By Nick Wojton / Billswire.usatoday.com
The Bills (1-0) take on the Giants (0-1) in their second game in a row at MetLife Stadium in New York on Sunday.
Here are eight things to know about the Bills’ Week 2 opponent ahead of Sunday’s game:
Likely have NFL’s best running back still
Passing league? Don’t tell Giants running back Saquon Barkley that.
While it’s rare that a No. 2 overall pick being a running back can be justified, Barkley found a way. As a rookie, he led the entire NFL in all-purpose yardage with 2,028 in total. Wowza.
Playing from behind in a 35-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, Barkley only had 10 carries. But he did tons of damage on the ground still. He had 120 rushing yards on just 11 carries. That’s an average of 10.9 yards per carry. To stop Barkley, the Bills offense can not start out bad like they did last week. Put up big numbers early and force the ball in the air since Buffalo has an elite secondary of their own.
The Bills will face other great backs this season such as the Cowboys’ Zeke Elliot, but it’s hard to argue that Barkley isn’t the best back in the league.
Eli was nothing good on opening day
If you didn’t watch the Giants’ season opener, you’d think Eli Manning had a great game. He looked just OK and the Giants didn’t look good at all as a whole. There’s a reason the Bills are favored to win on the road.
Manning had 306 yards passing but plenty were in garbage time. He didn’t have an interception and had one scoring pass, but he fumbled the ball away, too. Manning also connected on 30-of-44 attempts for a 68 percent competition rate. But, Manning checked the ball down a lot. Next Gen Stats pointed out that 33 of Manning’s 44 throws on the day were less than 10 yards down the field. He wasn’t taking many chances and many critics said that Giants had him rollout to throw too many times since he’s 38 and doesn’t move like he once did.
You can bet the Bills will be aware of that on Sunday.
Rumblings for rookie QB already starting
A tale as old as time.
The vet QB struggles and the rookie backup should go in, according to fans.
As mentioned, Manning was nothing great last week, so observers of the Giants are already rumbling. Should Manning be benched in favor of No. 6 overall pick Daniel Jones from Duke?
All summer the Giants head coach, Pat Shurmur, insisted that won’t happen. He still did that following Sunday’s game because he was asked about what it would take to get Jones in there once again.
“Today was an obvious situation in my mind to put (Jones) in the game and that’s it,” Shurmur said in his postgame press conference. “I’m not going to play your hypothetical game.”
While that’s a stern reply to a question, it’s also an indicator that Shurmur is likely feeling the heat to get Jones in there. Jones’ preseason also didn’t help Shurmur’s case. Playing against backups, Jones was very good, completing 83 percent of his passing during his exhibition season for 416 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.. In mop up duty late against the Cowboys, Jones was also 3-for-4 passing, although he did have a fumble, too.
Having said that, it’ll still be Manning vs. the Bills on Sunday.
Top-two WRs could be out
Speaking of passing the ball, the Giants could be without their top-two wide receivers on Sunday against the Bills. First, Golden Tate, one of their top free agent signees, is suspended. He will 100 percent not play since he’s out for the first four games due to his violation of the NFL’s PED policy. He tried to challenge the suspension this offseason, but lost.
In addition, Sterling Shepard could be out, too. He went into the concussion protocol during the Giants’ Week 1 loss. Don’t forget, the Giants traded Odell Beckham Jr. this offseason, so Shepard is their defacto No. 1 and he also signed a big contract extension. If he’s out, that’s a big advantage for Buffalo since the Giants’ depth at the wideout position has been a concern for them all offseason. Shepard had six catches for 42 yards before his injury on opening day.
Tight end threat
Don’t forget about Evan Engram.
The main person who benefited from any passing success the Giants had in their opener was the tight end. On 14 targets, Engram had 11 receptions, 116 reeving yards and one touchdown. As a rookie, Engram had 64 catches for 722 yards in 16 games with six touchdowns, career bests. He’s already off to a start that indicates he’s going to break those numbers.
In Week 1, the Bills held Jets tight end Ryan Griffin to three catches on 10 yards. However, he’s not the Jets’ starter. That’s Chris Herndon, who’s suspended. In the past Herndon hasn’t shredded the Bills, but top-tight ends in the NFL have. Remember that one guy, Rob Gronkowski? Yeah…
Changes could be on the way
So the Giants lost and it wasn’t close last week… that could spark some moves, likely on defense. The G-men only had one sack against a good Cowboys offensive line. In addition, the secondary was torched by QB Dak Prescott. He was 25-for-32 passing, for 405 yards and four touchdowns.
Since the game Shurmur has said something has to give. Already.
Per Giants Wire:
“I think we’ve got to get the guys who are going to be in there to play better,” head coach Pat Shurmur told WFAN’s Mike Francesa on Monday. “There’s a decent chance there could be a couple changes, but we’re going through that right now. We’re finishing up the evaluation of that game and getting ready to play Buffalo.”
The Giants have seven new starters on defense this year. The unit underwent a major makeover after a bad 2018.
Giants have 3 first-round rookies on roster
Daniel Jones was already mentioned, he was the No. 6 overall pick in a shocking move at the 2019 NFL draft. Having said that, the Giants actually have three first-round rookies playing against the Bills on Sunday. The other two to look out for are on defense.
At the No. 17 pick, acquired in a trade with the Browns, is defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence went to the Giants. He was the fourth defensive tackle taken off the board, the second being Buffalo’s Ed Oliver. In addition, the Giants had the No..30 pick from the Saints, via the Packers and Seahawks. There, cornerback Deandre Baker joined the Giants.
In their opener, Lawrence had one tackle while Baker added two. Pro Football Focus also graded both poorly, 61.5 and a brutal 29.3, respectively. Not the best day overall for the Giants defense and the numbers reflect that.
Also revamped offensive line
It’s well-known in Western New York that the Bills revamped their offensive line this offseason. But they weren’t alone. The Giants did the exact same and despite their poor game against the Cowboys last week, none of it had to do with the O-line. According to Pro Football Focus, the Giants’ line was the best run-blocking unit in the NFL last week. In addition, quarterback Eli Manning was only sacked one time on a questionable rollout play right into a defender.
Among the improvements made to the line this offseason were the acquisitions of Kevin Zeitler and Mike Remmers to the right side of the offensive line. Long-time left tackle of the Patriots, Nate Solder, returns for his second season with the team, as does second-year pro Will Hernandez at left guard. Jon Halpio, the starting center, is back from an ankle injury he suffered early last season, too.
The Bills had 4 sacks last week against the Jets, 9 QB hits, and 8 tackles for loss. They might have a tough time replicating that this week.