10 things to watch in Giants vs. Browns

The Giants’ defense had mixed results in last weekend’s NFC East matchup. The unit struggled to slow down the Commanders’ rushing attack, as Brian Robinson Jr. broke out for a career-high 133 yards and 7.8 average yards per carry, Austin Ekeler added 38 yards on eight carries, and quarterback Jayden Daniels contributed an additional 44 yards on the ground. Altogether, Washington finished with 215 rushing yards and an average of just over 6.0 yards per carry. Due to their success running the football, the Commanders dominated the time of possession, 37:32 to 22:28.

The Giants also had difficulty getting off the field on third down. The Commanders converted on 50 percent of their third down attempts (seven of 14), in addition to their lone fourth down attempt. In the season opener, Washington was only able to convert on two of their eight third down tries. All of this led to the Commanders scoring on every single one of their drives, except for a kneel-down before halftime.

There was a big positive for the defense, though. The unit, led by defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, has emphasized the importance of “protecting their house” when opponents get into the red zone. Well, the Commanders had six trips inside the Giants’ 20-yard line on Sunday, and the defense was able to keep them out of the end zone every time. Washington even got the ball inside the 10-yard line on four occasions, and each time the defense held tough. The pass rush also registered five sacks and seven quarterback hits on Daniels, a big improvement from their one sack and two quarterback hits in the opener.

“Four-point plays are critical,” Daboll told the media Wednesday about the team’s red zone defense. “Three-point game. Playing well in the red zone, you’ve got to do a good job of keeping them out of the red zone more and continue to evolve offensively and score when we’re down in the red zone, which in the first game we didn’t. Last game we did. The consistency factor early on in the year on both sides we’ll continue to work on.”

Malik Nabers isn’t the only Giants rookie performing well to start the season. Through the first two games, the Giants have had three players on the field for every defensive snap – linebacker Bobby Okereke, cornerback Tae Banks, and Tyler Nubin. The rookie safety has recorded 11 total tackles (eight solo) to start off his NFL career while lining up all over the field. Additionally, the 23-year-old safety has given up just two receptions for 29 yards on 68 coverage snaps.

Dru Phillips was not far behind Nubin in terms of playing time last week with 66 defensive snaps played (92 percent), and the nickel corner shined in his first extensive action. The rookie third-round pick finished second on the team with 12 tackles (seven solo) while adding a sack, two tackles for loss, and a quarterback hit. Through two games, he has allowed just 26 yards on five receptions as the nearest defender in coverage, according to Next Gen Stats, and has also displayed great physicality.

“I’ve been pleased with them,” defensive coordinator Shane Bowen said about the two first-year players. “Again, they’re rookies. They’re learning. The situational awareness is going to build over time as they play. But, really pleased with them. Really was pleased with Dru. I think his toughness showed up. He was productive. He was involved. The more he plays, I think the better he’s going to get.

“Same thing goes for Nubin. But both of those guys care. They’re passionate about football. They want to learn. They want to get better. They’re different in their approach and how they learn, leadership and where they’re at really coming into this thing. But, both are valuable pieces to us right now and I think they’re doing a good job for being young.”

The strength of the Browns certainly lies with its defense. Myles Garrett has been named first-team All-Pro in three of the last four seasons and has been selected to the Pro Bowl in each of the last four years. He has 32.0 sacks since 2022 and 323 quarterback pressures since 2020, both of which lead the NFL, while his 20 turnovers caused from QB pressures since 2020 is also the most in the NFL.

“He’s one of the best ones in the league,” Daboll said about Garrett. “They’ve lined him up in a variety of spots. He’s explosive. He’s strong. He’s powerful. He’s got good size. He can run. He takes the ball away. He gets it away from the quarterback. You do the best job you can on practicing with the look team, but it’s never the same until you’re playing a player like that. He’s a high-level player in this league. He’s been for a long time. He’s one of the really good ones. He’s certainly a challenge.”

“He’s a good player, for sure,” Jones added “He’s a good player and has the ability to affect the game from a pass rush standpoint and the run game also. You’ve got to have a plan, a protection plan. Luckily, we’ve got AT (Andrew Thomas). AT is an incredible player, and we’re very confident in that matchup.”

Since the start of the 2023 campaign, the Browns’ defense has absolutely dominated while playing at home. The unit ranks first in total yards per game allowed (220.8), pass yards allowed per game (130.0), and three-and-out percentage (51.9) while playing in front of their home fans, while their 15.8 points per game allowed ranks second. Their total yards per game allowed at home is nearly 50 yards fewer than the next-best team. Since Kevin Stefanski took over as head coach in 2020, the Browns have started 2-1 in four straight seasons, due in large part to the performance of the defense. The defense also features Denzel Ward, a three-time Pro Bowl cornerback that has registered a 25.0 completion percentage allowed as the nearest defender, tied for the fifth-lowest in the league this season.

While Cleveland’s defense has thrived in recent seasons, the offense has struggled to find the same consistency. Quarterback Deshaun Watson is 6-2 as a starter since 2023, but has just a 77.6 passer rating. In his three seasons with the Browns, Watson has earned a 78.2 passer rating, which ranks 37^th out of 39 quarterbacks with 400+ pass attempts since 2022. However, Watson seems to step up in the fourth quarter, as his 71.2 completion percentage and 106.9 passer rating in the fourth quarter both rank second in the NFL since 2023 among players with four or more starts. In two starts this season, the 29-year-old has completed 58.2 percent of his passes for 355 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions while adding 59 yards and a score on the ground.

“I think Deshaun is a good player,” Daboll said. “They started out fast against Jacksonville last week. They had a 17-play drive. They utilized him in a variety of ways. He can operate the empty game well where he gets it out quick. They use him in the action game. They can zone read him. He’s done that as well. Scramble to loose plays. He’s a strong player to bring down. You saw that against (Cowboys linebacker) Micah Parsons in the Dallas game where he scrambles, gets to the right. He’s got the ball in one hand, waves it around, throws it down the field strong. He’s played the game for a long time. I got a lot of respect for Deshaun’s game.”

In the run game, Jerome Ford leads the way with 108 yards on 19 carries (5.7 avg.) while D’Onta Foreman is not far behind with 10 rush attempts for 42 yards (3.0 avg.). Each back has been the starting running back for one game this season. Starting tight end David Njoku missed Week 2 with an ankle injury and Stefanski told reporters Wednesday that it’s “unlikely” he plays this week. Elsewhere in the passing game, wide receiver Jerry Jeudy has a team-high 98 receiving yards and caught Watson’s lone passing touchdown. Amari Cooper has just five receptions for 27 yards through two games, while Elijah Moore leads the Browns with nine receptions, but for just 53 yards.