Oct 23, 2022; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Christian Kirk (13) makes a reception against the New York Giants during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Douglas DeFelice-USA TODAY Sports
NFL: New York Giants at Jacksonville Jaguars
The New York Giants get their first win of a brief road trip as they defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-17 on Sunday.
It was not pretty at all defensively as both squads conceded at least 100 rushing yards and at least 200 passing yards. However, it was Wink Martindale’s group that stood tall defensively as Xavier McKinney and Julian Love stopped Christian Kirk from tying the game as time expired at the goal-line. They played like their lives depended on it in the end, and when it came down to the wire, the play was made to secure another win for head coach Brian Daboll. Only 40 combined points were scored in a game where both teams combined for 890 yards total. Nevertheless, Daboll outwitted Doug Pedersen, and so the New York “Football” Giants became a 6-1 team.
Daniel Jones threw for 202 yards and a touchdown. This is only the second time in 2022 that the Duke product has thrown for 200+ yards. That score came on the opening drive with a 32-yarder to Darius Slayton. That was the Giants first opening-drive touchdown in their last 14 games, which was the NFL’s longest active streak at the time. Slayton finished with 3 catches on 6 targets for 58 yards along with the opening TD. Travis Etienne Jr responded with a 7-yard TD rush on the Jaguars first drive. He also rushed for a two-point conversion after the Giants jumped on the PAT. He exploded for Jacksonville, rushing for 114 yards on only 14 carries. He has slowly become the featured back in Jacksonville with James Robinson failing to record a single rush attempt or catch.
Etienne’s numbers carried the run for the Jags as the team finished with 142 yards on the ground. He could have scored a second touchdown late in the 2nd quarter when he had an open lane to the endzone, but Xavier McKinney had other deals as he stripped the ball from the second-year back with Julian Love recovering the fumble on the Giants’ behalf. They saved themselves from a potential 8-point deficit as the team trailed 11-10 with 3:35 left in the half. With Graham Gano putting the Giants up 13-11 to end the half, Jacksonville needed to respond, and they did with Trevor Lawrence. He got help from his college teammate, Travis Etienne Jr, as he opened the second half with a 49-yard burst. Lawrence would punch it in for the 1-yard score shortly after.
Daniel Jones had to wait until the 4th quarter to respond to Lawrence’s rushing TD. Both defenses made crucial stops on downs in the redzone before Big Blue could strike. They were denied at the JAX 3-yard line in the 3rd quarter, but Jones was not denied from the 1-yard line in the 4th to make it 20-17. He was one of two Giants to rush for 100+ yards, finishing with 107 yards on 11 carries. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this marked the first Giants QB to rush for 100+ yards in a game since 1946 when Frank Filchock accomplished the same feat in 1946.
The other Giant to rush for 100+ yards was Saquon Barkley. He went for 110 yards on 24 carries, making this Barkley’s third game with 100+ rushing yards. He did his damage mostly on the final driv rushing for 45 yards in the games most pivotal drive. He single-handedly got the team in position to win, but when he attempted to go down and keep the clock running, he landed out of bounds, stopping the clock at 1:04 in the 4th. Gano made it 23-17 at that point and Jacksonville had one more chance, but failed to capitalize. Once again, the Giants pull a win out of a very close and dramatic contest.
In the first half, the Giants lost starting OL Evan Neal (knee), OL Ben Bredeson (knee), and Daniel Bellinger (eye). While Neal’s and Bredeson’s injuries were typical wrong-place, wrong-time injuries, Bellinger caught an eye-poke with a minute to go in the first half. He was eventually carted off the field with a bloody and swollen left eye. He returned to the team in time for the celebration, but he was taken to the local hospital and released before the win. The latest on Neal is that he appears to have suffered a Grade 2 MCL Sprain based on initial tests per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. No timetable has been given yet on a return for the first-round pick. They also lost starting CB Adoree’ Jackson for a brief period as he went to the locker room for a concussion check, but he returned to the field as a sigh of relief.
Jki 102322 Hsfb Bs Jaguars Vs Giants 47
