The Giants offense, for the third time in four games, couldn’t get anything going in primetime, falling 24-3 to the Seahawks in what many felt was a must-win game with the potent Dolphins and Bills coming up in the next two weeks.
Despite the stakes of the game, Big Blue looked thoroughly overmatched from start to finish, particularly on offense. The Giants showed no ability to make up for injuries on the offensive line, as the Seahawks pass rush logged 11 sacks, one of them resulting in a fumble recovery.
Evan Neal, who many hoped would take a step forward in year two and justify his draft status, was repeatedly beaten throughout the night, as Daniel Jones had little time to get the ball out in an all-out disaster.
“We take responsibility for those 11 sacks,” Neal said. “We just have to play better. There’s no excuse for it…right now, we’re just not playing our best ball.”
Jones instead put the blame on himself after throwing two interceptions and taking sacks when they were avoidable. One on sack, Jones ran out of bounds behind the line of scrimmage instead of throwing the ball away.
“Obviously, I didn’t play well enough,” Jones said. “It was unacceptable and I let the team down. I’ve got to fix it, work hard to get it right, and I’m gonna do it.”
Jones’ biggest mistake came late in the third quarter, when the game was still within reach at 14-3. Knocking on the door, Jones threw an interception to Devon Witherspoon at the 3-yard line, and it was returned 97 yards to the house to blow the game open.
“Terrible decision,” Jones said. “Awful mistake. Can’t afford to do that.”