The New York Giants entered Monday night looking for a spark. Instead, they ran straight into one of the AFC’s hottest teams and another long, frustrating night ended with a 33–15 loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
New England scored the first 30 points of the game, capitalizing on sharp quarterback play from Drake Maye, a 94-yard punt-return touchdown, and a defense that put Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart under pressure from the opening drive. By the time New York found the end zone early in the fourth quarter, the Patriots had already built a cushion too wide to threaten.
The Patriots improved to 10-2, strengthening their hold atop the AFC East. The Giants, meanwhile, fell to 2-11 and 0-7 on the road.
“Today wasn’t our best effort,” said interim head coach Mike Kafka.
The night unraveled quickly. New England opened with a methodical field-goal drive, then immediately broke the game open when Marcus Jones housed a 94-yard punt return to make it 10–0. Maye followed with two first-half touchdown passes — a 3-yard strike to Kayshon Boutte and a perfectly placed 33-yard rainbow to Kyle Williams. Three field goals from Andy Borregales stretched the lead to 30–7 by halftime.
The Giants showed some fight after the break. Devin Singletary powered in a 22-yard touchdown on a trick-play look, and Dart connected with Darius Slayton for the two-point conversion to trim the deficit. But New England’s defense tightened again, and Borregales’ fourth field goal finished the scoring with 2:14 left.
Game stats
Giants
Jaxson Dart: 17 of 24, 139 yards, 1 TD
Devin Singletary: 12 carries, 68 yards, 1 TD
Darius Slayton: 2 catches, 41 yards, 1 TD
Zaire Barnes: 13 tackles, 1 sack
Team:
245 total yards
14 first downs
4 of 10 on third down
25:48 time of possession
Patriots
Drake Maye: 24 of 31, 282 yards, 2 TD
TreVeyon Henderson: 11 carries, 67 yards
Kyle Williams: 4 catches, 73 yards, 1 TD
Harold Landry III: 1 sack
Christian Elliss: 11 tackles
Team:
398 total yards
21 first downs
1 turnover forced
32:18 time of possession
Key Takeaways for the Giants
A slow start that buried them
New England had 17 points before the Giants had a first down. Playing from behind all night erased any balance the Giants hoped to build.
Special teams setback
The 94-yard punt return was a gut punch and immediately flipped momentum permanently in the Patriots’ favor.
Dart efficient, but limited
The rookie protected the ball, hit high-percentage throws, and kept drives alive early — but the offense couldn’t push the ball vertically.
Singletary provides a spark
His 22-yard touchdown run showed burst and creativity in an offense that badly needed a life sign.
Defense wore down
The Giants surrendered long scoring drives, including two touchdown passes over the top and multiple late field goals that kept the Patriots comfortably ahead.
New York Giants injuries
- Gunner Olszewski suffered a concussion on a first half kickoff return.
- Running back Tyrone Tracy suffered a hip injury.
Giants inactive players
Edge Kayvon Thibodeaux | Shoulder
ILB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles | Knee/shoulder
QB Russell Wilson | Emergency 3rd QB
WR Jalin Hyatt
OT James Hudson III
CB Jarrick Bernard-Converse
OLB Victor Dimukeje
What’s next?
The Giants will finally get their bye week, part of the group of teams that will get the latest bye weeks in the NFL this season. General manager Joe Schoen is expected to speak to the media at some point during the bye week. The Giants return to action in Week 15 with a Dec. 14 home game at MetLife Stadium against the Washington Commanders.
