Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Discipline is a product of coaching, so a -5 turnover ratio and six penalties (two on special teams) for 45 yards do not reflect well.
Head coach Brian Daboll was clearly trying to push the ball down the field on offense and they did find some success there. However, some of the play-calls were questionable at best and the runs that were being mixed in didn’t prevent the Texans from defending deep.
The Giants were also nearly penalized for a delay of game, which suggests a communication occurred at that moment. That’s on Daboll as much as Jones.
What did Mike Kafka do offensively? Once again, we have no idea.
On defense, Bowen’s unit was sound against the run but struggled on the backend. The tackling in the secondary was subpar, which falls at the feet of the coaching. This is a persistent area of crisis for the Giants and something they need to get a handle on.
Four QB hits, one tackle for a loss, and no sacks also raises a red flag. If Bowen isn’t going to blitz, he needs to find ways to draw up more pressure.
Kayvon Thibodeaux, Brian Burns, and Lawrence all had a flash play each, but their reps were very limited. The backups need to produce more.
On special teams, Michael Ghobrial kept things simple. The results were better than last week, but he’s got to cut the penalties. One eliminated good field position and another gave the Texans better field position. In a game of inches, that matters.