense hasn't shown any better results. They have scored only 22 points between the pair of contests, and many of the same problems are preventing them from having success.
New York was short-handed, with starting quarterback Daniel Jones out because of a neck injury. But Glennon has plenty of NFL experience, and the Giants still had many of their top playmakers. However, that didn't lead to a great showing against the Dolphins.
Glennon went 23-of-44 for 187 yards and an interception, while New York ran the ball only 17 times. The Giants punted six times, and Gano missed a field-goal attempt to end their final drive. To compound matters, Glennon's status is in question as he suffered a concussion during the loss.
"Just got to have a next-man-up mentality," running back Saquon Barkley said, per Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press. " ... We have to do a better job offensively."
Barkley struggled again as well, recording 11 carries for 55 yards, 23 of which came on one rush. It's a continuation of a tough season for him and the rest of the Giants offense, which is still struggling to put up better numbers despite Garrett's departure.
A Big Play from the Defense Could Have Sparked Something
New York's defense kept the team in the game for most of the day. Miami was held to 297 yards, and it had only 10 points through three quarters. There were opportunities for the Giants to seize control, but they couldn't do so despite their defense's best efforts.
The Dolphins committed no turnovers, but if the Giants had forced one at a key time, that may have changed the momentum and provided the spark that New York needed.
Still, the Giants defense can't be blamed for the loss, as the unit forced the Dolphins to punt six times and would have needed to play about perfect for New York to have won.
"We really didn't have a breakdown in coverage on either one of the touchdowns," cornerback James Bradberry said, per The Athletic's Dan Duggan. "The play just kind of went longer than expected, and he was able to find the open target."
But New York's defense has some recent positives to building off of, so that could be encouraging for the future.
Still Opportunities for Giants to Finish the Year Strong
The Giants are two games out of a playoff spot with five weeks remaining in the regular season. But it seems unlikely that New York will turn things around enough to get into the postseason.
However, the Giants will have some opportunities to potentially knock off some solid teams and show some improvement from earlier in the year. They still have three NFC East games to play (one each against the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Football Team), and they also have road matchups against the Los Angeles Chargers and Chicago Bears.
Even if they don't go on a surprise run, the Giants have an opportunity to show that 2021 isn't a lost year and that they are developing for the future. In order to do that, though, they will need to correct some of their recent mistakes and play more like they have during their few wins this season.