Giants Collapse Yet Again, Fall to Jets in OT

This is becoming far too common.

The Giants continued to punish their fans on Sunday, dropping a 23-20 nailbiter to the cross-stadium rival Jets in overtime.

If it was just a back-and-forth affair that saw the Jets squeak out a win, it would probably be a lot easier to swallow.

But, no. What we saw was all too similar to what we have seen before. The Giants, equipped with a big lead in the fourth quarter, slowly and methodically broke down and kept their opponents in the game just long enough to blow it.

Oh yeah, and Tom Coughlin made another mind-numbingly poor decision to help doom his team.

Up 20-10 with under nine minutes to play in the fourth quarter, the Giants faced 4th and 2 at the Jets 4. The Giants’ offense lined up to go for it before taking a timeout to discuss. Even after talking it over, the Giants’ still went for the very risky move and went for it.

Eli Manning was intercepted.

Look, I get what Coughlin was thinking. A touchdown would have put the Giants up by three scores, and pretty much ice the win. But he has to know this team. He has to know this defense. They’ve struggled in the fourth quarter on a regular basis this year, and while it’s only a three point difference, 13 points is much different than 10.

Sure enough, the Jets did exactly what they needed to do on the next drive, slicing the Giants’ defense all the way to the goal line, and while Big Blue held the line and the Jets settled for a field goal, Gang Green was still able to make it a seven-point game with 4:24 to play.

And the lifeless Giants running game gave it right back by going three-and-out. So it goes.

Ryan Fitzpatrick, Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker put on a clinic on the Jets’ game-tying drive, converting on 3rd and 9 and 4th and 6 on a lethal drive, culminating in a Brandon Marshall touchdown to tie the game with 0:27 remaining.

Those three points that Coughlin passed up on sure looked nice right about then.

On the first drive of overtime, the Jets continued to make quick work of the GIants’ defense on their way to a go-ahead field goal. The Giants’ offense did just enough to set fans up for one final gut punch, a game-ending missed field goal by Josh Brown, his first miss of the season.
The Giants fall to 5-7, and their playoff hopes continue to dwindle.

This was the fifth game of the season the GIants have lost after leading with less than two minutes to play in regulation.

Offensive Game Ball: Odell Beckham Jr.

Beckham gave the otherwise lifeless Giants offense some spark. What else is new? OBJ finished the afternoon with six catches for 149 yards and a touchdown. He also made another highlight-reel, one-handed catch early on. He continues to post insane numbers despite being the only real receiving threat in the Giants offense.

Defensive Game Ball: Jason Pierre-Paul

It’s nice to be able to say that again. While JPP continues to look for his first sack of the year, he generated a lot of pressure against the Jets. He finished the loss with six tackles (two for loss), a pass defended, two QB hits and a fumble recovery. Considering he wasn’t even expected to play this year, he’s certainly been a pleasant surprise.

The Goat: Tom Coughlin

Enough is enough. We all love Tom Coughlin. He’s won two Super Bowls for the Giants, and is a sure thing for the Hall of Fame in a few years. But, man. I don’t think we’ll see too many highlights from this year in his HoF induction video package. The decision not to kick a field goal in the fourth quarter obviously came back to bite him, and what’s worse is this is not an isolated incident. He’s been making questionable decisions and miscalculated risks all year, and it’s deeply concerning that his team shuts down in the fourth quarter more frequently than it doesn’t. Since winning Super Bowl 46, Coughlin is just 27-33, and hasn’t made the playoffs. As great as he has been for the Giants, he is trending downwards. He’s running out of time to turn this team around, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him out after the season.