Washington never had to score a touchdown to beat the Giants, who scored three
The New York Giants watched as Washington Commanders Austin Seifert hit his seventh field goal of the game to end the game, 21-18, to move Big Blue to 0-2.
Things are not going well in East Rutherford, New Jersey, but Seifert’s field goal brought the Giants’ woes to historic proportions on Sunday.
If you’re doing the math, all of the Commanders’ points were scored by way of field goal in the win, but the Giants were able to score three touchdowns against their NFC East foe.
So, the Giants are on the wrong side of history, as they became the only team to ever score three touchdowns, allow not one to their opponent, and still lose in regulation.
That’s just the way the cookie is crumbling for these Giants.
The main reason why New York is on the wrong end of history here is due to the very first play of the game, the opening kickoff, which ended up being a killer for the Giants in this game.
Veteran placekicker Graham Gano was seen falling to the turf as he chased down returner Austin Ekeler, who walked into the end zone for what appeared to be an opening kickoff touchdown, but a holding penalty brought things back.
Gano, then, slammed his helmet on the team’s sideline as he was clearly injured. So, the Giants were without a kicker for the remainder of the game.
While kickers have certainly gotten hurt in games in the past, ruining that team’s chances to convert on field goals and extra points, Giants head coach Brian Daboll went into this contest knowing Gano was dealing with a groin ailment.
So, punter Jamie Gillan attempted the 33-yard extra point after the Giants’ opening-drive touchdown by Devin Singletary, and it was hooked wide right by the lefty. Gillan did hit his first and only field goal attempt last season at 40 yards, but this one wasn’t even close.
Understanding extra points may be hard to come by, Daboll decided to go for two-point conversions on the next two touchdowns, but to no avail.
In the end, the Giants fell to Washington by allowing seven scoring drives, and things wouldn't have been worse if the Commanders could cash in on their red-zone trips. Instead, they were stymied by false starts and poor execution.
The Giants did see some good in this contest compared to last week, a 28-6 beatdown in their home opener against the Minnesota Vikings. Rookie receiver Malik was all over the field with 10 catches and 127 yards with his first career touchdown.
However, he did drop the easiest catch of his day from Daniel Jones on a crucial fourth-and-short scenario near the end of the fourth quarter that allowed Jayden Daniels to charge Washington downfield for the Seifert walk-off field goal.
Either way, the Giants find themselves 0-2 with a doozy of a schedule upcoming, including the Cleveland Browns on the road next followed by a short week against the Dallas Cowboys on "Thursday Night Football."
The Giants are hoping they can keep their season afloat before things get out of hand fast like it did in 2023. To do so, they can’t be on the receiving end of any more bad NFL history.
