In a surprising turn of events, the New York Giants beat the Denver Broncos, 23-10. The Broncos were expected to beat the Giants with ease, coming into this game as the No. 1 defense in the NFL, and Denver faced a weakened Giants' offense. Odell Beckham Jr., Dwayne Harris, Brandon Marshall, and Sterling Shepard are all injured and their replacements are unproven backups. In addition, the Giants' defense hasn't performed at their expected level. There are multiple reasons why this upset occurred.
Recap of the game
The Giants took a commanding lead in the first half and their defense held the Denver Broncos to only three points through two quarters.
A lot of the Broncos' offensive drives led to punts and Janoris Jenkins even got an interception and ran it back for a touchdown. The Giants' offense performed unexpectedly well, despite a lot of key offensive players injured, so no one expected an offense this productive. The receivers played well and the running backs showed tremendous improvement.
Evan Engram became the primary offensive weapon and did not disappoint, as the Giants' offensive playcalling is improving each game. This is how the Giants were able to score 23 points against the best-rated defense in the league.
Key improvements in the Giants
Ben McAdoo's playcalling throughout the season has been inconsistent. Some of his calls are good, while other calls have been questionable.
For the Broncos game, he let offensive coordinator, Mike Sullivan, lead offensive play calls. Sullivan made the talent that he was given work and he set the momentum on the first drive when the Giants gained 69 yards on 13 plays. This is one of the most efficient performances of the season and kept Eli Manning out of trouble against the Broncos' defense through improving the offensive line.
Prior to this game, the Giants' run game was the worst in the league. Against the Broncos, Orleans Darkwa ran for over 100 yards. Mike Sullivan can lead the offense in ways that Ben McAdoo couldn't.
Defensively, several players contributed to the Giants victory. Eli Apple, Janoris Jenkins, and Landon Collins were key players in the Giants secondary.
Eli Apple received criticism throughout the season for his poor performance but proved in this game why he deserves a spot on the roster. Also, linemen like Damon Harrison and Jason Pierre-Paul proved their worth against the Broncos.The Broncos were held to 46 rushing yards and struggled with pass protection.
The New York Giants' season is still in jeopardy because at 1-5, a postseason run does not look attainable. However, the performance Sunday shows promise for the future. The offense and defense are comparable to analysts' preseason predictions of what they should have been. If the team continues to improve at this pace, I think that a 7-9 record is attainable.
