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Giants - Cardinals
Mikefan - Gamegirl Reviews

Dec 24, 4:25 PM Giants at Cardinals
Game 15
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Giants lose to the Cardinals 23-0.
Eli Manning was 27 of 45 for 263 yards, 2 INTs, and 1 fumble.
Wayne Gallman rushed for 18 yards on 10 carries, and caught 6 passes for 44 yards.
Paul Perkins rushed for 10 yards on 3 carries.
Orleans Darkwa rushed for 10 yards on 6 carries.
Rhett Ellison caught 4 passes for 60 yards.

Sterling Shepard caught 5 passes for 45 yards.

Roger Lewis caught 4 passes for 40 yards.
Jerell Adams caught 4 passes for 31 yards.

Hunter Sharp caught 2 passes for 25 yards.
Evan Engram caught 1 pass for 12 yards.
Travis Rudolph caught 1 pass for 6 yards.

Ross Cockrell had 2 INTs.
Jason Pierre-Paul and Olivier Vernon each had 1 sack.
Aldrick Rosas missed on a 33 yard field goal attempt.

"Christmas Eve is not my favorite day to watch a football game. Although I guess if the Giants were actually in contention for something, that would make matters even worse. When Eli Manning threw an 11 yard pass to Wayne Gallman for a first down on the very first play of the game, I thought things might work out fine today. Then, they didn't make another first down until after the Cardinals scored a field goal.
You could see that the Cardinals defense really wanted to win this game. They were aggressive and were hit with three penalties as Manning connected on some good passes to Evan Engram, Gallman, and Sterling Shepard. Then they intercepted Manning on a deep pass to Evan Engram.
Except for killing the drive it wasn't that bad as the ball was at the Arizona 25-yard line, and they went three-and-out thanks to Olivier Vernon's sack on Drew Stanton. Both teams went nowhere on the next two drives, and then Manning started putting it together again. As usual it was all on him with no assist from the running game. Manning threw a 15 yarder to Rhett Ellison on a fourth-and-two, and got down to the Arizona 15-yard line, and Aldrick Rosas could have tied the game up, but he missed on the 33 yard field goal.
The defense had been doing a decent job on Larry Fitzgerald. They kept him out of the endzone on two short yardage passes when the Cardinals settled for a field goal, but that couldn't last forever. Fitzgerald had made some big catches, and with about a minute left in the half, Stanton connected with him for a 13 yard touchdown. Manning followed that up by throwing an interception on a deep pass to Roger Lewis, and that basically ended the half with the Giants down 10-0.
The Cardinals started off the second half easily moving the ball downfield to score a touchdown. They missed the extra point, so now they were up 16-0. Later there was some hope when cornerback Ross Cockrell intercepted a pass meant for Fitzgerald in the endzone for a touchback. That hope was gone a few plays later when Manning fumbled the ball, and the Cardinals returned it for a touchdown and a 23-0 score.
The fourth quarter had just started, and the way things were going you just wanted to see the Giants score some points. Before the quarter ended, Cockrell intercepted Stanton for a second time, and that was about it, as Manning threw passes to anyone he could find. Besides his running back Wayne Gallman, there were tight ends Jerell Adams and Rhett Ellison, and receivers Travis Rudolph, Roger Lewis, and Hunter Sharp. After this loss and totally disappointing season, I'm really not looking forward to next week when the Giants finish up with a game against the Washington Redskins at MetLife Stadium."

"This was the next to last game of the season. Eli Manning played strongly last time out, and today had different results. It didn't help that tight end Evan Engram was hurt after making just one catch in the first quarter. Engram was out for the rest of the game, so Manning's leading receiver was taken away. Tight ends Rhett Ellison and Jerell Adams combined for 8 catches out of 11 for 91 yards.
The running game with Wayne Gallman, Orleans Darkwa, and Paul Perkins was non existent this week, totaling just 43 yards (including Manning's 5 yard run). That was the least yardage they've come up with since totaling just 35 in the first game of the season. The only running back Manning threw to was Wayne Gallman, and Gallman was more effectively used that way, catching 6 out of 8 for 44 yards.
As has been typical with Manning having to get rid of the ball so quickly, working behind the offensive line he has, the wide receivers caught fewer passes, and for less yards than the tight ends and running backs combined. Sterling Shepard was hurt in the fourth quarter with a neck injury, and he did not return. Manning's 'hot' target continues to be Roger Lewis, and that worked out about as well as it did last week. Today they connected for only 4 out of 11 passes, and last week it was 4 out of 10.
With no time to throw and no running game, the
Giants converted on only one of their 14 third-down attempts, and one of their 4 fourth-down conversion attempts. The Cardinals held onto the ball longer in this game (6-7 mins), and came away with all the points, winning 23-0. Interim head coach Steve Spagnuolo has had three games to show what he possibly could do, but all three have been losses. Spagnuolo gets one more shot next week in the final game of the season, when the Giants take on the Washington Redskins."

First Quarter

CARDINALS - FIELD GOAL
Play: Phil Dawson 21 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 9 plays, 46 yards, 5:16
Cardinals 3-0

Second Quarter

CARDINALS - TOUCHDOWN
Play: Larry Fitzgerald 13 Yd pass from Drew Stanton (Phil Dawson Kick)
Drive info: 9 plays, 79 yards, 2:04
Cardinals 10-0

Third Quarter

CARDINALS - TOUCHDOWN
Play: John Brown 15 Yd pass from Drew Stanton (Phil Dawson PAT failed)
Drive info: 11 plays, 75 yards, 5:35
Cardinals 16-0

Fourth Quarter

CARDINALS - TOUCHDOWN
Play: Robert Nkemdiche 21 Yd Fumble Return (Phil Dawson Kick)
Drive info: 3 plays, 1 yard, 0:57
Cardinals 23-0


Notes:

Giants cornerback Ross Cockrell had 2 interceptions in one game for the first time in his career.

Giants fell to 2-13, which is a franchise single-season record for losses.

Giants finished 1-7 on the road, which is their worst record since 1978.

Giants are 0-11 in games against NFC opponents for the first time in their history.

Giants had their first shutout loss since 2004.

Giants Eli Manning completed 27 passes for 263 yards, moving him into 6th place in the NFL with 51,550 total yards.
Next Game:
DEC 31 - Redskins at Giants.
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