Three Bold Predictions for New York Giants vs. Carolina Panthers

The New York Giants meet the Carolina Panthers in Munich, Germany, looking to snap a four-game losing streak and improve to 3-7 ahead of their Week 11 bye week.

On the surface, both teams are about evenly matched, and not necessarily in a good way. But the Giants, who are favored to win this game, could surprise a few people if the following predictions come to fruition.  

Giants outside linebacker Brian Burns has been trying to downplay his feelings about facing his former team this weekend. Still, underneath the surface, he has to be simmering to put on a show against his former teammates.

Burns, who has been playing with many injuries, including a painful groin issue, has five sacks in his last seven games and 11 quarterback hits over that period.  This week, he’ll face Brady Christensen, who is filling in at left tackle for the injured Ickey Ekwonu.

Last week against the Saints, Christensen allowed four quarterback pressures, his season-high. Burns, meanwhile, has a 12.7% pass-rush win rate and a 15.6% win rate out of a true pass set. 

If Burns can generate at least one pressure Sunday, he has a chance to join some elite company. Burns would join Javon Hargrave, Khalil Mack, and Leonard Williams as the only players to generate pressure against all 32 teams since 2019, per NextGen Stats. 

In case you missed the news, the Giants are planning to start Jermaine Eluemunor, who had started the first nine games at right tackle, on the left side and put Evan Neal, their 2022 first-round draft pick, in at right tackle.

This move is being made to fortify the pass blocking on quarterback Daniel Jones’s blind side, which has otherwise been a mess since starting left tackle Andrew Thomas suffered a season-ending foot injury.

The Giants have run Joshua Ezeudu at left tackle for one game and Chris Hubbard for two. The two men have played 125 pass-blocking snaps and allowed 17 quarterback pressures and four sacks. 

Eluemunor, in his first nine games this season at right tackle, has allowed 20 pressures and two sacks. He expressed a desire a few weeks ago to remain at right tackle, but being a team player, he’s going to man the quarterback’s blind side, which he did for two games last year with the Raiders.

Like Hubbard, Eluemunor has way more experience on the right side, having played 2,471 career snaps at right tackle versus 422 at left tackle. But the hope is that Ekuemunor, who can primarily function on an island, can handle the left tackle role this week and pitch a pass-blocking shutout. 

With the Giants offensive line undergoing the shuffle at the offensive tackle, it probably stands to reason that the Giants will try to get the line settled in before starting to lean into the passing game.

What better way to get the line settled than to run the ball early and often, especially against the league’s worst run defense? The Panthers have allowed 159.3 rushing yards per game and are giving up 4.55 rushing yards per attempt (20th).  

The Giants running game averages 114.7 yards per game, 19th, and 4.34 rushing yards per attempt (20th). Rookie Tyrone Tracy, Jr., who has taken over as the RB1, is averaging 5.0 yards per rushing attempt, tied for sixth among NFL running backs with a minimum of 80 rushing attempts. Tracy also averages 5.86 yards per rushing attempt over his last two games and one rushing touchdown.  

If the Giants can get the running game going on the early downs to set up manageable yardage on second and third downs, they will give themselves a good chance to win.