Giants finish undefeated preseason with 42-10 rout over Patriots

The Giants put the final touches on a solid preseason campaign on Thursday night with a blowout win over the New England Patriots as starters from both teams were rested. New York scored over 30 points for the third straight game to end its preseason with a 3-0 record.

Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart was predictably the main story, as he started and completed 6 of 12 passes for 81 yards and a touchdown. His seven-yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Dulcich capped off a 65-yard drive keyed by a 50-yard catch and run from Gunner Olszewski to give the Giants a lead just 2:01 into the game.

Later on in the first quarter, Jameis Winston threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Jalin Hyatt to make it 14-0.

New England cut the lead to 14-10 in the closing seconds of the second quarter, following a muffed punt that set up a field goal and a 14-play drive that ended in a Ben Wooldridge touchdown pass. However, Tommy DeVito’s three-yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Thomas Fidone II restored a two-score advantage on the opening drive of the second half.

Another DeVito touchdown pass to running back Jonathan Ward and a pick-six by undrafted rookie safety TJ Moore pushed the lead out to 35-10 by the end of the third quarter. Sadly, Moore was carted off with an apparent serious knee injury late in the game.

Dulcich’s second touchdown of the game, this time on a one-yard pass from DeVito, made it 42-10 with 8:22 remaining to provide the final margin.

Here are the takeaways…

-Dart was in command once again, although there was an injury scare and a valuable lesson learned when he was hit from behind on a scramble. He ended up having to go to the medical tent, although head coach Brian Daboll confirmed at halftime that he just had the wind knocked out of him. In the future, Daboll would obviously prefer for Dart to slide in such situations.

-Although he was cleared to return, Dart did not play again, as he was only scheduled to play in the first quarter. As it turned out, Winston came in and threw his touchdown to Hyatt on the very next play anyway.

–Evan Neal’s transition to guard has not been a smooth one. His inconsistency as a pass protector was once again exploited here as he was beaten for a quarterback hit and a pressure that led to a sack in the first half. Ideally, the Giants would have expected him to be error-free when facing backups if they are going to trust him to play that role during the season.

-Another player on the bubble is Hyatt, who boosted his case with a touchdown catch on a deep ball from Winston. However, he had already let himself down by dropping two passes prior to that and was looking fairly dejected even after his touchdown.

-The good news for Hyatt was that Beaux Collins, who is one of the main receivers competing with him for a spot, also made some errors. Collins had a drop, missed a tackle on special teams and, for the second time in preseason, caused an interception as he was not on the same page as his quarterback.

-At running back, rookie Cam Skattebo saw action for the first time this preseason, gaining 12 yards on three carries. Dante Miller got plenty of opportunities and ended up with 53 yards on 14 touches, but Ward showed he isn’t ready to surrender his spot yet, as he took a short pass 41 yards for a second-half touchdown and racked up a total of 74 yards from scrimmage.

-Also in the backfield for the Giants was defensive tackle Elijah Chatman, who once again got a few reps at fullback and was even in the starting lineup. He’s been effective in that role, and it looks likely to be something they continue to experiment with during the regular season.

-Dulcich and Fidone helped their chances of being in the mix at tight end by combining for three touchdown catches. Fidone caught four passes and almost had another touchdown in the fourth quarter, but his elbow was down at the one-yard line. Dulcich may be on the bubble, but he also had a good downfield block, made a special teams tackle and caught three other passes, although one was negated by a penalty. That kind of all-around contribution is exactly what he needed to boost his chances.

-The question remains as to whether the Giants could carry four quarterbacks this year, especially if they are intent on it being a redshirt year for Dart. While the rookie’s solid play suggests he could be ready to contribute earlier than anticipated, DeVito made a good case for himself by completing 14 of his first 15 passes, albeit against reserves. He ended up with 198 passing yards and three touchdowns.

-Rookie Abdul Carter was used sparingly but got a few chances to rush the passer on third down and had one pressure on a stunt.

-It hasn’t been a good preseason for cornerback Deonte Banks, who has missed some of camp and preseason with injuries. He was in uniform and looked set to play, but ended up not seeing action. Cor’Dale Flott started in his place and had a couple of good plays in coverage as he looks like he might have done enough to lock down a starting role.

Game MVP: Tommy DeVito

Although he played against reserves, DeVito looked great and was decisive with the ball, going 17-for-20 with three touchdown passes. Honorable mention goes to Dulcich, who caught two touchdown passes and did everything that was asked of him as he tries to lock down a roster spot.

Highlights

What's next

With preseason in the books, the Giants can now look forward to their regular season opener against the Washington Commanders on Sept. 7 at 1 p.m.

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