The Giants held their players-only meeting on Monday, and linebacker Alec Ogletree said, “I’ll just leave it at, the players wanted to have our meeting and we had our meeting and accomplished what we wanted to get done.’’
Members of the defense not long after Sunday’s 31-26 loss to the Lions in Detroit hatched the idea to meet without the coaches to air any grievances and stress accountability as the Giants’ losing streak reached four games.
Coach Pat Shurmur had no problem with the meeting, saying, “I think it’s good. … I think it’s pretty obvious we fell a couple plays short of winning that football game. I think they are going to get together and discuss it — that’s a players-only thing.’’
Ogletree, a team captain, opted not to divulge any specifics of the meeting, other than to indicate it served the intended purpose.
“We’re going to keep all that kind of stuff between us as players,’’ rookie quarterback Daniel Jones said. “I think there’s a certain sense of urgency in the building, but in terms of that stuff, we’re going to keep that in-house.’’
In the four-game losing streak that leaves them 2-6 at midseason, the Giants did not hold a lead in any of the losses.
Once the Giants get behind, they stay behind.
The Giants made history when they trailed 14-0 after one quarter in their latest loss. It was the same deficit they faced a week earlier after the first quarter against the Cardinals. This was the first time in franchise history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Giants ever trailed by at least 14 points after one quarter in back-to-back games.
Linebacker Deone Bucannon made his Giants debut, getting 11 snaps when the defense was in the nickel package. Bucannon, during his time in Arizona, was solid in coverage, but in his first game with his new team, he was subbed off the field on third-and-long, obviously passing situations. Moving forward, expect him to be on the field in those spots.
“I thought he did a pretty good job really for the first time out,’’ Shurmur said. “Obviously, look forward to giving him more reps as we go.’’
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