Like the Washington Commanders in Week 1, the Kansas City Chiefs were sloppy. But teams can afford to be sloppy against the New York Giants. The Chiefs had several penalties that extended Giants’ drives or gave the Giants an excellent opportunity to capitalize. But, as we’ve witnessed for far too long, the Giants rarely do successfully seize upon the mistakes made by the opponent.
The Giants finished 2 of 14 on their third and fourth down conversions. Cam Skattebo was their leading rusher and receiver; they had just 281 yards of total offense in their home opener. The offense appeared hapless and unprepared. A complete difference from what we witnessed last week against a poorly orchestrated defense.
This game was tough to watch. Here are the five plays, or sequence of plays, that led to the Giants’ downfall.
Play 1: Mahomes with the strip
The Giants’ defense kept the game competitive and nearly came away with the play of the season. However, Patrick Mahomes had different plans:
Patrick Mahomes wisely tracked down Bobby Okereke and stripped the football away from the veteran linebacker, which prevented a scoop & score, and halted the potential seismic change in its nascent phase. The game was just six to six at this point. The Chiefs did have to punt two plays later, but the Giants’ offense did little with the football.
Play 2: Malik’s gotta be somewhere
Wilson’s second interception – in a tied game with 56 seconds left in the first half – was devastating for a Giants’ team that was bailed out by several Kansas City mistakes. Less than a minute after Mahomes stole the football from Okereke, Chiefs’ gunner, Joshua Williams, took a Kick Catch Interference penalty that gave the Giants excellent field position.
Then, on second-and-10, Nohl Williams was called for a face mask – tack on another 15 yards for New York, giving Russell Wilson this opportunity from the Kansas City 23-yard-line:
Inexcusable mistake by Wilson, who was late on the throw. The ball was underthrown and it was an easy interception for Jaylen Watson.
I would be a fool to assume the Giants would have scored on this possession, due to their dismal efficiency in the red zone and their overall offensive ineptitude; and because the Giants’ 38-year-old kicker hurt his groin in the pregame. Nevertheless, the play removed POSSIBLE points for the Giants and put Patrick Mahomes in the situation below.
Play 3: Bad sequence for Dru Phillips
The Giants defense forced an incompletion on third-and-ten with 27 seconds left in the first half. Phillips, however, was called for an illegal contact penalty that extended the drive. This happened on the next play:
It’s nearly impossible to cover for 10 seconds, but Phillips dragged Tyquan Thornton down. As tough as it may be to do, the consequence was substantial for the Giants. Thornton would conclude the Chiefs’ opening second-half drive with a touchdown as well, against Phillips.
Play(s) 4: Tyquon Thornton’s big game
Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs found a groove after their half-time adjustments. Mahomes led the Chiefs on an 11-play, 74 yard drive that was finished with this touchdown to Tyquon Thornton:
Thornton’s impact was felt in the fourth quarter as well; on second-and-ten, Mahomes connected on a 34 yard strike to Thornton over Cor’Dale Flott. The play was initially ruled a touchdown, but it was reversed. However, this happened on the next play:
Down to the 1-yard line to set up Kareem Hunt’s touchdown. It was Dru Phillips in coverage.
Play 5: Russell Wilson’s first pick
The Giants’ offense was conservative for the first few drives, understanding the threat of the Chiefs’ defense and their desire to stop Wilson’s penchant to throw the football deep. Wilson got antsy, though:
The Giants were down 6-0 at this point in the game, their third offensive drive. They moved the football 41 yards (in ten plays) on their opening drive. On third-and-seven, Wilson tried to find Wan’Dale Robinson deep, but the defensive back Christian Roland-Wallace, was overtop Robinson and did an excellent job to take the football away.
Kansas City started its ensuing drive at the Giants’ 47 yard line and Harrison Butker missed the 40 yard field goal. Another missed opportunity for the Chiefs; at least the Giants found a way to score on their next drive, but it’s often not enough with this team.
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