New York Giants: What You Need to Know Heading into Week 12

With the Dallas Cowboys on deck, the New York Giants' critics, who attribute Big Blue’s current four-game winning streak to playing backup quarterbacks, believe that things are about to get real once Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys roll into town on Sunday.

Giants’ middle linebacker Jon Beason, however, points out that things have indeed been “real “ for New York during their four-game winning streak.

“People can say we haven’t faced the best quarterbacks, but we don’t get much props for shutting down the top running backs either,” he said.

“To me, it all depends on how you want to spin it. Guys are going to say you haven’t played anybody, but we know how hard it is to win in this league.”

The numbers would support Beason’s argument.

Over their four game winning streak, there were two games that could have just as easily gone the other way, including their road game against the Eagles, which New York won despite not scoring any touchdowns (15-7), and their 24-20 win against Oakland two weeks ago in which the lead changed sides five times.

Difficulty of wins aside, Beason’s point about the Giants being able to win by shutting down some of the league’s best rushers is a point that cannot be denied.

During their four–game winning streak, New York’s run defense has been spectacular. They've held their opponents' top rushers to just 191 yards, an average of 47.7 per game.

That's less yardage than what Giants running back Andre Brown has recorded in each of his two games back from a broken leg. 

Opponent	Top Rusher	No.Carries	Rushing Yards
Minnesota	Adrian Peterson	13	28
at Philadelphia	LeSean McCoy	15	48
Oakland	Rashad Jennings	20	88
Green Bay	Eddie Lacy	14	27

The importance of shutting down the run cannot be overstated, as it’s trickled down to the pass defense, with the result being more sacks, more pressures and fewer passing yards completed by opponents. 

Opponent	Passing Yards
Minnesota	190
at Philadelphia	188
Oakland	122
Green Bay	339

No, the Giants haven’t faced any all-star quarterbacks who are in demand in fantasy football leagues, and no, the Giants’ special teams and offensive units haven’t always been rock steady.

However, there is no question that the defense has been playing its best ball  these last few weeks, which is a big reason the Giants have been able to climb out of the NFC East cellar.

It also needs to be mentioned that the NFL doesn't award extra points for teams that beat perennial Pro Bowl quarterbacks, a point that Beason hopes people remember.

“A ‘W’ is a ‘W,’ and injuries are a big part of this game and the way the championship/playoff teams looks at it is, it’s the next guy up,” he said. “Guys have to step up and be ready to play.”

Still, that doesn't mean that the Giants have been satisfied with their current winning streak. They know that the competition is going to be heating up in these last few weeks of the regular season, and that they are going to have to polish their "A game" if they want to finish with a respectable season record. 

“Obviously we've still got some room to go, and we have a lot of digging to get back out of the hole that we made for ourselves,” quarterback Eli Manning said.

“We've got four in a row and that’s a good feeling and we’re going to keep fighting, keep getting better, and see if we can keep winning.” 

Team	Record
Philadelphia	6-5
Dallas	5-5
New York	4-6
Washington	3-7

Philadelphia 24, Washington 16

The Eagles scored 24 unanswered points through three quarters of play, snapping a 10-game home losing streak with a 24-16 win over Washington.

The Eagles got three rushing touchdowns, one by quarterback Nick Foles and two by running back LeSean McCoy ran for two.

Washington, who did all of its scoring in the fourth quarter, had a chance to potentially tie the game.

However, Brandon Boykin intercepted Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III’s red zone pass with less than a minute to play to snuff out the scoring drive.

Box Score

Week 12

The Giants will close a stretch of three straight home games against Dallas, who is coming off their bye week.

Philadelphia has a bye, and on Monday night, Washington will host San Francisco, who lost to New Orleans, 23-20.

Player	Injury	Most Recent Injury Status
CB Corey Webster	Groin/Ankle	Inactive, Week 11
RB Brandon Jacobs	Hamstring/Knee	Active, Week 11
CB Terrell Thomas	Knee	Active, Week 11
DE Jason Pierre-Paul	Shoulder	Active, Week 11
TE Bear Pascoe	Ankle	Active, Week 11

Injury Analysis

The Giants announced no significant injuries in Week 11, though that doesn't mean that some of the players that were listed on their injury report going into that game are out of the woods just yet.

Jacobs and Thomas will remain on managed practice schedules for the rest of the season.

Pierre-Paul was “sore" according to head coach Tom Coughlin, who spoke to the media on Monday via conference call.

Pierre-Paul will probably continue to receive treatment this week, which could mean a managed practice schedule when the team returns to work on Wednesday.

Pierre-Paul does not appear to be in any danger of missing Sunday’s game against Dallas.

Pascoe’s ankle injury does not appear to be an issue any more, as he played in 19 snaps on offense and eight on special teams snaps, per the official game book snap count summary found at the NFL’s Game Statistics Information System (login required).   

Webster remains a question mark, as he’s been unable to practice for several weeks. With Trumaine McBride having passed him on the depth chart and with Jayron Hosley’s nagging hamstring injury finally under control, there would appear to be no rush to bring Webster back until he’s ready.

What Must Improve

Red-zone Production

Somehow, the Giants have managed to win games despite poor red-zone production that has, for the most part, kept them at or near the bottom of the league (they currently rank 26th, per Team Rankings).

During their four-game winning streak, the Giants have made 12 trips inside the opponent’s 20, and have come away with just three touchdowns (25 percent).

While it’s probably a small consolation that the Giants have scored either a touchdown or a field goal on 91.6 percent of their red zone visits during their four-game winning streak, as the competition level increases, settling for field goals just isn't going to get it done. 

Hakeem Nicks

Maybe he’s not truly healthy, or maybe it’s a result of his decision to miss the team’s OTAs last spring.

Whatever the reason, Hakeem Nicks, the Giants No. 1 receiver, is having one of the worst seasons of his career.

Although he’s second on the team with 42 receptions and 620 receiving yards, Nicks is in the middle of a 12-game streak in which he has not caught a touchdown reception.

Once an explosive receiver who had a fine second gear that enabled him to break away from defenders, this season Nicks, who, during summer training camp had a groin strain, has been unable to separate.

On Sunday, Nicks’ frustrations with his season seemed to reach a boiling point, at least in public, when he was spotted on the Giants sideline involved in an animated discussion with teammate Brandon Jacobs. 

While neither Nicks nor his teammates divulged what happened on the sideline, ESPN reported that the situation was “something unusual.”

Head coach Tom Coughlin agreed that there probably is some frustration on Nicks’ part, but added that the receiver isn’t alone in trying to work through his issues.

“We all share in that and just continue to try to support and encourage him to be the best that he can be and it will happen,” Coughlin said.

“There have been opportunities, but we've just got to continue to try to get better, work together and it will happen.”

Third Down Efficiency

Currently ranked 22nd in third down conversions for the season, the Giants have converted 26 of 66 third-down attempts (39.3 percent) during their four-game winning streak.

Per Game Statistics and Information System (login required), a closer look at the Giants’ third down plays shows that 71 have been long yardage situations (six or more yards).

Of their third-and-long situations, the Giants have converted just 20 (28.1 percent), with 92.9 percent of those attempts being passing plays.

The point illustrated by these numbers is that by not managing to keep third downs manageable, the Giants offense, which many fans have criticized for being too predictable, becomes even more predictable.

This is because with half of the team’s play options (the running plays) removed from the equation, the opposing team’s defensive quality control coach has an easier time anticipating what the Giants might do based on historic trends. 

Patricia Traina is the senior editor for Inside Football. All quotes and information obtained firsthand, unless otherwise noted. Follow Patricia on Twitter @Patricia_Traina.