Giants stun Titans after Brian Daboll's bold two-point decision - harchi90

Giants stun Titans after Brian Daboll’s bold two-point decision

NASHville, Tenn. — Now we know much more about Brian Daboll and his team than we did before Sunday’s stunning turn of events.

Daboll, in his first game as a head coach, rolled the dice with a wild gamble with 1:06 remaining at Nissan Stadium. The Giants had pulled within 20-19 and you figured Dabloll would send out his kicking team for the extra point. But no. Daboll kept his offense on the field and was rewarded when Daniel Jones tossed a shovel pass to Saquon Barkley, who muscled past cornerback Roger McCreary for the two-point conversion and the winning points in a pulsating and improbable 21-20 upset victory over the Titans .

The Giants could not breath until the frantic final seconds were over and done with, as the Titans moved into position for Randy Bullock, but he missed a 47-yard field goal wide left at the buzzer, sending the Giants pouring off their sideline to celebrate .

Saquon Barkley dives into the end zone for the game-winning two-point conversion.
AP
The Giants celebrate after their dramatic win.
The Giants celebrate after their dramatic win.
AP

Barkley carried his team with 18 carries and 164 yards, and Jones rebounded from a brutal fourth-quarter interception to direct the game-winning drive.

Just like that, Daboll is 1-0 as a head coach and broke a serious franchise trend. The Giants are 1-0 for only the second time in the past 12 years.

The Giants were within 20-13 and caught a huge break when rookie Kyle Phillips muffed a punt that Jason Pinnock recovered on the Titans’ 11-yard line. Three plays later, disaster struck. Jones started down Barkley in the left side of the end zone and then threw in that direction, the ball sailing directly into the hands of safety Malik Hooker. Barkley never had a chance to make a play and a chance to pull even was dashed with 8:50 remaining.

Chris Myarick catches a touchdown during the fourth quarter.
Chris Myarick catches a touchdown during the fourth quarter.
AP

The Giants got the ball back with 5:27 to go and Barkley’s 33-yard run breathed life into a comeback bid. The drive ended when Jones on a play-action pass found tight end Chris Myarick alone in the end zone to pull the Giants within one point. That is when Daboll showed what kind of leader and coach he will be, waving off a tie game to go for the win.

On the final defensive stand, the Giants withstood two defensive holding penalties and then got fortunate when Bullock missed what would have been a dagger into the Giants’ hearts.

After getting shut out in the first half, the Giants returned to yesteryear in the third quarter, getting huge gains and plays from Barkley and then Sterling Shepard — two of their longest-tenured players. Barkley ripped off a 68-yard run to lead to his own touchdown run and Shepard hauled in a 65-yard scoring pass to make it 13-13 with 8:48 left in the third quarter.

Brian Daboll watches on along the sideline.
Brian Daboll watches on along the sideline.
AP

The Giants did not run one play in the first half in Tennessee territory and the only time they crossed midfield was on the final play before halftime, when Jones hit Richie James on an 18-yard play as time expired.

Things heated up for the Giants on their first offensive series of the second half. They went 90 yards on only four plays, mainly because Barkley took the ball around the left end and scooted 68 yards, looking like the Saquon of old. Barkley finished what he started by banging past safety Amani Hooker at the goal line for a 5-yard touchdown run. The Giants were within 13-6 but the chance to convert the extra point wasted when long snapper Casey Kreiter sent the ball back on a bounce that holder Jamie Gillan could not control off the grass.

The hard-working Giants’ defense forced a three-and-out and the offense struck again. On second down, Jones fired deep downfield when he saw Shepard running free deep in the Titans’ secondary. Shepard, playing in his first game since tearing his Achilles tendon late last season, made the grab, shed a tackle attempt by cornerback Kristian Fulton and eased into the end zone to complete a 68-yard touchdown. This time, Graham Gano’s extra point proceeded without incident and the Giants were tied at 13.

Randy Bullock misses a potential game-winning field goal as time expires.
Randy Bullock misses a potential game-winning field goal as time expires.
AP

That did not last long. A defense that kept the Giants in the game could not keep the Giants even. Ryan Tannehill had targets aplenty and the Titans overcame two holding penalties on center Aaron Brewer on a 75-yard drive culminated by Tannehill’s easy toss to running back Dontrell Hilliard on the left sideline for a 23-yard scoring play. The closest defender was inside linebacker Tae Crowder, who really was not close at all.

The position looks as if it will be a problem for the Giants. In the first quarter, Hilliard had no trouble running past linebacker Austin Calitro for a 7-yard scoring hookup.

Daniel Jones passes
Daniel Jones passes during the Giants’ win over the Titans.
Getty Images

The start could not have gone worse for the Giants. They got the ball first and Jones got hit hard twice on scrambles that came up short of a first down. Three and out. A poor punt by Gillan led to a 46-yard return, setting the Titans up in Giants’ territory. Five plays later, the Titans were in the end zone and it was 7-0.

There was all sorts of rotating by Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, especially at wide receiver. Surprisingly, James got the call early ahead of Kadarius Toney, who was barely on the field in the first quarter — one snap in the first three series.

The Giants on offense managed to get only one first down in the first quarter. They went no-huddle, uptempo on their first possession of the second quarter and actually got moving, a bit, picking up two first downs and finally getting Barkley involved — he had a 15-yard run — and Jones found Kenny Golladay for 7 yards for a first down.

Jones has mostly purged from his game the terrible fumble issues that plagued his rookie year and his first turnover of the season could not really be blamed on him. Formidable pass-rusher Jeffery Simmons completely overwhelmed rookie left guard Josh Ezeudu on a move that collapsed the pocket so quickly Jones never felt Simmons bearing down on him from the blind side. Simmons swung his arm and separated Jones from the ball for a fumble that Bud Dupree recovered.

.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.