Sportsnaut
The New York Giants (2-10) versus the New England Patriots (10-2) is the biggest contrast between two teams in Week 13.
These two teams are polar opposites as their records indicate. The Patriots have won nine games in a row and sit on top of the AFC East. The Giants have lost six straight and two weeks after firing head coach Brian Daboll, this week they fired defensive coordinator Shane Bowen.
The only positive for New York is that quarterback Jaxson Dart will make his return after missing the last two weeks with a concussion. Perhaps the electric rookie quarterback can energize his team and make for a competitive game.
Here are the bold predictions for Monday’s matchup.
With Dart back in the lineup, the playbook will open up even more as he can utilize his legs more efficiently than Jameis Winston. In the two games under interim head coach Mike Kafka, the offense has been more explosive, as in their 34-37 overtime loss to the Detroit Lions last week, the offense had five plays of 30 yards or more.
Monday night will also be the first time Dart will play with Isaiah Hodgins, who has been a reliable pass catcher over the last two games, to go along with Wan’Dale Robinson, Theo Johnson, and Darius Slayton. Some may expect the rookie quarterback to be rusty after missing two games, but he’ll surprise everyone and have the first 300-yard passing game of his career.
Second-year quarterback Drake Maye is having a tremendous year and is one of the favorites to be named MVP of the league. He’s completing 71% of his passes for 3,130 with 21 touchdowns to just six interceptions.
This week, he’ll face a Giants defense under interim defensive coordinator Charlie Bullen, who took over the reins as DC after Shane Bowen was fired on Monday. The expectation is that Bullen will bring a more aggressive approach; however, he’s never called a defensive play before, so you can expect growing pains.
Look for Maye to exploit the Giants’ secondary that’s under a new scheme as he will complete his first 10 passes of the game.
Last week against the Lions, Wan’Dale Robinson had nine receptions for a career-high 156 receiving yards and a touchdown. He has been the go-to guy in the passing game ever since Malik Nabers was lost for the year due to a torn ACL.
Typically, Robinson runs short and intermediate routes, but last week he ran down the field more and had receptions of 26, 39, and 40 yards.
New England has the seventh-ranked defense in the league, but their pass defense is ranked 17th. Knowing that in order to move the ball consistently, they’ll have to attach through the air, Dart will look for his most dependable receiver often. This will result in...
