1. Eli hangs his receivers out to dry
For an alleged elite quarterback, Eli Manning can still be terribly inaccurate.
Just ask tight end Kevin Boss and receiver Hakeem Nicks, who both were laid out going for errant passes in the first quarter. Boss paid the biggest price when he was carted off the field with a concussion. That leaves backup Travis Beckum as the only tight end on the 53-man roster.
2. Ground game barely gets off the ground
The oldest offensive line in the league played like it.
The Giants gained just eight yards on 13 carries in the first half. Ahmad Bradshaw’s 39-yard fourth-quarter scamper was the ground game’s only bright spot.
“There were a lot of errors today,” guard Chris Snee said. “[But] we were able to put up 31 points with all of those errors.”
3. Nothing special about the special teams
Carolina’s average starting field position was its own 41-yard line. If not for the Matt Moore miscues in the end zone, it would’ve been a different outcome.
Rookie punter Matt Dodge, who struggled mightily in the preseason, had his share of shanks and even had one punt blocked late in the fourth quarter, resulting in a safety.
Newcomer Darius Reynaud, who was brought over for his return skills, was ineffective with a paltry 16.8-yard kick return average.
“We didn’t cover kicks very well. We didn’t kick the ball very well. Our punter was not good until after the kickoff after the safety,” coach Tom Coughlin said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do there. We didn’t tackle well.”
