The New York Giants (2-11) lost their franchise record 13th straight road game on Monday night, falling to the New England Patriots (11-2) in Foxborough, 33-15.
The National television audience was treated to a one-sided blowout in which the Giants proved without a doubt that they are one of the worst-run sports franchises in North America. They lost for the 22nd time in their last 25 games and the 25th time in their last 30.
Not only did they lose badly, but they also looked like amateurs in the process. Here is how we graded the units in this latest debacle.
Jaxson Dart was under center, and one has to wonder what conversations took place between the coaching staff and the prized rookie over the past three weeks. Dart continued to put himself in harm’s way and took several wicked shots as a runner in the game. The Giants tried to cry foul, but the truth is, Dart needs to get himself out of bounds and/or slide. If he doesn’t, there’ll be no Jaxson Dart.
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All in all, the Pats held Dart in check (17-24 passing for 139 yards and a touchdown, with 20 yards rushing on four attempts) and the Giants mounted very little on offense as a result.
On the positive side, the offensive line was solid again, and backup running back Devin Singletary had a nice night with 102 total yards from scrimmage and a touchdown. Darius Slayton had a 30-yard touchdown catch and added a two-point conversion.
Grade: C
Defense
The defense allowed 26 points, and it would have been a lot worse if they hadn’t stood tall in the red zone, allowing the Patriots to score a touchdown on just one of their five trips. They sacked New England quarterback Drake Maye three times and hit him a total of five, but could not keep the second-year star from carving them up through the air. Maye hit on 24 of his 31 passing attempts for 282 yards and two touchdowns. Eight different receivers caught passes in this game.
Backup linebacker Zaire Barnes led the team with 13 total stops, including a sack. Safety Dane Belton also had a sack, a pass defensed, and made seven tackles. Rookie linebacker Abdul Carter recorded his first full NFL sack, but his night began late as he was benched for the entire first quarter due to disciplinary reasons.
Grade: C-
Special teams
You can tell how a team’s season is going by the state of their special teams. The Giants had breakdowns all around on Monday night. They allowed Marcus Jones to run back a punt return, while their own return game sputtered. Returner Gunner Olszewski was even knocked out of the game with a concussion. Kicker Younghoe Koo actually pulled a Charlie Brown, failing to kick the ball on a field goal. His toe got stuck in the dirt on the way down, and holder Jamie Gillan was literally left holding the ball and got mauled.
The Giants have had numerous injuries this year, resulting in a roster that is constantly in flux. Coordinator Michael Ghobrial has a mixed bag to choose from each week, and the unit is clearly crumbling. All NFL teams have this issue as the season wears on, but the Giants are really feeling the pinch this year.
Grade: F
Coaching
Mike Kafka is now 0-3 as the interim head coach, and his chances of winning the job are pretty much out the window. He gets credit for disciplining Carter but demerits for failing to reel in Dart. His game plan fell apart on Monday night after a few “just misses,” and it looked as if he was coaching scared as the game went on.
Charlie Bullen’s first game running the defense was not a total failure. They were great in the red zone. It’s the other 80 yards out there they have to work on, now. It will be interesting to see what happens in the team’s final four games when they return from their long-overdue bye, but one can’t imagine this group will be returning in 2026.
Grade: C
