Giants vs. Redskins: 5 Things We Learned from Both Teams After Week 1 Contest

The Giants and Redskins met in this Week 1 contest on the 10 year anniversary of the attacks on 9/11, which was an emotional moment for both cities.

Both teams came out firing and were tied 14-14 at halftime, but the Giants forgot to bring their offense out of the locker room and lost 28-14, making Rex Grossman look like Peyton Manning at times.

This article will feature five things we learned about each team after their Week 1 affair.

The Giants' Offensive Line Needs Work

After a decent first half, the Giants' offensive line took a huge step backwards in the second half. David Diehl had an absolutely terrible game, getting beat often by Barry Cofield and rookie Chris Neild, who had two sacks on the day.

Eli Manning had a bad day, but in the second half it was rare that he received any more than two seconds to make reads down the field. Kevin Gilbride should have recognized this and thrown several screen plays, but I only saw one that I can remember.

It might be time to say goodbye to David Diehl and see how Mitch Petrus can do.

If Rex Grossman Takes Care of the Ball, the Redskins Are Dangerous

The Giants were No. 1 in the NFL in takeaways last season, but only managed one as Rex Grossman rarely made mistakes in the passing game, and when he did, the Giants were not in position to make the play.

If Grossman plays like this, the Redskins are a scary sleeper team.

Jake Ballard Is a Reliable Option at Tight End

Jake Ballard had two catches for 59 yards, and could have done even better had he not been limited in the second half with a hip contusion.

The Giants may have found a diamond in the rough, and it was clear the difference he makes in the running game. While he was out, the Giants' run blocking suffered.

Speaking of Tight Ends, Fred Davis Is a Baller

Perhaps nothing was more frustrating than the amount of times Rex Grossman was able to find Fred Davis over the middle behind zone coverage. He ended the day with five catches for 105 yards and set up the final touchdown with a nice catch and run up the sideline.

Redskins fans don't have much to worry about if Chris Cooley misses games with an injury.

Hakeem Nicks Is a Stud

What upsets me the most about the horrific offensive line play is how much better Hakeem Nicks' day could have been had the Giants given Eli Manning time to find him.

There were a number of plays that Nicks got open, but Eli didn't have any time to let his routes develop.

Despite that, Nicks still had seven catches for 122 yards, proving that even when the Giants' offense is struggling, he is going to be a beast this season.

The Redskins' Offensive Line Could Get Them into Trouble

Despite the Giants missing their top two pass rushers, they were still able to bring the pressure on Grossman for some of the game. They finished with four sacks and seemed like they were getting hits on Grossman all day long.

Against a healthy defensive line, who knows how much worse it could have been. If they don't protect Grossman, there is no way he has many more days like today.

Despite Showing Improvements, Special Teams Is Still Questionable for Giants

The only field goal of the afternoon was blocked, the punt coverage couldn't catch up to Steve Weatherford's punts and the kickoff returns were awful.

Despite not having any huge blunders in special teams, it was still not a good day for the unit and a cause for concern moving forward.

The Redskins' Wide Receivers Are an Underrated Group

OK, so maybe I'm saying this to mask the problems in the secondary for the Giants, but I truly do believe the Redskins' group of wide receivers is underrated.

Santana Moss is and always has been a reliable go-to receiver, Jabar Gaffney has spent his whole career in the shadows and Anthony Armstrong is a young and talented deep threat who made a spectacular catch to set up a touchdown.

Sure, the Giants were missing two of their top three corners, but this is still a good group who is not given enough credit.

Kevin Gilbride Is the Most Inept Offensive Coordinator in the NFL

You don't inherit the nickname Kevin "Killdrive" without being one of the worst offensive coordinators in the game. I swear, I can't figure out how this guy still has a job.

When smart, savvy, creative defensive coordinators have a chance to go against Gilbride, they always seem to out-scheme him.

When Jim Haslett came out of the second half firing blitzes left and right, realizing the Giants had a somewhat inexperienced offensive line, Killdrive should have been able to counter that with short passing plays, draws and screens.

It didn't happen.

He's never been good at in-game adjustments, and I'm sick of it. Someone please let this guy go somewhere else and bring in a coordinator with a brain.

The Redskins' Front 7 Is Among the Best in the NFL

After adding players like Barry Cofield, Ryan Kerrigan and Chris Neild, the Redskins have one of the best front-seven units in the NFL.

They held the Giants to 75 rushing yards on 20 carries and pressured Eli Manning pretty much the entire second half, ending the day with four sacks and plenty more QB hits and hurries.

It may be an overreaction, but they looked very good today.