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Giants - Titans
Mikefan - Gamegirl Reviews

Dec. 16, 1:00 PM Titans at Giants
Game 14
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Titans707317
Giants00000
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Giants lose to the Titans 17-0.
Eli Manning was 21 of 44 for 229 yards with 1 INT.
Saquon Barkley had 14 carries for 31 yards, and caught 4 passes for 25 yards.
Riley Dixon had 1 carry for 14 yards.
Elijhaa Penny had 1 carry for 2 yards
.
Evan Engram caught 8 passes for 75 yards.

Bennie Fowler caught 2 passes for 43 yards
.
Sterling Shepard caught 2 passes for 37 yards.
Russell Shepard caught 2 passes for 28 yards.

Jawill Davis caught 2 passes for 13 yards.

Corey Coleman caught 1 pass for 8 yards.

Michael Thomas had 1 sack.

"It was one of those crummy rainy days at the stadium, and as it turned out a crummy day for the fans on all counts. The game started with the Titans moving the ball without much of a problem until they got to the Giants 30-yard line. They missed on a field goal attempt, and that gave the Giants some nice field position. The Giants did nothing with, it going three-and-out. Meanwhile, the Titans then ground out a long drive that ended with a touchdown. It took over half the quarter and it felt even longer if you were stuck out in the rain.
The Giants created some excitement when Eli Manning completed two long passes back to back to Russell Shepard and Evan Engram, but the next two plays were a five yard false start penalty, and Saquon Barkley losing ten yards trying to run the ball. It was all punts after that, up until the Giants last drive of the half. Punter Riley Dixon suddenly ran with the ball for 14 yards for a first down! Was it an intentional fake punt? I wasn't sure, but I was thinking it might have been the longest run so far for the Giants.
The Giants had almost no time left on the clock, so the score ended up 7-0 in favor of the Titans at the end of the half. The way this game was going, I was happy that the Giants were only down by seven points. Things didn't start well, with Barkley losing 4 yards on the first play of the third quarter, but Manning followed that up with a long 38 yard pass to Sterling Shepard. After another first down, and a false start penalty, the fans came alive when Evan Engram caught one from Manning for 13 yards and a first down.
The Giants got as far as the Tennessee 18 yard line, before another penalty cost them ten yards. Manning ended up throwing an interception two plays later. The Giants defense held, but after the punt, Manning threw two incompletions before taking a sack where he fumbled the ball away, trying to get it into safe hands. With good field position at the Giants 14-yard line, the Titans soon turned that fumble into 14-0 lead.
It was hard to keep the fans in their seats, but not for anything good happening, just for the rain pouring down. The Giants next three possessions, were three-and-out. The Titans added a field goal, and only five minutes were left in the game. The Giants used up the clock while managing to get past two fourth down plays. Facing yet another from the Tennessee 4-yard line, Manning's pass to Engram fell incomplete, and that was it. Watching the Giants play today was a big disappointment, and for better or worse, now there's only one home game left. The Giants are at Indianapolis next week, and they will finish up at home with the Cowboys."

"Last week in their games, the Giants and the Titans put 70 points on the scoreboard. Today just 17 in all. Unfortunately for the Giants, the Titans were the only contributors. On both teams, neither quarterback threw a touchdown. The Titans were just fine with that and their quarterback, Marcus Mariota, didn't throw one in his last game either. This time Mariota didn't hurt their cause by throwing an interception, as he did then. Now, in the last two Titans games, it's been running back Derrick Henry who has scored all six of their touchdowns, running the ball into the end zone.
The Giants, on the other hand, needed their quarterback throwing touchdowns as they saw last week when Eli Manning threw three. They also could have used Saquon Barkley playing as he had last week when he ran for 170 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries. Today Barkley had the exact same number of carries for just 31 yards. In the past few weeks, the Giants have really relied on Barkley running the ball, but the offensive line took a big step back today, and I mean that literally. They were overpowered by the Titans, and as Pat Shurmur had stated, "We're gonna go as far as that line will block for us." Still, at halftime the Giants were losing by just 7 points, even with Henry running for 127 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. For the Giants, Barkley had just 19 yards on 7 carries.
They had to go it again today without Odell Beckham Jr., and this time Manning really could have used him. Beckham is a big distraction for opposing defenses, and even when they can't get the ball to him, the other receivers benefit from the coverage he draws. The weather was a big factor, and as far as completions went, Manning had his worst passing day of the season. Half of his 44 passes were directed to either Evan Engram or Barkley. Engram came up with eight of 12 for 75 yards. Barkley caught only 4 out of 10 for 25 yards. Sterling Shepard caught only 2 out of 9.
On defense, the Giants held Mariota to just 88 passing yards, but the Titans quarterback was almost an afterthought for their game plan, which featured only 21 pass plays and 45 runs. The Giants defense was overwhelmed by the Titans line and by Henry, who rushed 33 times for 170 yards and two touchdowns. Overall, the Titans gained a total of 216 yards on the ground. The Giants run defense has suffered since they traded Damon Harrison to Detroit for a fifth-round pick, and that weakness certainly showed up big today.
With the Giants playoff hopes gone, things could shift a bit. If you remember, Kyle Lauletta didn't do too well in his NFL debut last week in Washington. The Giants deactivated Lauletta for this game. They activated veteran Alex Tanney, who over time had played in one game with the Titans. He was signed by the Giants after he was released earlier this year. Now after this game, maybe Lauletta will get a reprieve, and chance to show that he could do better. Though a lot could be attributed today to the offensive line, Manning certainly didn't play his best. Who knows what the Giants will do next week in Indianapolis depending on how that game goes."

First Quarter

TITANS - TOUCHDOWN
Play: Derrick Henry 1 Yd Run (Ryan Succop Kick)
Drive info: 15 plays, 75 yards, 7:45
Titans 7-0

Second Quarter

NONE

Third Quarter

TITANS - TOUCHDOWN
Play: Derrick Henry 1 Yd Run (Ryan Succop Kick)
Drive info: 5 plays, 14 yards, 2:47
Titans 14-0

Fourth Quarter

TITANS - FIELD GOAL
Play: Ryan Succop 22 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 11 plays, 49 yards, 7:03
Titans 17-0


Notes:

Giants Eli Manning completed only 47.7 percent of his passes.

Giants Saquon Barkley's 56 yards from scrimmage was his lowest total of the season.

Giants finished with 260 yards, their second-lowest total of the season.

Giants 15 first downs tied their season low, set in the opener vs. Jacksonville.
Next Games:
Dec 23 Giants at Indianapolis.
Dec 30 Cowboys at Giants.
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