New York Giants Week 5 Report Card: Grading Every Position

Week 5 of the NFL is behind us, and it's time to hand out report cards for the New York Giants.

This report card will cover everything from Eli Manning, to the defensive line and everything in between (besides fullback).

While it's easy to give the Giants an F after losing to the Seattle Seahawks, I'll try and grade every position fairly.

Quarterback

Eli Manning had to opportunity to win the game for the New York Giants, but threw a costly interception  which returned for a 94-yard touchdown by Brandon Browner.

The G-Men were down 29-25 to the Seattle Seahawks before that interception, but that pick-six sealed the deal.

Manning did throw 24-for-39 for 420 yards and three touchdowns, but the three interceptions ruined what could have been a great day for him.

Take out the three interceptions, and Eli had an amazing day.

However, you can't take them out and Manning ultimately lost the game for the G-Men.

Grade: B-

Running Back

The New York Giants ran the ball 25 times, while they passed the ball 24 times.

The G-Men had 69 rushing yards, while they had 420 passing yards.

It's obvious one side of the ball didn't show up, and it reflected on the scoreboard.

Brandon Jacobs was out obviously hurt, but Ahmad Bradshaw had 17 rushes for a measly 58 yards and no touchdowns.

The Seattle Seahawks are currently ranked ninth against the run, so I'll give credit where credit is due to them, but Bradshaw flat out didn't get it done.

Grade: C

Wide Receiver

The New York Giants wide receivers came out to play against the Seattle Seahawks last Sunday.

A total of 420 yards passing is impressive either way you look at it.

Doing it on only 24 receptions is even better.

I don't care for the three interceptions that occurred, but the blame gets shared between both the intended receiver and his respective quarterback.

Victor Cruz caught eight passes for a ridiculous 161 yards and a touchdown, while Hakeem Nicks chimed in for four catches for 65 yards and a touchdown.

It was a nice showing by the receivers, regardless of the loss.

Grade: A-

Tight End

Hello world, meet Jake Ballard.

Ballard caught three passes for 72 yards against the Seattle Seahawks, one of them for a touchdown.

Ballard is obviously the clear No. 1 choice for the New York Giants at tight end, while Travis Beckum is struggling.

Beckum was only targeted once, and he didn't get a single reception.

While Beckum does bring the tight ends' grade down a bit, I got to give it up to Ballard for stepping up last Sunday.

We might even have a reliable red-zone target for Eli Manning in the future if Ballard can keep this up.

Grade: B+

Offensive Line

Eli Manning was sacked three times against the Seattle Seahawks, while Ahmad Bradshaw only had 58 yards rushing.

While both players are held accountable for their shortcomings, the offensive line is to blame as well.

Eli has to work on his communication skills with his offensive line, and Bradshaw needs to fight harder to find the holes in the defense.

With that being said, the O-line needs to play better as well. Eli Manning has been sacked 14 times this season, and the Giants rank 27th in rushing yards.

However, I can be a little forgiving due to David Baas not playing.

We all saw what happened to the New York Jets during the 34-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens when Nick Mangold didn't play. 

Grade: C

Defensive Line

I like the New York Giants defensive line.

I really, really do.

And I loved them against the Seattle Seahawks.

Justin Tuck not playing was a hindrance to the Giants pass-rush, but they still got it done.

Jason Pierre-Paul and Osi Umenyiora combined for 10 tackles, four sacks and one forced fumble.

I didn't really like Chris Canty and Linval Joseph only having six tackles between them, nor the 145 yards rushing the Seahawks managed to pull off, but part of that blame is shared with the linebacker corps.

This grade is a little curved due to Justin Tuck not being on the field, but the G-Men should be feeling good about their defensive line.

Grade: A

Linebacker

I wasn't overly impressed with the New York Giants linebacker corps against the Seattle Seahawks, so let's break it down:

Weak-Side Linebacker: Michael Boley, Jacquian Williams and Spencer Paysinger

The three combined for 16 tackles, with Boley (seven) and Williams (eight) doing most of the heavy lifting.

Middle Linebacker: Greg Jones

While Jones is the Giants' only option at middle linebacker (as a rookie), he's done a good job thus far. Jones has 13 tackles through five games, but he only had one tackle against the Seahawks.

Strong-Side Linebacker: Mathias Kiwanuka and Mark Herzlich

Kiwi was the only linebacker to actually register a sack (one), while Herzlich chipped in with a tackle. Kiwi had four tackles as well.

All in all, this wasn't a great game by the linebacker corps, but it wasn't an awful game either.

Grade: B

Defensive Back

While the New York Giants did produce more passing yards than the Seattle Seahawks, the Giants defensive backs did still give up 315 yards passing.

That's just not acceptable.

We all know the G-Men's secondary is hurting with the loss of starting cornerback Terrell Thomas.

And losing Prince Amukamara on the first day of practice didn't help either, but they still have to get it done.

I'll give the Giants a little leeway for the interception Aaron Ross caught, but they still rank 18th defending against the pass. And any bystander could tell exactly why after watching that game last Sunday.

Grade: C+

Special Teams

The New York Giants special teams were one of their bright spots against the Seattle Seahawks.

Lawrence Tynes hit his only field goal, and Steve Weatherford managed a nearly 50-yard average through seven punts.

Devin Thomas was great on kick returns, bringing back three for 82 yards.

Aaron Ross wasn't as impressive, bringing back two punt returns for a lowly 12 yards.

The Giants special teams' real hole was on defense, giving up 140 yards to Leon Washington between nine combined kick/punt returns.

Grade: B+