Remember when the New York Giants’ offseason was dominated by questions about how good their defense could be? Could it be a top-10 unit? Top five?
It’s hard to believe those questions were being asked just two months ago. With the Giants ranking 27th in points allowed and 29th in yards allowed midway through the season, the question now seems to be, how much worse can it get?
Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen has made a habit of opening his weekly news conference by essentially apologizing for a disappointing performance in the previous game.
“Obviously Sunday, didn’t coach well enough, didn’t play well enough,” Bowen said Thursday of the Giants’ 34-17 loss to the Eagles last Sunday.
The Giants were gashed for 276 yards rushing in Philadelphia. Once again, they have one of the worst rushing defenses. They’re allowing 148.9 yards rushing per game, which ranks 30th. They ranked 27th last season, 29th in 2023 and 27th in 2022.
All of the hype about the Giants’ pass rush overlooked the fact there were no notable reinforcements to address their weak run defense. The defensive tackle spot next to Dexter Lawrence continues to be treated like an afterthought by general manager Joe Schoen.
A two-year, $9 million contract for 32-year-old journeyman Roy Robertson-Harris represented the Giants’ biggest investment at the position this offseason. Schoen selected Darius Alexander in the third round of this year’s draft, which was the first pick in the first four rounds on a defensive tackle in Schoen’s four drafts. Alexander has flashed potential, but he hasn’t been the plug-and-play upgrade the Giants were counting on when they selected the 25-year-old.
The same top three inside linebackers returned. Bobby Okereke’s regression last season now appears to simply be a 29-year-old losing a step. Micah McFadden was lost to a major foot injury in the opener, which forced 2024 sixth-round pick Darius Muasau into a starting role. The internal excitement over Muasau hasn’t been validated by his play, as he has emerged as a weak link in his expanded role.
The biggest disappointment has been a revamped secondary featuring young draft picks and high-priced free agents. The Giants spent nearly $100 million combined on cornerback Paulson Adebo and safety Jevon Holland in free agency. The vets have been fine, but they haven’t been difference-makers.
Cor’Dale Flott has been a pleasant surprise by emerging with his best play in his fourth season, although he had to rotate with Deonte Banks for the first five weeks as team brass stubbornly tried to wedge the 2023 first-round pick onto the field. Banks performed so poorly that he was finally benched in Week 6.
Cor’dale Flott celebrates with teammates after intercepting a pass. (Elsa/Getty Images)
Slot cornerback Dru Phillips, a 2024 third-round pick, remains a physical presence against the run, but he has been a liability in coverage. Safety Tyler Nubin, a 2024 second-round pick, still looks like nothing like the ballhawk he was billed as coming out of college and his poor angles and missed tackles have sprung many of the long runs the defense has surrendered.
The three edge rushers that generated most of the hype — Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Abdul Carter — have played well, but the Giants’ 19 sacks only rank 13th. Burns is tied for the league lead with 10 sacks, while Thibodeaux is a distant second on the team with 2.5 sacks. Carter has been a disruptive pass rusher, but the rookie only has a half sack in his first eight games. Sacks can be a misleading stat, but the Giants’ 20th ranking in pressure rate paints the picture of a pass rush that isn’t dominating as expected.
Meanwhile, the Giants haven’t gotten the same level of production from nose tackle Dexter Lawrence, who launched himself into the discussion as the best interior defensive lineman in the league over the past few seasons. Lawrence instead has found himself at the center of a different conversation this week, with franchise legend Carl Banks declaring that opponents no longer respect the three-time Pro Bowler. Lawrence, who continues to be double-teamed more than any player in the league, fired back that Banks is “delusional.”
Now the Giants face a 49ers offense that is surprisingly pedestrian, ranking 25th in the league in scoring. The Giants’ defense has shown glimpses of being a top unit. They appeared to be turning a corner for a seven-quarter stretch in Weeks 6-7 when they held the Eagles and Broncos to a combined 17 points. But they abruptly fell off a cliff, allowing an incomprehensible 71 points over the past five quarters, covering their 33-32 fourth-quarter collapse in Denver and a 38-20 blowout loss in Philadelphia last week.
The biggest concern as the Giants prepare for a stretch against some of the league’s best offenses — Green Bay, Detroit, New England — is that Bowen hasn’t shown any signs of being able to fix a defense that entered the season with such promise.
Backed into a corner
Compounding matters for the defense are the rash of injuries at cornerback. Adebo, the No. 1 corner, has a sprained MCL, according to a league source. Adebo missed the Eagles game and hasn’t practiced this week, so he’ll likely be sidelined for a second straight game.
Flott left the Eagles game in the second quarter with a concussion after accidentally getting hit in the head by Okereke. Flott hasn’t participated in practice this week, so it’s unlikely he’ll be cleared by Sunday.
Depth corner Art Green, who is a core special teamer, left the Eagles game with a hamstring injury and hasn’t practiced this week. That leaves the Giants extremely shorthanded at corner, with Banks pressed back into a starting role.
Korie Black, who was signed off the Jets’ practice squad last week, is in line to be the other starting corner on the perimeter. A seventh-round pick by the Giants this year, Black left to sign with the Jets’ practice squad after the Giants juggled their roster after cut day.
The backup corners should be Jarrick Bernard-Converse, who was claimed off waivers from the Browns on Tuesday, and Rico Payton, who has been on injured reserve since being claimed off waivers from the Saints after cut day.
It might seem like the Giants are catching a break against a 49ers offense that is missing top wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk (knee) and Ricky Pearsall (knee), but San Francisco is ranked second in passing offense. That’s particularly impressive considering starting quarterback Brock Purdy has been limited to two games by a toe injury.
Purdy has been a limited participant in practice this week. Mac Jones is a step down from Purdy, but has filled in capably in six starts.
Christian McCaffrey is eighth in the NFL with 559 receiving yards, a ridiculous distinction for a running back. All-Pro tight end George Kittle is back in the lineup after missing five games with a hamstring injury. Wide receiver Kendrick Bourne, who signed a one-year, $1.8 million contract in Week 2, has 28 catches for 429 yards.
The presence of McCaffrey and Kittle is considerably troubling for a Giants defense that is weak up the middle against the run and in coverage. Holland is trending toward a return after missing the Eagles game with a knee injury, so that should give a boost to the spine of the defense.
San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan is a master at exploiting weaknesses, so he figures to zero in on Muasau and Nubin. The 49ers surprisingly rank last in yards per carry (McCaffrey is at a career low 3.5 yards per carry), but they should be able to attack the weak perimeter of the Giants’ run defense.
Challenges grow for Dart
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart was named the NFL’s offensive rookie of the month for October. It will be a challenge to repeat that feat as Dart’s supporting cast continues to be thinned by injury. Running back Cam Skattebo (dislocated ankle) joined No. 1 wide receiver Malik Nabers (torn ACL) on injured reserve this week.
Aside from the energy Skattebo provides, the biggest loss will be his red zone prowess. Skattebo has seven red zone touchdowns this season, which ranks fourth among running backs. He had 89.7 percent of the Giants’ running back red-zone touches, which is the second highest share in the league.
In the four weeks with Dart as the starter and Skattebo as the full-time No. 1 back, the Giants’ red-zone touchdown rate was 64.3 percent, which ranked 13th in the league. Their red-zone TD rate is 42.9 percent in the other four games.
Tyrone Tracy isn’t nearly the same physical presence, but the second-year vet gets a golden opportunity to reestablish his status as a No. 1 back after being supplanted by Skattebo. Tracy is averaging 3.5 yards per carry this season after averaging 4.4 yards per carry as a rookie. Tracy is a more dynamic runner, so the Giants will need to find ways to get him in space.
Dart has excelled at making what coach Brian Daboll calls “loose plays,” which is when the quarterback improvises to make a play. That’s a trait that will be valuable throughout Dart’s career. But the next step in his development will be making more plays within the structure of the offense, especially as opponents focus on limiting Dart’s scrambling opportunities.
Dart had 13 scrambles for 109 yards in his first three starts. The Giants’ past two opponents, including the Eagles in a rematch, have limited Dart to two scrambles for nine yards.
Dart can make plays with his legs, but he’s not a Lamar Jackson type runner. The Giants can’t just design runs for Dart and expect him to make big plays. Those will mostly come on scrambles.
Certified 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/zpSNZGsFAZ
— New York Giants (@Giants) October 30, 2025
Dart acknowledged that he expects defenses to continue to limit his scrambling opportunities. The 49ers don’t have a formidable pass rush with star edge rusher Nick Bosa out for the season with a torn ACL and their second best edge rusher Bryce Huff sidelined by a hamstring injury.
If teams aren’t going to be as aggressive rushing Dart — Daboll indicated that he expects the 49ers to pin their ears back — his counter will be picking apart the defense from the pocket. That’s where the depleted supporting cast presents a challenge, as Dart doesn’t have a receiver like Nabers he can count on to consistently get open and make plays.
Dart has been extremely impressive on third down. The Giants have converted 47.1 percent of their third downs since Dart took over as the starter, which ranks sixth in the NFL. The Giants have converted 38.9 percent of their third-and-longs (third-and-7 or longer), which is the second highest mark in the league. For perspective, the Giants converted 27.5 percent of their third downs, which ranked 31st, in Russell Wilson’s three starts.
The Giants have averaged the fifth most third-and-long attempts with Dart as the starter. Counting on converting those is a tough way to live, although that’s where Dart’s improvisational skills most often show up.
Hyatt heading out?
Wide receiver Jalin Hyatt was a healthy scratch for the first time in his three-year career last Sunday. It was a particularly humbling demotion considering the state of the Giants’ wide receiver corps.
Nabers’ injury represented an opportunity, but Hyatt managed just three catches for 17 yards while seeing an uptick in playing time from Weeks 4-7. So Hyatt was made inactive in Week 8 behind Lil’Jordan Humphrey, who was elevated from the practice squad for a third straight game, and undrafted rookie Beaux Collins.
Hyatt has been rumored to be a trade candidate, although it’s hard to imagine there being much interest in a receiver with 11 catches for 79 yards in 21 games since the start of last season. But the healthy scratch could be a signal that Schoen is prepared to cut his losses and take whatever he can get for the 2023 third-round pick. Hyatt could be active on Sunday just based on the number of players who will be inactive due to injury.
Meanwhile, another practice squad veteran, Ray-Ray McCloud, is expected to get elevated this week. The Giants signed McCloud to the practice squad two days after his sudden release by the Falcons last week.
McCloud spent his rookie year with Daboll in Buffalo and he’s coming off a breakout season in Atlanta with 62 catches for 686 yards. The Giants are McCloud’s sixth team in his eight-year career, so expectations should be tempered. But the Giants are desperate for an offensive spark so they could turn to McCloud after Humphrey failed to record a catch in the past two games.
Prediction
49ers 24, Giants 16. I got burned by picking the Giants last week. It’s going to be a while until I pull the trigger on that type of bold prediction again. The 49ers aren’t a juggernaut and they’re dealing with injuries to star players, but they’re the better team. The Giants have lost two straight and a slide could be imminent.