The New York Giants produced one of their most anemia-inducing offensive performances of the season on Sunday afternoon, falling to the Minnesota Vikings 16–13 in a game that was difficult to watch for anyone hoping for competent quarterback play.
The fact that New York had a chance to steal a win late in the fourth quarter was nothing short of a miracle, a reality that says more about the Vikings’ own struggles to score than any resilience shown by Big Blue.
Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart experienced the harshest growing pains of his young career, looking completely overwhelmed under center. Dart completed just seven passes for a measly 33 yards and threw an interception, failing to generate any rhythm through the air. He added only seven yards on the ground, leaving the offense one-dimensional and predictable. With the passing attack nonexistent, the Giants were forced to lean entirely on the ground game to move the chains.
The Run Game and Defense Kept It Respectable
Despite the lack of aerial support, the backfield tandem of Tyrone Tracy and Devin Singletary did their best to keep the Giants competitive. Tracy was the workhorse, tallying 71 yards on 16 carries, while Singletary chipped in with 47 yards on 11 attempts. They managed to establish the run effectively enough to shorten the game, but without the threat of a pass, the Vikings’ defense eventually clamped down when it mattered most.
On the other side of the ball, the Giants’ defense deserved a better fate. Brian Burns was a wrecking ball off the edge, recording two sacks and two tackles for loss to keep pressure on Minnesota. Cornerback Paulson Adebo also provided a spark, grabbing his first interception of the year.
However, containing superstars is a tall task for this unit, and they ultimately surrendered 85 receiving yards to Justin Jefferson and allowed 114 yards on the ground, which proved to be just enough for Minnesota to escape with the win.
The Silver Lining: The Race for the Number One Pick
The loss drops the Giants to a dismal 2–13 record, a mark that stings in the present but offers massive hope for the future. With games against the Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys remaining on the schedule, the path to the number one overall pick is now clear.
If the Giants lose out, they will lock in the top selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, giving general manager Joe Schoen the ultimate asset to address the roster’s glaring holes—starting, perhaps, with the very offense that failed them on Sunday.