3 Giants to blame for Sunday Night Football loss to Bengals

The Week 6 Sunday Night Football showdown between the New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals was projected to be a sneaky shootout. Instead, we got more of a defensive grudge match, though it was a tight contest nonetheless.

New York allowed a touchdown on the game’s open drive, then didn’t give up another point until the final seconds of the third quarter. Yet, the Giants failed to capitalize, routinely shooting themselves in the foot. Despite winning the time-of-possession battle by roughly eight minutes, they lost by double digits.

Overall, it was a disappointing outcome, especially considering it feels like one the G-Men let slip away. Their ferocious front seven made life difficult for quarterback Joe Burrow and the Bengals’ scoring unit the entire evening. Alas, it means nothing when Big Blue can’t put up more than a paltry seven points.

With that in mind, most of the fault for New York’s 17-7 defeat at MetLife Stadium can be directed toward the offense. Among the group, these three players floundering in primetime proved the most costly to the Giants’ opportunity to upset the Bengals and get to .500.

Typically, Andrew Thomas is the linchpin of New York’s offensive line. But he had one critically devastating blunder that drastically impacted everything for the Giants — in the worst way possible.

Badly in need of any spark before halftime, the Giants got the ball back on their nine-yard with approximately three minutes until the intermission. They seemingly found it for a moment in the form of a 56-yard Darius Slayton reception. However, an ineligible man downfield penalty was called on Thomas, negating the massive gain. Afterward, New York went three and out, squandering a chance to capture any momentum ahead of the final two frames.

Moreover, Bengals Pro Bowl edge rusher Trey Hendrickson dominated Thomas — mentally and physically. The former consistently generated pressure, which took a toll on the latter.

Notably, Thomas was visibly hampered after reportedly suffering a foot injury that will require an MRI.

Greg Joseph missed two fourth-quarter field goal attempts, the first from 47 yards out and the second from 45. The first one would’ve tied the ballgame for the Giants, so the shanked kicked sucked the life out of the building.

Joseph successfully converted his late eight boots before the back-breaking performance against Cincy. He could’ve swung the pendulum and been the catalyst of the Giants pulling off a comeback by knotting things up. Alas, his woes were deflating and only made things hard for head coach Brian Daboll and company.

It was a mixed-bag outing for Giants quarterback Daniel Jones. Ultimately, the bad outweighed the good enough to merit the top spot on this list.

Jones completed 22 of his 41 passes for 205 scoreless yards and a brutal red zone interception, taking two sacks. The pick came on an errant throw as a Bengals defender was in his grill. Linebacker Germaine Pratt leaped to grab the wobbly ball and create the sudden turnover.

Through the air, Jones had trouble. He missed his receivers often, leaving plenty of yardage on the field, demonstrated by his inefficiency under center. Conversely, his effort on the ground was solid, finishing as New York’s leading rusher with 56 yards on 11 carries.

Primetime and Jones do not get along, with Week 6’s loss to the Bengals being the latest instance. The Giants’ signal-caller is a woeful 1-14 in island games.