Takeaways From The Giants’ 32-12 Preseason Win Over The Bears

Typically, NFL teams, in their second preseason game, let their starters run for about a quarter or so.

Such was not the case in the Giants’ second preseason game against the Chicago Bears.

While the Giants only say 11 players—nine of them to injury—the Bears decided to sit all of their starters on both sides of the ball, taking just a little starch out of the anticipation of seeing the Giants first-team offense against the Bears starting defense, even if it was only for a series or two.

Nonetheless, the Giants, who came away with a 32-12 win over the Bears, took some steps forward in Week 2 of the preseason.

On offense, the starting unit scored on the opening drive after going three-and0out last week.

On defense, the pass rush, which was invisible last week against the Jets, finally made an appearance.

Put it all together, and it’s encouraging that the Giants were once again not only able to outscore their opponents but also crack the 30-point threshold, which the team struggled to do a year ago.

Here are a few additional observations and takeaways from the game.

Giants’ Passing Offense Provides a Glimpse of Life After Odell

It’s not uncommon for an offense to target 10+ different receivers in a game, but if we zero in on the starting offense under Eli Manning, we might have very well gotten a glimpse of what this passing offense is going to look like in the post-Odell Beckham Jr era.

On that drive, Manning connected with three different receivers and a tight end, the capper being an 8-yard touchdown pass to receiver Bennie Fowler.

So, Eli, is this spreading the ball around more something Giants fans can expect to see more of moving forward?

“Yeah, I think so,” Manning said. “We have a lot of guys that we have great confidence in that can get open. We’ll spread it around and just throw it to the open guy.”

And keep the defenses guessing.

Diverse Dexter

After allowing a small sample size last week, defensive coordinator James Bettcher let his starting defense play for about seven plays, which meant a chance to get little longer look at rookie defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence.

Lawrence didn’t crack the stat sheet this week, but don’t let that fool you into thinking he had a quiet game.

First, Lawrence lined up at the nose, the 1-tech (plugger) and the 3-tech (penetrator), showing off his versatility.

Lawrence uses his hands well, refusing to let a blocker latch on and neutralize him. He also did an excellent job of getting off blocks.

In his various roles, he also showed that he’s a legitimate space-eater, taking up multiple blockers when asked to plug, and using brute strength to collapse the middle of the pocket, which he did as the 3-tech.

The Giants’ first-round pick plays with a certain swagger that almost makes one think that he’s a seasoned veteran rather than a rookie. 

Danny Dimes

Maybe the moniker “Danny Dimes,” which started trending on Twitter during the game, is cheesy, but it certainly does a good job describing what rookie quarterback Daniel Jones has shown in his two preseason appearances.

Besides his play on the field, detailed here, Jones ended up checking off several other boxes with his showing this week.

The first and perhaps the biggest was that Jones experienced—and survived—adversity after experiencing two turnovers, including one in the red zone.

Whereas two turnovers (both were his fault) and two three-and-out drives might shake a rookie’s confidence—and that of the team around him, Jones kept his cool and his command of the huddle.

“I think I’ve made progress, and I think in certain areas I feel a lot more confident than I did even when camp started, or even a couple of weeks ago,” Jones said after the game.

“I think there’s still so much to learn for me. I think I’m certainly more confident, more comfortable, but I see a lot of things I need to improve on.”

On his fifth and final drive of the game, Jones connected on a 15-yard, perfectly placed touchdown pass to T.J. Jones.

The rookie finished 11-of-14 for 161 yards and the touchdown. He was sacked once.

Jones, by the way, found his new nickname amusing. “That’s all right with me," he said, chuckling when asked if he liked it.

Russell Hustle

With Golden Tate set to serve a four-game suspension, some lucky receiver who might otherwise have found himself on the outside looking in is going to make the 53-man roster.

A guy who is making a case for that roster spot is Alonzo Russell. Russell, who was with the Giants’ practice squad last year, might not have had eye-popping stats, but he delivered some outstanding effort plays that could help his cause.

The first was his catching Bears defensive back Clinton Duck after he picked off quarterback Alex Tanney in the third quarter.

Duck had nothing but daylight in front of him, but Russell turned on the Jets and saved a touchdown, limiting Duck to a 62-yard interception return.

The Bears would go on to score anyway on their ensuing drive, but it was still a good hustle play by Russell, who in the offense did not have a reception despite having one pass sent his way.

In the fourth quarter, Russell came through on special teams when he knocked the ball loose from Bears returner Marvin Hall. Although Hall recovered it, Russell alertly went after him and forced him out of bounds for a negative 4-yard return. 

Running Wild

With both Saquon Barkley (coaches decision) and Wayne Gallman (foot) sidelined this week, Paul Perkins and Rod Smith took center stage in their battle for a roster spot among the Giants running backs.

Perkins, who had a rough outing last week, finished with six carries for 35 yards (5.8 average) and caught both of his pass targets for 30 yards.

Smith finished with 42 yards o ten carries and also caught both of his pass receptions for eight yards. Smith, however, had a fumble that teammate Chad Slade was able to recover.

Perkins looked a lot more at ease running the ball this week whereas Smith tends to run with a stutter-step when he approaches the hole. That little stutter step allows for defenders to converge and stop him.

Perkins, on a first glance, did a decent enough job with blitz pickups this week. He likely still has the edge in this competition, but if he does, it doesn’t appear to be by a wide margin.

Shurmur sounded like he agreed.

“I want to go back and look at the tape, but I think all of the runners who played today, I think, did many good things,” he said.

“I did see the ball on the ground, and there were a lot of protection challenges. There’s not much there in the passing game, but I thought, for the most part, they had an impact on the game.

The Pass Rush Debuts

Yes, it was against the backups, but hey, one has to start somewhere, right?

So with that said, the Giants pass rush introduced itself to the crowd this week, delivering three sacks and five quarterback hits.

“We got a little pressure, which was good,” Shurmur said. “I thought it was better. I want to go back and watch it. We were a little more disruptive today.”

Markus Golden, Olsen Pierre, and Oshane Ximines all came through with the three sacks awhile also contributing three of the five hits. R.J. McIntosh and undrafted defensive lineman Freedom Akinmoladun delivered the others.

What didn’t show up on the stat sheet though were the hurries. The Giants pass rush as a whole managed to push the pocket and make Bears quarterback Chase Daniel, who finished 12 of 18 for 103 yards, a little jittery in the pocket.

That’s probably why Shurmur also told reporters that he wanted to review the tape, so he could get a fuller picture of how the pass rush performed.

If there was one tiny flaw in the Giants pass-rush performance this week, it was the roughing the passer penalty called on Lorenzo Carter. Carter had his hands up as he attempted to knock down a Chase Daniel pass.

Unfortunately, he missed the ball, and he ended up hitting Daniel around the neck area, which is an automatic flag.

This and That

Offensive lineman Nick Gates, who had a rough outing last week against the Jets, bounced back with a solid showing this week.

Gates battled hard out there and delivered some vicious blocks in which he ended up dominating his man, throwing in a couple of pancake blocks for good measure.

Could Chad Slade edge out Chad Wheeler for the Giants’ swing tackle role? Wheeler made his 2019 preseason debut this week after missing last week due to a back ailment, but Slade, who saw work at right tackle, had another nice night, not allowing any pressures or sacks on a first glance.

Receiver Brittan Golden, who split time with T.J. Jones as a punt returner has a certain wiggle that helps deceive would-be tacklers.

There probably won’t be room for Golden on the 53-man roster, but based off his showing this week, we probably haven’t seen the last of Golden int his league.

Meanwhile, T.J. Jones looked a little more herky-jerky as a punt returner, showing some hesitation and no feel for where creases opened.

Both Jones and Golden returned two punts apiece, but Golden finished with 35 yards to Jones’ 11, and Golden had a long of 20 yards.

Rookie inside linebacker Ryan Connelly got the start in place of Alec Ogletree, sidelined with a calf strain. Connelly, who has impressed throughout the spring and summer, didn’t appear on the stat sheet, but he was very active during his snaps.

One of Connelly’s most impressive plays of the night came in the first quarter on a 3rd-and-1 when he shot through the gap and influenced the running back to the outside.

Unfortunately, the edge guys couldn’t finish off the play, and the Bears converted the first down, but it was still a good read and play by Connelly.

Defensive lineman R.J. McIntosh continues to flash into plays. He posted two tackles, both assists, and recorded a quarterback hit toward the end of the second quarter against Chase Daniel. Daniel’s deep pass attempt to receiver Marvin Hall fell incomplete. 

McIntosh spoke about his NFL journey so far and how he played catch-up last year after missing all of the spring and summer and the first part of the season.

Punter Johnny Townsend, acquired off waivers from the Raiders earlier in the week, was the only player to dress who didn't see any game action.

Cornerback Antonio Hamilton (groin) was the only known Giants player to be injured in the game. Hamilton started at left cornerback for rookie DeAndre Baker (knee).