Of all the things the football world expected on Sunday night, the New York Giants keeping it close enough to win it in the waning seconds was not one of them.
Wink Martindale’s defense shut the Buffalo Bills offense out over the first three quarters, limiting Josh Allen and company to -0.168 expected points added (EPA) per play over that time. The hustle was evident all over the field, and they picked the Bills quarterback off once and forced a fumble from wide receiver Gabe Davis to give their offense a genuine shot.
Unfortunately, Tyrod Taylor and the offense were unable to capitalize, as they managed just three field goals on the night and missed a key opportunity at the goal line at the end of the first half. And that was never going to be enough against Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs, no matter how well the defense was playing.
Allen was clinical in the fourth quarter, going 7-of-8 for 49 yards and the two touchdowns that ultimately decided it. The lone incompletion in that stretch came on third down with 1:36 left, where the Bills quarterback ever-so-slightly underthrew tight end Dawson Knox when a completion would have iced the game. Instead, the ball clanged off Knox’s hands, setting up Tyler Bass for a 53-yard field goal he pushed right to give the Giants one last shot at a surprise victory.
The Giants’ final drive was a good one, though not good enough to steal victory from the Jaws of defeat. Taylor drove his men down to the 1-yard line, only to see the final pass attempt sail through Darren Waller‘s hands and out the back of the end zone.
The Bills ultimately held on to secure a 14-9 victory to advance to 3-2 on the year. The heartbroken Giants drop to 1-4 and have now gone 205 minutes without scoring an offensive touchdown.
Offensive spotlight: Tyrod Taylor wasn’t perfect by any stretch. A check at the goal line cost his team a shot at a field goal to end of the first half, and he shaved 7 of the 9 remaining seconds off the clock with a 6-yard scramble on the penultimate play of the game. However, he finished the game 24-of-36 for 200 yards, and he added 23 yards on the ground.
Taylor produced three big-time throws and racked up 58 yards on passes thrown 20 or more yards downfield. Giants starter Daniel Jones has 89 yards on such passes all year despite dropping back 133 more times.
While it’s only consolation at this point, veteran offensive lineman Justin Pugh deserves a mention in this spot, as he started the game at left guard but was moved to left tackle in the wake of an injury to Joshua Ezeudu. The veteran guard allowed two sacks and one hurry across 40 pass-blocking snaps on first review, which is a marked improvement on some of the tackle play the Giants have seen over recent weeks.
Defensive spotlight: Linebacker Bobby Okereke was a man on a mission on Sunday night, racking up 12 total tackles, three defensive stops, two pass breakups in coverage and a forced fumble early in the game.
Rookie spotlight: Bills linebacker Dorian Williams recorded six solo tackles and four defensive stops, grading well as both a run defender and pass-rsuher on first review.
Box Score
Passing
New York Giants
Player
Fantasy
Comp/Att
Yds
ESPECIALLY
TD
Int
Sacks
Rtg
Tyrod Taylor
10.3
24 / 36
200
5.6
0
0
3
80.8
Buffalo Bills
Player
Fantasy
Comp/Att
Yds
ESPECIALLY
TD
Int
Sacks
Rtg
Josh Allen
14.9
19 / 30
169
5.6
2
1
0
86.7
Rushing
New York Giants
Player
Fantasy
Car
Yds
YPC
TD
Long
Fum Lost
Saquon Barkley
13.9
24
93
3.9
0
34
0
Tyrod Taylor
10.3
5
23
4.6
0
7
0
Matt Breida
1.3
4
13
3.2
0
6
0
Eric Gray
0.2
1
2
2.0
0
2
0
Buffalo Bills
Player
Fantasy
Car
Yds
YPC
TD
Long
Fum Lost
Josh Allen
14.9
2
11
5.5
0
6
0
James Cook
7.1
14
71
5.1
0
14
0
Latavius Murray
4.5
12
45
3.8
0
12
0
Damien Harris
0.1
1
1
1.0
0
1
0
Receiving
New York Giants
Player
Fantasy
Tgt
Rec
Yds
YPT
YPR
TD
Wan’Dale Robinson
14.2
8
8
62
7.8
7.8
0
Saquon Barkley
13.9
5
4
6
1.2
1.5
0
Darius Slayton
10.9
6
4
69
11.5
17.2
0
Darren Waller
9.2
7
5
42
6.0
8.4
0
Jalin Hyatt
5.1
4
3
21
5.2
7.0
0
Matt Breida
1.3
1
0
0
0.0
0.0
0
Buffalo Bills
Player
Fantasy
Tgt
Rec
Yds
YPT
YPR
TD
Stefon Diggs
23.0
16
10
100
6.2
10.0
0
Quintin Morris
8.5
1
1
15
15.0
15.0
1
Deonte Harty
7.3
1
1
3
3.0
3.0
1
Dawson Knox
4.7
6
3
17
2.8
5.7
0
Gabe Davis
4.1
4
3
21
5.2
7.0
0
Khalil Shakir
2.3
1
1
13
13.0
13.0
0
2023-10-16 04:44:08
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