WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE OFFENSE
Quarterback Russell Wilson made the 200th regular-season start of his career, his first with the Giants. Rookie Jaxson Dart, the 25th overall pick, served as Wilson’s primary backup. Veteran Jameis Wilson was designated as the emergency third quarterback for Sunday.
In his Giants debut, Wilson completed 17 of 27 passes for 168 yards. He was sacked twice and hit eight times. The 14-year veteran showed he still has the legs with 33 yards on five carries, including a 15-yarder in the fourth quarter.
Giants running backs accounted for just 30 yards on 15 carries.
Overall, the Giants converted just four of 16 third downs while averaging 3.7 yards per play.
Left tackle Andrew Thomas was inactive after being the lone Giants player with a game status designation on the final injury report. He was listed as doubtful as he comes back from a 2024 season-ending foot injury. Thomas took team reps for the first time on Friday but said afterwards the biggest concern is the risk of re-injury as he works through managing the pain. He was limited on Wednesday and Friday and had a planned day off Thursday.
Veteran James Hudson III was signed this offseason to be a swing tackle and played in place of Thomas, just as he did throughout the entire offseason and into the preseason. The other four starters on the offensive line remained the same with left guard Jon Runyan, center John Michael Schmitz, right guard Greg Van Roten and right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor.
Wide receiver Malik Nabers appeared on Friday’s injury report with back tightness but was cleared for the game. He hauled in five passes (on 12 targets) for 71 yards.
The Giants’ first scoring drive of the season spanned 16 plays, 76 yards and more than eight minutes – but resulted in only a short field goal. Faced with a fourth-and-goal at the end of the first quarter, Brian Daboll kept the offense on the field after the break. Wilson was unable to find Nabers, but Commanders defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. was called for illegal use of hands. The penalty set up a first-and-goal from one yard out, but they were unsuccessful on three more plays at the goal line.