In their home opener against the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Giants accomplished two things they’ve struggled to do over the past several seasons: winning week one and beating Dak Prescott. The fashion in which the Giants won this game should quiet some of the John Harbaugh doubters. New York established their identity offensively and showed flashes of potential on defense that could set the team up for success this season.
John Harbaugh Doubters Were Wrong About The Offense
Much was made of the former Baltimore Ravens coach choosing Matt Nagy as the team’s offensive coordinator. Nagy had a mostly unsuccessful tenure as head coach of the Chicago Bears and served as coordinator for some of the least successful Kansas City Chiefs offenses in the Patrick Mahomes era. In the opener against Dallas, the Giants established a clear identity with their power run scheme. Fullback Patrick Ricard played over half of New York’s snaps offensively, and coming off of injury, running back Cam Skattebo returned to form, running through and over defenders.
The success in the running game opened things up for Dart, who completed almost 80% of his passes and threw three touchdowns in the win. The Giants utilized play action to slow the Cowboys’ pass rush, and Dart regularly found himself with time to throw. New York also dominated time of possession, holding the ball for almost 37 minutes, with over 21 of those coming in the second half. Harbaugh clearly understood the threat Dallas’s high-powered offense posed, and helped neutralize that threat by keeping them on the sideline.
It wasn’t all pretty for Harbaugh’s offense, as a fumble by running back Tyrone Tracy ruined a scoring drive at the end of the first half. After struggling throughout the preseason, Tracy may soon find himself running out of patience from this new coaching staff. Guard Jon Runyan also had a couple of false start penalties; tight end Isaiah Likely fumbled, but the Giants retained possession. Most concerning, Dart missed safety Caleb Downs coming unblocked on a blitz, which resulted in a fumble that New York recovered. Ball security will need to be a focus for Harbaugh moving forward, as New York cannot expect to keep getting loose balls to bounce their way.
Defense Showed Flashes But Was Undisciplined
One of the biggest concerns for the Giants defense was their ability to stop the run, an area they have been among the worst in the league the past few seasons. Despite trading All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, the team was able to limit Javonte Williams to under 3.5 yards per carry. This placed more pressure on Prescott, who made big plays but was limited by Harbaugh’s keepaway strategy. The Cowboys’ signal caller led scoring drives every time they had the ball in the second half, but only got the ball twice.
New York’s pass rush is the strength of their defense, but they were unable to bring down Prescott for a single sack. Missed tackles cost them several would-be sacks, an area they will need to clean up moving forward, but the overall pressure forced several bad throws.
The linebacking corps of rookie Arvell Reese and free agent signing Tremaine Edmunds was arguably the best group, making plays against the run and in coverage, showing off their length and athleticism. The worst group was easily the secondary, as constant defensive pass interference penalties kept Dallas’s drives moving and resulted in several scores. Injuries throughout the game thinned an already maligned unit, and this group could cost the team games if the penalties aren’t cleaned up.
The defense allowed only 20 points, but they only forced two punts and one turnover. Dallas is among the most talented offenses in the league, but it’s fair to say the performance likely wouldn’t look as impressive if the Cowboys had the ball more. Once again, a testament to Harbaugh’s game plan of keeping the defense off the field, but this may not be a replicable effort every week.
The John Harbaugh Effect Is Already Visible
Roughly a year ago, the Giants gave up 40 points and blew a late lead to this Dallas team. Under Harbaugh, they allowed half those points and held their lead to finish the win. It’s fair to say this season’s roster is better, but it is obvious that a new coaching staff and improved culture have already yielded benefits for New York. This year’s team is more disciplined, better conditioned, and playing in a system that maximizes their strengths rather than forcing them to adapt. People doubted Harbaugh’s ability to raise the Giants’ ceiling, but it was obvious that he would immediately raise their floor, and that change was apparent against Dallas.
Regardless of what percentage of responsibility goes to Harbaugh for the Giants’ win against Dallas, the team can say something that few other New York teams under few other head coaches have been able to say over the past 10 seasons: the team is 1-0 overall, and 1-0 against the NFC East.
