As quickly as a Week 3 win against the Houston Texans gave hope for the New York Giants
Authentic Kerry Wynn Jersey , a 33-18 loss to the New Orleans Saints took it away. The defense played bend but don’t break for as long as it could and until the bend was too much and the offense looked like it did during the first two weeks of the season. The Giants now sit at 1-3, a record that brings an average of 6.2 wins and a 14 percent chance at the playoffs.These are the plays that helped change the loss to New Orleans, by Win Probability Added (WPA) and Expected Points Added (EPA). Explainers here (WPA) and here (EPA). Both WPA and EPA presented from the perspective of the offense.Fake punt - 6:59, first quarterEPA: 3.61 | WPA: 11.6 percentTaysom Hill made his presence felt in this game. He returned the opening kick, he had four carries for 28 yards taking advantage of the Giants’ struggles against the read option, and was at quarterback for one of those option plays on an Alvin Kamara touchdown. His biggest contribution, though, was his pass on a fake punt midway through the first quarter.The Saints faced fourth-and-2 from their own 33-yard line, a place where most numbers wouldn’t suggest a typical conversion attempt. But with Hill as a backup quarterback/special teams ace, the Saints trusted him to throw a good pass and they picked up the first down. Instead of giving the ball to the Giants, the Saints picked up the first down, kept the drive alive, and eventually scored a field goal. Beckham behind the line - 11:47, second quarterEPA: minus-2.12 | WPA: minus-6.91 percentThrowing short of the sticks has been a recurring theme for the Giants offense and it popped up again against New Orleans. Per Next Gen Stats, only Russell Wilson (minus-5.4) had an average pass travel further behind the first down line than Eli Manning (minus-2.9) in Week 4. That’s a problem
Authentic Alec Ogletree Jersey , especially on third down.On this third-and-11, Manning hit Odell Beckham on a crossing route just 2 yards past the line of scrimmage (9 yards behind the first down marker). After a quick bobble, Beckham was immediately met by defenders and he tried to make something happen, but it turned into an eventual 8-yard loss. The Giants were forced to punt.Gallman’s fumble - 4:45, second quarterEPA: minus-6.7 | WPA: minus-20.3 percent
