Giants/Lions meet on Monday Night Football in rematch of last season’s Week 15 Giants win
Monday night’s New York Giants home opener against the Detroit Lions is a rematch of last season’s Week 15 matchup won 17-9 by the Giants.
Last season’s win was symbolic of how the Giants won games: a stingy, pass rushing defense and just enough offense to get by. Quarterback Eli Manning went 20-of-28 for 201 yards and two touchdowns: a 4-yard pass to Sterling Shepard on the game’s opening drive and a 4-yard Odell Beckham Jr. one-handed grab that sealed the victory.
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford injured the middle finger on his throwing hand the week before but it didn’t show up in the game. He finished 24-of-39 for 274 yards and an interception. Wide receiver Golden Tate was the biggest recipient of Stafford’s passes, catching eight for 122 yards.
The Giants defense was all over the Lions. After a 67-yard reception by Tate, cornerback Leon Hall hit fullback Zach Zenner causing a fumble that was recovered by defensive end Olivier Vernon in the end zone.
Placekicker Matt Prater accounted for all of the Lions’ points that day, a win that gave the Giants their best start through 14 games (10-4) since 2008 when they started 11-3. In back to back weeks, the Giants held the NFC East leading Dallas Cowboys and the NFC North leading Lions to a combined 13 points.
The paths of the Giants and Lions are opposite going into Monday night’s game.
The Giants were soundly beat by the Cowboys 19-3 in Week 1. Their offense looked lost without Beckham, who sat out with a high ankle sprain. Beckham not only scored the go-ahead touchdown in last season’s meeting but he also had a 63-yard punt return that was wiped out by an illegal block.
Stafford is now the highest paid player in NFL history. He justified his salary with two fourth quarter touchdowns in the Lions’ 35-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. Detroit set an NFL record in 2016 with rallying to win eight games after trailing in the fourth quarter. They began 2017 where they left off last season.
Both teams have difficulty running the ball. In last year’s matchup, the Giants had 114 yards on 32 carries while the Lions had just 56 yards on 19 carries. Against the Cardinals, Detroit ran for 82 yards on 27 carries while the Giants only managed 35 yards on 12 carries against Dallas.
Each team’s top receiver is dealing with an injury. Beckham’s status for Monday night’s game is unknown because of the high ankle sprain he suffered more than three weeks ago in a preseason game. Detroit’s Golden Tate injured his left ring finger against the Cardinals, prompting him to quip “I got nine more” when asked if the injury would keep him from playing against the Giants.
The Giants have won four of their last five meetings against the Lions. The four Giants victories were by a combined 28 points. Detroit beat the Giants 35-14 in the 2014 regular season opener at Ford Field.
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