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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – This has been a very interesting start to the 2015 season, to say the least. The New York Giants had not beaten the Dallas Cowboys since 2012, coming into Sunday afternoon’s contest. Dallas has been without both of their franchise players Tony Romo and Dez Bryant due to injury. This lead to the Cowboys 2-3 record going into their second match-up against the Giants.
The Giants have had a very streaky start to the season. New York lost a 27-26 season opener to Dallas on the road. Then lost another tough game to the Atlanta Falcons, 24-20 at home the following week. This then brought up questions surrounding New York’s ability to finish games. The Giants then rallied off three straight wins, before being beaten by the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 6. It has been a season of up and downs, which had brought them to a 3-3 record going into Sunday.
Matt Cassel was under center for the Cowboys, and was more than likely the reason Dallas lost 27-20 to New York. Cassel posted an unimpressive stat line of 227 passing yards on 17 of 27 attempts. This included three interceptions and just one touchdown. All three of Cassel’s interceptions came in the 2nd half.
The Giants playing against Cassel, still managed to give up 20 points. Darren McFadden was a big reason for that, tallying 152 rushing yards on 29 carries and a touchdown. The Cowboys as a team rushed for 233 yards, which is very alarming to a Giants team with aspirations of winning the NFC East. The Giants are 25th in the NFL against the run, and Dallas exposed this issue Sunday.
Eli Manning didn’t have the huge game we’ve grown accustomed to seeing him have this season. Manning only completed 13 of 24 passes for 170 yards and no touchdowns. The main key though is that Manning did not turn the ball over, which was crucial.
Manning got help from his play-makers other than Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham Jr. has carried this team all season, but Sunday was held to just 4 catches for 35 yards and no touchdowns.
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie was a play-maker on the defensive side of the ball that dominated. Rodgers-Cromartie had two interceptions, including one he took back for a touchdown. Jon Beason also had a huge defensive impact, recording 11 tackles (7 solo). This was encouraging to see both players have big games, especially in an important rivalry game that New York needed to have.
Offensively we saw another running back get added to the committee. Orleans Darkwa had 8 carries for 48 yards and a touchdown. In the attempts Darkwa got, he ran the ball hard and impressed with his vision reading holes. It will be interesting moving forward seeing how the Giants will use Rashad Jennings. Jennings only got 5 carries, and was out carried by both Darkwa and Shane Vereen. Vereen had 4 carries for 56 yards, and has proven himself to be the effective passing down back. With Darkwa showing great potential, Jennings might have gotten his first taste of being the odd man out.
The MVP of the game however, goes to Dwayne Harris. Harris who used to play on the Cowboys, got the best revenge by taking a kickoff back 100 yards for the game winning touchdown. When asked if he was thinking about scoring Harris responded, “I always think about scoring when I touch the ball.” Harris did just that in the 4th quarter, securing a 27-20 victory for the Giants.
New York is now 4-3 on the season, and 3-1 at home. Their next opponent will be the New Orleans Saints (3-4) on the road next Sunday. The Saints have won two straight games, including knocking off the then undefeated Falcons in Week 6. The Giants can not afford to have a slow start, or let down at the end of the game. Drew Brees at home can light it up, so New York will need to be just as good defensively as they were against the Cowboys. However, we all know that Brees is much better than Cassel.
Barry Holmes is a Feature Writer for PureSportsNY.com. Follow him on Twitter @BHO732