Sportsnaut
The New York Giants (1-3) will look to win back-to-back games for the first time since the 2023 season when they travel to Louisiana to battle the New Orleans Saints (0-4) on Sunday.
Despite losing Malik Nabers for the year with a torn ACL, the energy around the Giants this week has been positive following their 21-18 upset win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
Big Blue is expected to keep its winning ways alive on Sunday, but in the NFL, nothing is given. They will need their best players to shine when it matters most to be victorious.
Jaxson Dart played well in his first NFL start and provided a spark the team desperately needed. He completed 65% of his passes, threw one touchdown and ran for another. More importantly, he did not commit a turnover.
Now the question is: what he can do for an encore in his first start on the road? The 22-year-old quarterback has a favorable matchup going against a Saints defense that’s 30th in scoring. Playing in New Orleans is always a tough place for young signal-callers to play, and the Saints have had a week to watch film on him.
If he can handle the rowdy Caesars Superdome crowd and operate as he did last week, he’ll improve to 2-0 as a starter.
With Nabers out, Wan’Dale Robinson is now the No. 1 option in the passing game. The fourth-year receiver is tied with Nabers for receptions with 18 and second in targets with 35.
Robinson will continue to operate out of the slot, but his targets will increase significantly as he’ll run intermediate routes to be a safety valve for Dart and to keep the chains moving. Occasionally, Robinson has had an issue with drops, and he’ll need to fix that as he’ll be relied upon more than ever.
New Orleans knows he will be the primary option, and how he handles being the team’s go-to guy on Sunday will indicate what to expect from him and the offense for the remainder of the season.
While Robinson will be the Giants’ new No. 1 receiver, Darius Slayton will be relied upon to be the playmaker on the outside. It’s impossible to replace a receiver of the caliber of Nabers, but if New York is going to have explosive plays via the passing game, they’re going to come from Slayton.
Slayton has had a quiet start to the season, catching nine passes for 135 yards, and hasn’t found the end zone. The team re-signed the 28-year-old receiver to a three-year, $36 million contract in the offseason because he is reliable and a great locker room presence.
For his career, he averages 15 yards per reception but hasn’t had a season with more than 770 receiving yards. Slayton will need to set a new career high in receiving yards for Big Blue not to have one of the worst passing games in the league.
Brian Burns...
