New York Giants vs. Seattle Seahawks: Complete Week 10 Preview for New York
The New York Giants have one more chance to get back on the right track before officially sending the 2014 season into a downward spiral. The only thing that can pull this decimated team out of its three-game funk is to pick up a momentous win against the defending Super Bowl champions on the road.
The Giants (3-5) will have the chance to do that on Sunday, starting at 4:25 p.m. EST, when they're set to kick off with the Seattle Seahawks in Week 10.
Last season the Seahawks embarrassed the Giants, shutting out Big Blue, 23-0, in Week 15. Seattle is not so high and mighty this time around; the defending champions are just a couple of games over .500 with a 5-3 record.
If the Giants can pull off the improbable, it will be their 10th win in this series. It will also be the Giants' first win over the Seahawks since 2010, when they crushed Seattle 44-7 in the stadium then-known as Quest Field. New York holds a 9-7 advantage in the all-time series.
Read on for the latest news, injury updates, players to watch and more.
Week 9 Recap
1 of 5
The Positives
The offensive star was Odell Beckham Jr., who, in his fourth game, caught eight passes for 156 yards—both season/career-high marks for the rookie. His eight receptions tied the Giants' season-high mark that was originally set by Rueben Randle against the Washington Redskins in Week 4. His yardage mark obliterated the Giants' previous season-high mark of 108 yards, which was set by Victor Cruz also against the 'Skins in Week 4.
Eli Manning was all right, finishing the day with a healthy-looking stat line of 27-of-52, 359 yards and two touchdowns. Although he avoided throwing an interception for the fourth straight game, Manning fumbled twice (one lost) and absorbed three sacks.
On defense, coordinator Perry Fewell called a fearless game. The Giants blitzed effectively in the first half, keeping Colts quarterback Andrew Luck out of rhythm. Defensive end Robert Ayers was the most effective pass-rusher on the evening, racking up seven QB hits to go along with a sack.
The Negatives
The offense did not execute well, particularly the pass-catchers, who would be more aptly named pass-droppers. No. 3 receiver Preston Parker was the biggest offender, catching only one of his six targets against the Colts. Randle wasn't much better with only four catches (49 yards) on 11 targets. Manning couldn't even rely on his tight end, Larry Donnell, who only caught half of the eight balls thrown his way.
Defensively, someone needed to throw Jacquian Williams a bone because Luck walked him like a dog all over MetLife stadium. Although the Giants' best coverage linebacker looks like he lit up the stat book with 18 tackles, almost all of those plays were made after the damage had already been done. Of all the times Luck targeted him in coverage, Williams mustered only one pass defense.
Andre Williams generated no ground game, finishing the day with only 22 yards on 12 carries. You could say Williams' one-yard touchdown run was New York's finest rush, but Manning owned the night's longest with an 18-yard scramble late in the game.
The Intriguing
Corey Washington made his way into the contest in the fourth quarter. The undrafted rookie wide receiver picked up right where he left off in the preseason, catching four passes for 48 yards—all on a single drive. He even capped off the drive with a one-yard touchdown grab.
News and Notes
2 of 5
Tom Coughlin Takes Blame for Sock Debacle
If you missed it on Monday night, the Giants gave up a second-quarter touchdown pass when Andrew Luck rushed the Colts to the line after a questionable-looking catch, snapped the ball before the defense was set and found his tight end, Coby Fleener, with no one around him.
Replay showed Tom Coughlin frantically digging for his red challenge flag in his sock (his usual hiding spot), only to find it and fling it onto the field fractions of a second too late. He later took the blame, according to Justin Tasch of the New York Daily News.
Let me say I've long been a Coughlin defender. However, if we really are witnessing the final unraveling of his tenure as head coach of the New York Giants, I think I'll always remember the sock debacle as the moment I realized he'd lost effectiveness as Big Blue's commander of the sideline.
Antrel Rolle Has His Yearly Outburst
The Giants named Antrel Rolle one of their team captains before the 2013 season for a reason: The safety is an emotional leader whose voice echoes beyond the defensive backfield. Always a favorite with the media, Rolle is usually good for a colorful quote. Every now and then, however, he has a headline-grabbing outburst.
It can be a good thing or a bad thing. When Rolle lashed out on the radio in the weeks following the meltdown at the end of the 2010 season, it was definitely not good. A year later, though, when he called out teammates for missing practice, it spurred an electric, six-game run en route to a Super Bowl XLVI victory.
This week, Rolle took a familiar approach, accusing his team of playing without passion, according to Justin Tasch of the New York Daily News. We'll see if Rolle's cutting words in 2014 are more divisive or unifying in the weeks ahead.
Rueben Randle: WRs Are Trying To Do Too Much
The Giants are searching for explanations when the reason for some of their offensive struggles is in plain sight. One such struggle—the battle to catch the ball—could be easily fixed with a simple lesson my dad taught me in the backyard as a boy: Keep your eye on the ball.
Randle thinks the pass-catchers are "just trying to do too much," according to Jordan Raanan of NJ.com.
I get what he's trying to say, but those are the last words Giants fans want to hear out of the mouth of a receiver who never does enough. Randle hasn't broken 100 yards in a single game yet this season, even though he's been the healthiest member of the receiving corps. Watching the former second-rounder flounder in his matchup with Indy's Vontae Davis showed that Randle isn't the receiver that New York advertised him to be.
Quote of the Week
Linebacker Jameel McClain on "the general" Antrel Rolle's comments about a lack of passion, according to Bill Pennington of The New York Times: "Whatever the general says, at the end of the day, I am a part of this battle with him."
Injury Report
3 of 5
Here's the Giants' injury report for Week 10, courtesy of NFL.com:
| Player | Injury | Practice | Game |
| RB Rashad Jennings | Knee | DNP | -- |
| DE Mathias Kiwanuka | Knee | DNP | -- |
| G Weston Richburg | Ankle | DNP | -- |
| P Steve Weatherford | Ankle | DNP | -- |
| WR Preston Parker | Ankle | Full | -- |
| DT Cullen Jenkins | Calf | Limited | -- |
| CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie | Back | Limited | -- |
| CB Zackary Bowman | Illness | DNP | -- |
| G Adam Snyder | -- | DNP | -- |
*CB Prince Amukamara (bicep) was added to injured reserve.
The Giants took a few more hits this week, as they weathered more additions to the injury report. The most devastating injury was Prince Amukamara's torn bicep, which required season-ending surgery. Amukamara had been great in coverage all season; to replace him on the roster, the Giants signed former Baltimore Ravens cornerback Chykie Brown.
Rashad Jennings hasn't made the necessary progress on his knee, and his backup, Andre Williams, has made little progress on the field. The running game doesn't look any better with Weston Richburg now dinged up. New York should be activating Geoff Schwartz from the short-term injured reserve soon.
Some lingering injuries from before the bye—like Steve Weatherford's ankle, Cullen Jenkins' calf and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie's back—have hampered New York for weeks, and they don't seem to be clearing up any time soon. New injuries, such as Mathias Kiwanuka's knee and Preston Parker's ankle, must be monitored closely, considering the team's dwindling depth.
Zack Bowman complicated the cornerback conundrum even further when he was sent to the hospital with abdominal pain this week, according to Nick Powell of NJ.com. This positional unit cannot afford to lose another newly crowned starter.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Matchups to Watch and X-Factor
4 of 5
Odell Beckham Jr. vs. Richard Sherman
The Giants told Odell Beckham Jr. he wasn't a rookie any longer, and the 22-year-old has shouldered the additional responsibility with grace. After racking up 156 yards in his fourth career start, OBJ is moving forward with confidence.
Beckham has no fear of Seattle's Richard Sherman. In fact, the rookie is "eager" to face the league's best cornerback, according to Kieren Darcy of ESPN New York. Sherman snagged two of Eli Manning's five intercepted passes in a 23-0 shutout loss to the Seahawks less than 11 months ago.
Leading to Manning's awful outing that day was a lack of effort out of his pass-catchers. He threw balls up for his playmakers to go and get them, but Seattle's defensive backs consistently outmaneuvered New York's receivers. On a couple of the jump balls, the Giants' receivers experienced the NFL's version of getting posterized.
The Giants need a receiver to go up and make a play on some 50-50 balls. If Beckham can accomplish that against Sherman, Big Blue's shot to beat the Seahawks would skyrocket.
Jameel McClain vs. Marshawn Lynch
New York is getting used to life after Jon Beason. His replacement, Jameel McClain, has made himself at home at middle linebacker in the defense. Playing well on a new team in a natural leadership role, McClain has already taken on quality running backs—Philadelphia's LeSean McCoy, Dallas' DeMarco Murray, Washington's Alfred Morris—since becoming New York's most reliable force in the middle.
McClain must raise his game to the next level against the Seahawks. Seattle's offensive backfield features the NFL's toughest runner in Marshawn Lynch. The chugging back's 4.2 yards-per-carry average ranks among the league's top 10 rushers (at least 100 carries). Subjecting one linebacker to an afternoon of tackling Lynch is both cruel and unusual punishment.
But that's exactly what the Giants need McClain to do. New York sold out to defend the pass against the Colts last week, shoving Jacquian Williams and the pass-rushers into the spotlight. The Seahawks game will be different, as the Giants will surely feature McClain and their run-stuffers more against Seattle.
Robert Ayers vs. Russell Wilson
The Giants caught a glimpse of a hidden gem in Robert Ayers against the Colts. Coming off the bench, he stood out as New York's most relentless pass-rusher. Ayers was the only one to bring down Andrew Luck, and he made the Indy passer uncomfortable the entire night—even after the Colts had a comfortable lead.
As successful as Ayers' outing was, it felt like he left a lot out on the field. He laid seven hits on Luck, which fazed the quarterback but didn't end the play or result in a loss of yards. A lot of times, Luck slipped away and salvaged some yardage. If Ayers gets the chance to rush Russell Wilson this weekend, you can bet he'll run into a similar problem.
With starter Mathias Kiwanuka hurting and Ayers on the rise, it makes sense to increase the former Denver Bronco's snap count against the Seahawks. Ayers could inject some life into New York's lame pass-rush, especially if he's able to lasso the elusive Wilson.
X-Factor of the Week: Antrel Rolle
The team doesn't always respond well to Rolle's emotional explosions, but he usually backs them up with big-time play of his own. If the Giants win this game, it will be because they kept Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson in check and in the pocket. Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell should deploy Rolle as a spy, just in case the slippery Wilson escapes on a scramble.
Prediction
5 of 5
And now, the moment you've all been waiting for:
- Four. Eli Manning's four-game stretch without an interception will come to an end against the Seahawks. He has thrown eight in his last two outings versus Seattle combined.
- Eight. Larry Donnell will lead the team with at least eight receptions. Completions will be hard to come by deep and on the outsides, so Donnell will need to exploit the few soft spots underneath.
- Six. Steve Weatherford will punt at least six times against the Seahawks. He has averaged 7.67 punts per game during the Giants' current three-game losing streak.
- Miss. Josh Brown will miss his first field-goal attempt of the season. Call it a hunch; maybe it's just a Jay Feely-inspired nightmare I haven't been able to shake since 2005.
- OBJ TD. Odell Beckham Jr. will catch a touchdown pass against Richard Sherman. I'm picturing a five-yard score, as OBJ fools Sherman into biting on the fade and then secures the catch near the goal line.
- Stevie's Return. Stevie Brown's snap count will increase in a banged-up secondary, and he will intercept his first pass since the 2012 season. He will return it at least 40 yards.
- Hillis in for Williams. The Giants will let Andre Williams test the Seahawks front to start, but they are growing less hesitant to replace him with Peyton Hillis. New York's patience with its rookie running back will run thin in Week 10.
Don't forget to leave your predictions, including the final score, in the comment section below.
My prediction: Seahawks 21, Giants 10
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
