The Giants received the kickoff at residence on Sunday night time and superior to the Dallas Cowboys’ 8-yard line in 9 performs. What a begin to the season!
What a begin certainly. Graham Gano’s discipline aim attempt was blocked and returned for a landing by the Cowboys’ Noah Igbinoghene. The reversal appeared someway to bless Dallas and curse the Giants. After 60 minutes, the Giants had scored 0 factors, and the visiting Cowboys had scored 40.
“We received beat all the best way round, from teaching to taking part in,” Giants Coach Brian Daboll mentioned. “Don’t sugarcoat it, it was a nasty recreation,” he added, displaying a eager potential to learn a scoreboard.
Daniel Jones handed for less than 104 yards for the Giants, had two interceptions and two fumbles (each had been recovered) and was sacked seven occasions. Saquon Barkley may do little to assist: He managed solely 51 yards on 12 carries.
Dallas took a 26-0 halftime lead with out even placing collectively an extended landing drive, as a substitute scoring on the blocked discipline aim return, a discipline aim, an interception return, one other discipline aim and a 38-yard drive following one other decide. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott had solely 143 yards passing. He didn’t want any extra and will have received the sport with far much less.
It was the fifth lowest passing whole for a group successful by 40 or extra factors. (In 2005, the Seattle Seahawks protection overwhelmed the Philadelphia Eagles by 42-0, whereas Matt Hasselbeck handed for 98 yards for the winners.)
Coming off a 9-7-1 playoff season, the Giants weren’t essentially anticipated to win the N.F.C. East. However in addition they weren’t anticipated to be flat-out unhealthy. They usually had been on Sunday night time.
“This wasn’t our greatest recreation, there’s little question about it,” Jones mentioned. On the plus aspect, it additionally was not their worst.
As terrible because it appeared, the sport was not the largest shutout loss for the Giants. That was a 45-0 shellacking in 1948 towards the Eagles. “The New York Soccer Giants had little going for them as we speak,” The Instances sports activities part helpfully identified the following morning.
However amongst video games in Week 1, when hopes are usually excessive even for probably the most pessimistic fan bases, it was the worst for the Giants and fifth worst total.
If there’s a signal of hope for the Giants, and their followers may want an electron microscope to identify one as we speak, it may be present in historical past. Two of the 4 groups with worse opening week shutout losses ended up having good seasons.
Unhealthy can nonetheless portend unhealthy, in fact: The 1954 Baltimore Colts, who misplaced to the Los Angeles Rams of their first recreation by 48-0, ended up 3-9, and the 1999 Cleveland Browns, who misplaced by 43-0 to the Pittsburgh Steelers, completed 2-14.
However the 1989 Steelers rebounded from a 51-0 loss to the Browns to complete 9-7, and in 1991 Detroit misplaced by 45-0 to Washington however completed 12-4. Each these groups received a playoff recreation as nicely. (The Lions haven’t received one since.)
As unhealthy as Sunday was, it was removed from the worst shutout loss in N.F.L. common season historical past. That got here in 1934 when a group known as the Cincinnati Reds misplaced to the Eagles, 64-0.
The Reds had been kicked out of the league after that recreation and by no means performed once more. Say what you need in regards to the Giants’ effort on Sunday night time, however they are going to line up in Arizona to face the Cardinals subsequent Sunday.
Proper?