Giants lose to the Lions 31-18

"The Giants got back on a winning track last week against the Houston Texans, and I was looking forward to seeing that continue today. The game started out poorly with the Giants going 3-and-out, and Daniel Jones taking a sack on their first drive. The Giants defense didn't help themselves on the Lions possession when a roughing the passer call extended their drive, and they came up with a field goal to score first in this game.
The Giants looked much better the next time they had the ball. They were able to overcome a 4th-and-1 and a 3rd-and-7, and finished things off with Jones running the ball 3 yards for a touchdown. The score was in the Giants favor 6-3 when the extra point was missed. Not much happened after that until the middle of the second quarter, when Jones threw an interception. Detroit came on the field at the Giants 18-yard line, and a few plays later scored a touchdown. A muffed catch and a penalty had the Giants starting at their own 6-yard line, and after an encouraging 19 yard catch by Wan'Dale Robinson, the Giants only got close to midfield before punting. It wasn't a good one, and after the defense gave up a few big plays, the Lions added another touchdown. The Giants had less than a minute to work with, and even though Jones connected with Robinson for two big catches, the Lions had a 17-6 lead going into halftime.
When the Lions started off the third quarter scoring a touchdown, everyone knew the Giants had to get something going. So far Saquon Barkley and the running game had gone nowhere, and it was mostly Jones passing and running keeping the offense going. Jones completed a 24 yard pass to Darius Slayton during this next possession, but then threw his second interception of the game, when the Giants went for a 4-5 from the Lions 40 yard line.
The defense held, and not much changed until early in the fourth quarter, when Matt Breida scored a touchdown for the Giants with a 3 yard run. That was all on Jones running and passing, which included a 19 yard completion to Richie James, and once again Graham Gano missed the extra point.
The defense held, and the next time Jones completed a pass, it went for 20 yards on a 3rd-and 15 to wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins. Jones tried him again on the very next play, but after Hodgins caught it, he fumbled it away. Detroit had it at the Giants 33-yard line, and soon after they added another touchdown. The Lions gave up a so what touchdown to the Giants, and then after an onside kick failed, held the ball till the end of the game for their 31-18 win.
This game was worse than the loss to the Seahawks. I hope the Giants can figure things things real fast before they play the Cowboys on Thursday."

"A Giants draft pick came up big today. Unfortunately, it was their 1999 third round NFL Draft draft selection, Dan Campbell, leading his Lions team to a victory over the Giants. This was an all around bad game for the Giants. They couldn't get the running game going against a team that shouldn't have been able to stop it. Jones had to do it all, and he threw the ball more than he had in all the games this season, and for more completions, but there was a downside too. Jones passed for 1 touchdown, but he had 2 interceptions. He was the leading rusher with 50 yards on 7 carries, and 1 rushing touchdown.
Saquon Barkley came up with only 22 yards on 15 carries, and was able to connect with Jones on 2 passes out of 5 for 13 yards. None of those plays from the powerful running back resulted in a first down. It may have been a mistake to have left guard Shane Lemieux, who missed the first nine games, have a key role today. The Giants have been dealing with injuries at that spot. Lemieux has the skills, but real playing time counts as well, especially on the offensive line where communication is a major factor.
Matt Breida made the most of his limited opportunities behind the same offensive line. Breida's 3 runs and one catch, resulted in 2 first downs and a touchdown. The big standout on offense was Wan'Dale Robinson, with 9 catches for 100 yards. We could have seen more, but he left with a knee injury. Darius Slayton had 5 catches for 86 yards, and 4 of them were first downs that kept the chains moving. Richie James caught all 3 passes that came his way, including one for a touchdown.
The defense could have played better. Last week they were all over Texans quarterback Davis Mills, but today they barely laid a glove on Jared Goff. They've struggled with the run defense all season, and today was even worse. They gave up 160 rushing yards on 37 carries, and 4 rushing touchdowns. There were a number of injuries during the game, and the Giants don't have much planning or practice time to work with, having to travel to Dallas for a Thanksgiving Day game. After that they have three straight division games coming their way."

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