Has the once-mighty Giants running game actually regressed to the point where the standard for excellence has been reduced to not losing any ground?
In most every football circle, second-and-8 is the aftereffect of a failure on first down, but these Giants, these run-impaired Giants, sound as if a 2-yard gain is cause for an on-field celebration.
“When you run the ball and losing two, three yards it’s tough,’’ Eli Manning said Monday, the day after a 41-23 loss to the Broncos. “If you get two yards it’s one thing, it’s not great but you don’t want to be going backward with the running game.’’
No, the surgeon general warns going backward in the running game is hazardous to your offense. The Giants went nowhere or the wrong way so often it appeared as if someone blindfolded and then spun around their running backs in order to disorient them to the point of not knowing which way to turn. David Wilson gained five yards on his first rushing attempt. Brandon Jacobs on the next play picked up five yards for a Giants first down. It all went so wrong after that. Historically wrong, in fact.
After gaining those 10 yards, the Giants ran the ball 17 more times and produced only 13 yards. They finished with 19 rushing attempts and 23 yards, an average of 1.2 yards per carry. It was the lowest rushing total by the Giants since Nov. 12, 1989, when they ran for only six yards in Los Angeles against the Rams.
“I don’t keep track of stats,’’ left tackle Will Beatty said. “I know I’ve been a part of offensive lines that got running backs 1,000-plus yards and I plan on doing that again. With a slow start you got a fun uphill battle, but the season is far from over. In no way are we saying we can’t run the ball.’’
The Giants don’t have to say it because others are saying it for them. They’ve got only 73 rushing yards in two games, averaging 2.2 yards per attempt, which is abysmal even for the most pass-happy offense. Manning noticed the few times he tried to run a play-fake, the Broncos safeties didn’t budge, staying deep in a Cover-2 zone, fully confident the big guys up front could handle the meager rushing attack the Giants threw at them without any extra help.
“I don’t even think we’re putting ourselves in position where we can run honest play-fakes,’’ left guard Kevin Boothe said. “I guess it’s pretty easy to expect pass when we’re losing yardage on first and second downs.’’
Of the 19 rushing attempts against the Broncos, five went for negative yardage. Wilson (7-17) didn’t do much, Jacobs (7-4) did less and the only positive from Da’Rel Scott (5-2) was the speed he showed on a 23-yard screen pass for a touchdown when the game was out of hand in the fourth quarter.
The best that can be said of the running backs is none of them fumbled, but the real onus is on the offensive line. The expectation was the return of David Baas to center – he missed the opener with a knee injury — would help solidify the group, with Boothe moving back to left guard — but the results were even worse. Consider this: According to Pro Football Focus, Wilson forced four missed tackles on his seven carries. Jacobs had only four yards but got 10 yards after contact. That means the running backs had absolutely nowhere to turn, no holes to use.
“The back shouldn’t be touched in the backfield, we know that,’’ Beatty said. “We have to get them openings, he should be able to fall forward and get four yards. We have not reached that goal.’’
Manning saw on tape on many running plays five blockers did their job but one player, either a lineman or tight end, did not.
“The one guy messes up and that makes it a bad play,’’ Manning said.
The dearth of yards on the ground has caused an over-reliance on Manning’s right arm, one reason why he’s thrown more interceptions (seven) in two games than at any other time in his NFL career.
“I think this team is predicated on having balance, running the ball and countering that with the play-action pass, which is how we made a living, which is how Eli is comfortable,’’ wide receiver Victor Cruz said. “That’s the way we have to play our ballgame.’’