The New York Giants were easily defeated by the San Francisco 49ers in Week 9. Here are the five plays, or sequences of plays, that led to Jaxson Dart’s first home loss.
Play(s) 1: A wasted Brian Burns’ sack
Brian Burns and the Giants’ pass rush provided the necessary spark against the 49ers two-minute offense at the end of the first half. Burns won around the edge and earned his 11th sack of the season; the ball popped into the air and was secured by Abdul Carter, giving the Giants the football with 33 seconds left in the half at the 49ers’ 27- yard line.
New York was down ten, 17-7, and the 49ers were set to receive the football at the start of the third quarter. New York proceeded to pick up zero yards on offense and Graham Gano sent the 45-yard field goal attempt wide left. If any situation is indicative of the New York Giants’ during the Brian Daboll era, it may be this sequence of plays. The Giants can’t get out of their own way, nor can they play complementary football.
Play(s) 2: Kyle Shanahan’s fourth-and-1 decision
Jaxson Dart led the Giants’ offense down the field for a touchdown on the Giants’ opening drive after Shanahan deferred on the coin flip. Then, at the San Francisco 41-yard line, the 49ers found themselves in a fourth-and-1 situation. Shanahan called a timeout to mull over the decision; after that, Mac Jones quickly got up to the line of scrimmage and snapped the football, but the refs missed a Kyle Juszczyk false start:
A 49ers tush-push with a missed call – typical. Still, it’s not like the Giants’ defense was stopping much in the game. The conversion eventually led to this Christian McCaffrey 5-yard receiving touchdown against man coverage:
Bobby Okereke was picked by the mesh underneath concept where McCaffrey crossed the quarterback’s face; this forced Okereke to sift through inward-breaking traffic, which he could not do. New York commonly runs man coverage in third-and-short situations and that tendency was exploited by Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers.
Play(s) 3: Lifeless in the second half
Down 10 points near the end of the third quarter, and the 49ers start their drive with a 13-yard in-breaker to Kendrick Bourne against Tae Banks. The 49ers would run eight consecutive times, including this 18-yard scamper by Brian Robinson Jr.:
Shanahan toyed with the Giants’ run defense all game. The defense is beat-up and the coordinator offers little adjustment ability or creativity – it’s a disastrous recipe. Unsurprisingly, Robinson ran through Banks.
Play 4: Mac Jones to Jauan Jennings for 11-yard TD
After a quick start by both the Giants and the 49ers offense,Shanahan continued to effectively keep his foot pressed to the pedal:
Mac Jones led an eight-play, 80-yard drive that ended with this third-and-4 beaut of a route against Korie Black; Jennings sold the pivot very well and created ample separation against the Giants’ young cornerback. The 49ers established a lead they would never lose as New York played in catch up mode for the rest of the game.
Play 5: Dart to Olszewski
Giants’ special teams contributor, Gunner Olszewski, secured this deep corner route for a 24-yard touchdown. It was the only pass that was completed that traveled 20+ yards in the game. This completion came a few plays after Darius Slayton failed to secure an accurate deep touchdown pass by Dart:
Not to be deterred, Dart followed up the Slayton drop with a well-placed football to the inside of Olszewski, away from leverage. I include this play to acknowledge the burden of responsibility on Dart, who is playing on an offense down its two main weapons with other players who are struggling to play consistent football. As bleak as it is in New York, at least the Giants have a football player as their rookie signal caller.
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