San Francisco 49ers vs. New York Giants: Complete Week 11 Preview for New York

The New York Giants clash with a second consecutive NFC West opponent this Sunday, welcoming the San Francisco 49ers to MetLife Stadium one week after they were embarrassed, 38-17, by the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field.

At 5-4, the 49ers are still clinging to their very real playoff hopes. On the other hand, the Giants, at 3-6, are beginning to unravel.

Will either team change course in Week 11?

The Giants and 49ers share one of the NFL's richest conference rivalries. The Giants hold a slight lead (19-18) in the all-time series, which features eight postseason meetings. The classic matchups range from the 1986 NFC Divisional Round slaughter to the 2002 Wild Card Round meltdown, from Matt Bahr's kick in 1990 to the Lawrence Tynes' kick in 2011.

The next installment is set to take place at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Get caught up on the latest news, injury updates, matchups to watch and more.

Week 10 Recap

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First Quarter

10:23—Marshawn Lynch gives the Seattle Seahawks an early, 7-0 lead. It's only the beginning of a career day for Lynch, who is running with his usual explosiveness on a rainy day at CenturyLink Field.

4:32—After Zach Bowman intercepts Seattle's Russell Wilson, Eli Manning fires a strike in the back of the end zone for Preston Parker, who is bouncing back from his poor outing against the Indianapolis Colts the week before.

Giants 7, Seahawks 7

Second Quarter

13:38—Andre Williams gives New York its first lead of the game on a three-yard plunge. The key play of the drive is a 44-yard completion to Odell Beckham Jr., who gets behind Seattle's Richard Sherman.

1:57—Lynch gets in for his second score of the game. Seattle's rushing yardage is beginning to mount.

0:00—Manning leads a perfectly executed two-minute drill, setting up a 41-yard field by Josh Brown in the final seconds of the first half. The Giants take momentum and a lead into the locker room.

Giants 17, Seahawks 14

Third Quarter

4:13—The Giants and Seahawks exchange body blows, as Wilson is intercepted again, only to have New York's ensuing possession end in a turnover on downs. Seattle ties the game at 17 with a field goal, but the game's real turning point is just around the corner.

Giants 17, Seahawks 17

Fourth Quarter

12:47—The Seahawks seize momentum one last time, intercepting Manning at the end of the third quarter and returning it 40 yards the other way. Lynch gets in for his third touchdown of the day, as the downhill running begins.

7:47—Lynch crashes in for his fourth and final touchdown of the day—a 16-yard scamper (also his longest TD run). He goes on to finish the day with 140 yards on 21 carries, for an average of 6.7 yards per touch.

5:19—Wilson puts the exclamation point on an extraordinary rushing outing for a quarterback, sneaking in for a one-yard score to seal the game. The Seahawks signal-caller would beat New York for 107 yards on 14 keepers, for an average of 7.6 yards per pop.

Seahawks 38, Giants 17 (Final)

News and Notes

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Giants Simplifying Things on Defense

This isn't the first time New York's defense has had this issue under Perry Fewell's guidance. It seems the coordinator has the ideal defensive scheme, yet its complications only make it effective when the starting lineup is perfect.

At this time of year, when injuries begin to mount, so do the defensive breakdowns in New York. Fewell is notorious for doing this midseason scramble, simplifying his scheme to better suit his battered platoon. If you need a refresher, here's a story about him simplifying the defense just last season.

Need another? Here's one about his simplifying things en route to a Super Bowl XLVI victory in 2011.

Why must New York's defense always sink to the depths of the league (404.9 yards/game, ranked 32nd) before Fewell makes this simple shift?

Perhaps it's time John Mara, team CEO and co-owner, takes a look at the "broken" defense this offseason, writes Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News.

Odell Beckham Jr. Really Is That Good

After last week's performance against the Seahawks, I'm convinced Beckham is worth every bit of that 12th overall pick. The only concern is his health; most of general manager Jerry Reese's other first-rounders have struggled with injuries.

(See: Aaron Ross, Kenny Phillips, Hakeem Nicks, Jason Pierre-Paul, Prince Amukamara...)

This film breakdown by Nick Powell of NJ.com goes beyond Beckham's eight-catch, 108-yard stat line. The rookie receiver lined up inside and out, dominating regardless of release point. His best play of the day was a 44-yard catch, which featured a beautifully run double-move on Seattle's Richard Sherman.

Let's get it straight: Michael Crabtree is mediocre, but OBJ is "the real deal," according to Richard Sherman, via Jordan Raanan of NJ.com.

Even if the team tanks, Beckham makes for must-see television.

Aldon Smith Makes His Return Against Giants

San Francisco is returning its most dangerous pass-rusher in Aldon Smith, who served a suspension through the first 10 weeks of the season. He will give the 49ers' hurting defense a much-needed lift.

Smith has 42.0 sacks in 43 career games (24 starts), after being selected seventh overall out of Missouri in 2011. His single greatest season so far came in 2012, when he was named All-Pro for his 19.5-sack campaign.

Against the Giants, Smith will start making up for lost time this season.

Quote Of The Week

Safety Antrel Rolle on the remainder of the season, per Paul Schwartz of the New York Post: "To me, right now, if we go to the playoffs, we go. If we don’t, we don’t. It’s a matter of going out there and playing with pride and showing ourselves, more importantly than anybody else, what we’re capable of."

Injury Report

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Here's the Giants' Week 11 injury report, courtesy of NFL.com:

Player	Injury	Practice	Game
RB Peyton Hillis	Concussion	DNP	Out
DT Cullen Jenkins	Calf	DNP	Out
DE Damontre Moore	Shoulder	Limited	Probable
LB Jacquian Williams	Concussion	DNP	Out
DB Nat Berhe	Ankle	Limited	Probable
TE Daniel Fells	Neck	Limited	Probable
RB Rashad Jennings	Knee	Limited	Probable
DE Mathias Kiwanuka	Knee	DNP	Probable

The Giants' injury list swelled a bit this week, but the team is eyeing a couple of key players who are nearing a return.

One is Rashad Jennings. New York's starting running back has been out with a sprained knee since Week 5, and the offense has suffered without him. Tom Coughlin expects to have Jennings available against the 49ers this weekend but is not going to feed him a full load yet, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News.

It wouldn't be all that surprising to see Coughlin completely go against his word here. Remember when Andre Brown was fed that monster workload during his 2013 debut?

New York will need to be creative in order to replace Jacquian Williams at weak-side linebacker. The Giants will rely on a mixture of Mark Herzlich, Spencer Paysinger and Devon Kennard to replace Williams, per Tom Rock of Newsday. Of the three, Paysinger has the most experience on the weak side.

The Giants might be getting Geoff Schwartz back. How New York plans on reshuffling the offensive line when he returns remains unknown, but Schwartz would provide an immediate upgrade at pretty much any of the five starting positions.

Damontre Moore is a new and disappointing addition to the injury list. He is a young player who needs to pick up more snaps. Moore injured his shoulder last season, too.

Matchups to Watch

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Will Beatty vs. Aldon Smith

San Francisco's Aldon Smith makes his return this week, and he'll be out to make a splash. It's up to Giants left tackle Will Beatty to reduce Smith's jackknife to a harmless pencil dive.

Beatty has been all right this season; he's certainly not the weak point of New York's O-line anymore. Still, against Smith, he'll need to be more than just all right; it's time to step it up to being exceptional.

Isn't that what the Giants are paying him to do—play like one of the league's best blind-side protectors?

If Beatty can keep a sack-starved Smith off Eli Manning's back for a full 60 minutes, it will be the 29-year-old tackle's best outing of 2014.

Giants Edge Defenders vs. Colin Kaepernick

San Fran's offense must have been salivating at the sight of last weekend's Giants vs. Seahawks game film. Seattle used the read-option to repeatedly catch Big Blue's defense napping, racking up 350 rushing yards.

Although Marshawn Lynch led the charge with 140 yards and four touchdowns on 21 carries, the Giants were gashed the worst when Russell Wilson kept it and slipped around the edge. Wilson averaged a gain of 7.6 yards every time he carried the ball, registering a long of 26 yards.

The 49ers have a lethal runner of their own at quarterback and are just as capable of hurting the Giants with the option; San Francisco's Colin Kaepernick has nearly 300 rushing yards so far this season. New York's edge defenders, particularly ends Jason Pierre-Paul and Mathias Kiwanuka, must keep better contain this week than they did versus Seattle.

Otherwise, the game will be reduced to a highlight reel of Kaepernick keepers. 

Odell Beckham Jr. vs. Chris Culliver

The secret is out about the Giants' biggest offensive weapon. Odell Beckham Jr. blew up against a formidable Seahawks defense and even earned the respect of cornerback Richard Sherman. Beckham is sure to draw the attention of San Francisco's best cover corner, Chris Culliver.

Beckham's rookie season has been an explosive one with 370 yards and three touchdowns on 25 catches so far. What's amazing is the immediacy of his impact; the rookie sat out all summer with a hamstring injury, and all his production has come in the last five games.

Culliver snagged his first interception of the season this past weekend against the New Orleans Saints, so it's possible he's just beginning to heat up. The 49ers better hope that's the case, as OBJ has consistently caused opposing defenses trouble in his first year as a pro.

I don't see that changing in Week 11, as Beckham takes the San Francisco secondary to school.

X-Factor of the Week: Rashad Jennings

The Giants should return their starting running back this week, although his capacity for carries remains to be determined. Still, having a dynamic football player like Jennings in the backfield will bring additional dimensions to New York's offense.

Look for New York to finally get the ball rolling on the ground with Jennings back in the lineup.

Prediction

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In conclusion, as always, here are Boilard's Bullet-Point Predictions:

• 100. The Giants run defense will bounce back from a horrendous outing against the Seahawks and hold San Francisco's Frank Gore to less than 100 yards rushing.
• 65. Rashad Jennings won't have more than 65 yards rushing in his first game back, but his impact as a receiver and a blocker will transcend whatever numbers are next to his name in the stat book.
• 4. Odell Beckham Jr. will catch his first touchdown pass since the Dallas Cowboys game before the bye. If he does, it'll be his fourth touchdown catch of the season.
• INT. 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick will be picked off by either a defensive lineman or a linebacker when he comes to MetLife Stadium.
• 40. The additional attention on Beckham will allow Rueben Randle to get loose on a deep pass of at least 40 yards. He has not caught a pass longer than 27 yards yet this season.
• 5. Steve Weatherford will place a punt inside the 5-yard line. New York's punter was finally removed from the injury report this week after dealing with a sprained ankle all year.
• Surprise! The Giants will run a fake play of some sort on special teams or a trick play on offense. In one way or another, New York will turn to deception.

Don't forget to include your predictions, including final score, in the comment section below.

My guess: Giants 21, 49ers 17.

Kevin Boilard writes about the New York Giants at Bleacher Report.