Giants-Commanders staff picks: BBV staff shows faith in 0-1 Giants

The New York Giants will travel to Landover, Maryland to take on The Washington Commanders in Week 2 of the 2024 season.

That much, at least, is going according to plan. Everything else for the Giants, however, is on the edge.

The Giants opened a narrow underdog at home to the Minnesota Vikings, but the game was expected to be an evenly matched one. Instead, the Giants were routed at home and lost in embarrassing fashion to the Sam Darnold-led Vikings. Now, the Giants have a chance to get their season back on track against the Washington Commanders in what is a very early must-win game.

A game in which the Giants are once again 1.5-point underdogs, per FanDuel Sportsbook

It’s one thing to go into a tough early season stretch with a .500 record. Not ideal, but not disastrous. Going into that tough stretch with an 0-2 record could send the Giants’ season spiraling out of control.

So what does the Big Blue View staff think will happen?

Tony DelGenio

It would be difficult to pick the Giants over the Little Sisters of the Poor (I hear they’re fielding a good team this year) after the absolute egg they laid, especially on offense, against Minnesota. However, they went to the doctor, who said, “Take one game against the Washington Commanders and call me in the morning.” Since their first meeting in 2018, the only games the Giants have lost to Washington were the Dexter Lawrence phantom offsides and Joe Judge surrender games.

Jayden Daniels is obviously a very talented quarterback, but he mostly looked like a rookie in last week’s loss to Tampa Bay. He has Terry McLaurin to throw to but not much else, and the Giants’ defense should be able to make life difficult for him, rushing against a mostly subpar offensive line. It’s time for Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux to show up. The Commanders’ defense is solid up front with Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen inside and Dorance Armstrong outside, and at the second level with Bobby Wagner and Frankie Luvu, but the secondary is suspect other than Jeremy Chinn. I’ll give Daniel Jones this week, and maybe next, to show that he can be at least the QB he was in 2022, and I predict that the Giants right the ship this Sunday…barely, because I respect Dan Quinn as a defensive mind who will create some problems for him.

Pick: Giants

Chris Pflum

I’m not going to lie, I went back and forth over this pick a few times.

This is a game the Giants SHOULD win. There aren’t many games on their schedule that we can chalk up as “should win” games, but this is one of them. After all, this is This is Game 2 of their rebuild: The second game of Jayden Daniels’ career, the second game in which Dan Quinn has been Washington’s head coach, and the second game their offensive and defensive schemes.

Washington has plenty of issues on both sides of the ball. They struggled to get the ball to their playmakers through the air, their offensive line was a problem, their rookie QB exposed himself to a bunch of hits, and their secondary couldn’t cover a rock if they were paper.

And yet… I can’t shake the feeling that this is a trap game like last year’s Week 2 game against the Arizona Cardinals nearly was. My big concern is that the book is out on the basis of the Giants’ offense and offensive tendencies, and Dan Quinn has read it more than anyone else in the NFL as the Cowboys’ DC since 2021. And while Washington might wind up being in the conversation for worst team in the NFL, they do have players on both sides of the ball.

I learned a long time ago not to pick the Giants until they consistently showed that they can win a game.

So I might regret this, but I’m going to pick the Giants anyway. This is a game in which anything could happen. The Giants could win big, or they could be stunned on the road. Right now I’m picking them to win the game they should. But if they don’t, or if they just manage to not-lose, things could get ugly quick.

Pick: Giants

Nick Falato

Ronald McDonald, Krusty, Penny-Wise…Nick Falato…that’s how I feel as I type out my explanation. There is no way around it: the Giants were atrociously bad against the Minnesota Vikings, but the Vikings are not the Washington Commanders. Put the Giants’ recent success against Washington to the side; it’s a new regime for our NFC East foe, and that regime has A LOT of work to do.

**starts to dab white paint on his face**

Jayden Daniels is beyond exciting as a player. Terry McLaurin and Brian Robinson are quality assets, but the offensive line is problematic. Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury relegates his receivers to a stagnant spot within his offense, which prevents flexibility. McLaurin took almost every snap on the right side of the offense. This can allow the defensive coordinator to better game-plan around McLaurin, who is the only true threat at receiver.

** adds blush to his cheeks**

Personnel on the offense is an issue for Washington, but the defense is more of a problem. Baker Mayfield carved through Washington’s secondary. He threw for 289 yards with four touchdowns. Dan Quinn’s defense had five massive miscommunications on the backend, they struggled to defend 3×1 sets to the field (something Jones is reluctant to target), and they play from depth, which should lead to less hesitancy for Jones in quick game — something we, unfortunately, saw manifest against a much more assertive defense in Week 1.

**paints two separate colors above each eye; adds bright red paint around mouth**

Washington’s two-high shells were deep, which led to space in the intermediate parts of the field. They spent much of the game in middle-of-the-field closed concepts that set up one-on-one shots against deep third or man coverage cornerbacks outside the numbers. Rushing the football could be difficult, but Washington’s coverage lacks proven talent and were not on the same page last week.

**gracefully places multi-colored wig on top of head**

If the Giants’ offense is stymied, and they can’t move the football against Washington, changes must be made to preserve the season — at least try to. In conclusion, I believe the Giants find a way to win the football game and score, at least, ONE touchdown with several trips to the red zone.

** picks up round red nose, places it on face; smiles timorously**

Pick: Giants

David Hartman

We had such high hopes – you almost always do on opening day. The tailgate was great, the weather was perfect, we all got a 100th anniversary commemorative coin when we walked in, we knew that LT, Simms, Eli and other heroes from the glorious past were in the house, and we even got a helicopter flyover. The Giants got an early turnover and went up 3-0 but it was all downhill after that. To call it a terrible effort is maybe an understatement. The Giants looked unprepared.

I think it was worse in person, because when you can see the whole field you can see how off-target some throws are, and who is and isn’t open.
The Giants can’t play much worse than they did on Sunday. The pass rush, the offensive line other than Andrew Thomas, and Daniel Jones in particular were bad on Sunday, and need to show up this week or the season may be a very, very long one. The Giants opened their schedule with two winnable games, and it gets much harder from here. An 0-2 start could spell disaster for this team and its front office. So there is some pressure.

The good news? The rival Commanders aren’t a good team. Their secondary is among the league’s worst and can be had. They also don’t have much of a pass rush after they traded away their starting edge rushers last season. Baker Mayfield lit them up for 4 TDs last week. Daniel Jones didn’t push the ball downfield at all last week, but I think he needs to this week. And I also think the Giants’ defense will show up. Maybe Malik Nabers can share some insights on how to stop his college teammate and fellow rookie Jayden Daniels.

This should be a competitive game. The Giants need it more and I believe they’re better than they showed in Week 1. Daniels makes a late mistake and the Giants get their first win, in a squeaker.

Pick: Giants

James Hickey

Ed wrote about it this week—the season is on the line on Sunday. Looking at the schedule, this is one of the few games you can realistically say they have a chance to win. Can they repeat what they did in 2007 when they played in Washington with an 0-2 record and that season on the line? Or is this the end of the line for Daniel Jones as he faces a rookie quarterback he knows his coach wanted this year? I think the team gets on track on both sides of the ball this week.

Pick: Giants

Valentine’s View

It bothers me as I type this that every BBV staff member who has picked the game is going with the Giants. This game is anything but a sure-fire victory for the Giants on Sunday. They are 1.5-point underdogs for a reason. The way the Giants played against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 1, there can’t be any games on the schedule where you think “oh, that’s an easy win for the Giants.”

That said, I am not ready to throw away everything I thought about the 2024 Giants after one miserable game. I thought the Giants, while not being a great team, could win seven or eight games if the quarterback and offensive line play were adequate, and if the pass rush lived up to expectations.

The offensive line play, at least the pass protection, was adequate against Minnesota. The quarterback play was not, with Jones creating some of his own issues in the pocket. The pass rush, after a first-drive sack by Dexter Lawrence, was invisible.

I will take the Giants here. I think getting to face the Commanders early in the season is a good thing as Jayden Daniels learns how to quarterback in the NFL. Mostly, though, I think the Giants are better than they showed against the Vikings and will show that on Sunday.

Pick: Giants