The Washington Commanders will host the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in their second NFC East game of the year. Presented by KIA are three keys to Washington climbing back above.500.
1. The Giants’ defense will do anything and everything to get you.
Sam Howell, the quarterback for the Commanders, continues to struggle with taking sacks and hanging onto the ball for an excessive amount of time. Wink Martindale, the defensive coordinator for the Giants, loves to apply pressure. Where this is headed is obvious.
Wink has been engaging in this activity for a while. He creates his schemes quite creatively, according to associate head coach and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. “One thing you can be sure of is that he’ll try to pursue a young quarterback. As a result, we must be ready for everything, including unexpected glances.
The Commanders are aware that Howell is being struck too frequently—he has been sacked 34 times this season. On Sunday, they will be put to the test frequently by a Buffalo Bills defense that has allowed the fewest points all season.
The offense as a whole, including Bieniemy, must figure out how to stop the sacks. He admitted that he needs to be a better play-caller and that the players could do with working on their execution and quick starts. They must also devise strategies for immediately responding to Howell, and given how the Giants perform, there ought to be no shortage of them.
To begin with, more pressure may result in increased man coverage in the secondary. Terry McLaurin and Curtis Samuel are two players who are strong in one-on-one situations for the Commanders. If the Giants also set up in zone coverage, Howell can lob a pass to Logan Thomas, who has the ability to exploit coverage weaknesses.
In addition, the screen game appears to be gaining momentum once more following Brian Robinson Jr.’s 24-yard score last Sunday. Although execution is still key, Washington has the resources to circumvent the Giants’ high-pressure offense.
2. Benefit from the offensive line problems the Giants have.
The most obvious issue with the Giants’ offense this year is that their offensive line is going through a difficult time.
Offensive linemen make up six of the 15 Giants players listed as out with injuries, including the starters John Michael Schmitz, Andrew Thomas, and Evan Neal. Schmitz and Thomas are out, but Neal still has a chance to play.
Because of this, the Giants’ quarterbacks have been under pressure the whole season, whether Daniel Jones or Tyrod Taylor are manning the huddle. With 33 sacks allowed, the offensive is second in the league only to the Commanders.
The Commanders’ defensive line is expected to have a disruptive game versus the Giants, according to all indications. The Commanders are tied for sixth in sacks, and the Giants are also having trouble against a shoddy front. Almost no other player in the league has more pressures than Chase Young, and Montez Sweat leads the team with 4.5 sacks.
Whoever the starting quarterback is, Washington needs to take advantage of the Giants’ front-line injuries. Defense line has demonstrated it
3. Make each drive worthwhile.
Over the past four seasons, Ron Rivera has overseen tense contests between Washington and the Giants. If you exclude the 2021 championship game, which the Commanders won 22-7, the average margin of victory drops to 2.6 points.
Therefore, Washington cannot afford to miss any chances to score
The Commanders have seen frustrating stretches in games where their offensive output declines. The Falcons were able to stay in the game last week against them because they were able to close the game with four straight punts.
Before the Falcons game, there were times when the offense struggled to advance the ball down the field. For instance, they had back-to-back punts against the Eagles in the third quarter, which allowed the Eagles to take the lead.
Bieniemy stated on Thursday that “We’ve got to learn how to put consistent behavior on tape.” The Commanders cannot allow the Giants to linger and gather steam. The outcome of that game, which they played against the Chicago Bears, is well known to us.
Washington should have a chance to win on Sunday if it performs to expectations. But it must not miss any opportunities to make a point.
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