Giants

King named Kayvon Thibodeaux one of the Defensive Players of the Week. "After missing the start of his rookie season with a knee injury, it took until week six ...

"The Jets and the Giants are each riding three-game win streaks—remarkable since the two teams combined for eight wins total in the 2021 season. This is the first time since 2009 that the Giants have gone 5-1 to start the season, and it's clear this team is building a consistent identity, something like what Matt Rhule wanted his Panthers to be: "The Toughest, Hardest-Working, Most Competitive Team in the NFL." Six weeks always feels like the point in the NFL season when you can really start to form an opinion, and the Giants have certainly shown us they can play with and beat anyone in close games because they are extremely well-coached." Looking ahead, the Giants play the Jaguars, Seahawks, Texans and Lions. "The Giants are a very well-coached team. The Giants are 5-1 for the first time since 2009 after Sunday's comeback win over the Ravens, and it followed the same pattern as we've seen in each of New York's five victories. [Lamar Jackson's](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/players/2239671/lamar-jackson/) interception late in the fourth quarter, it felt like the Ravens offense was going to march down the field and score a game-winning touchdown. This is the first time since 2009 the Giants have started 5-1 or better in the Super Bowl era. "Daboll waited patiently for his first head-coaching opportunity, and he's making the most of it so far. With the Giants holding a slim four-point lead and the Ravens driving late in the fourth, Thibodeaux strip-sacked Lamar Jackson, and Leonard Williams recovered to seal the win for the G-Men. "The Giants are 5-1 and already have more wins then they had all of last year. The moment clearly meant a lot to Thibodeaux, whose Giants are now 5-1 and keeping pace in a red-hot NFC East."

The New York Giants' defense had another tough task this week against star quarterback Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens offense. The good news?

It looked like it was about to go out of bounds, and it went down the middle of the field.” Like I’ve been saying, we just need to move on to next week, and we can’t bask in defeat, and we can’t bask in victory. The Giants' pressure reached Jackson quickly, and he uncharacteristically tried to make a play off his back foot. We had every excuse under the sun to say, ‘oh, we’re tired, we were traveling,’ all these other things, but this team is just staying on the mission and focusing on what’s important.” We watch film, we correct mistakes, and correcting the mistakes is just a lot easier when you have the win. “The same way that we have to move on from a bad loss. It’s always harder to correct mistakes after a loss. We’re just excited that we came away with the win,” Williams said. The Giants have been a second-half team all season. Williams, who had been sidelined for three games due to a knee injury in Week 2, finally returned to the field. Things did not look good, especially with Ravens tight end Mark Andrews consistently getting open and gashing the Giants defense for chunk plays. Lawrence was also key in stopping the run in Williams’ absence, something that was missed in those three weeks.

The New York Giants (5-1) are still getting no love from Vegas, opening as 2.5-point home underdogs to the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-4).

The Giants are 25th in total offense and 15th in total defense. They average 23.0 points per game on offense and are allowing opponents 19.0 points per game. The Jaguars are 11th in total offense and 11th in total defense.

Wink Martindale 'on top of the world' after Giants' win. The Giants were not surprised Lamar Jackson tried to make a play on the interception.

(on how surprised he was that Jackson tried to make that play): "I guess I'm not too shocked because he's a play makerplaymaker. (on Lamar Jackson's late interception): "Honestly the way it went up in the air it kind of did seem like he was throwing it away because he kind of just threw it off his back foot. (on what he was thinking coming around the corner): "I mean, you know, you've just got to get him. (on Martindale's emotions after the win): "He was on top of the world. (on getting his first career sack in a clutch situation): "No, I mean, just fighting all year so far. It's always a good thing when you have a lot to clean up, and you get the win. Kind of just going off to just the mindset that I have in my training and, also, credit to the coaches and how they prepare us in camp for us to continue to get stronger as the game continues to go on." (on his slide at the end of the game): "The run before that, we have a call that alerts us. The run before that, I feel like if I really wanted to, I could have went this way and kind of scored but I was focused on protecting the ball. (on their mindset of never being out of a game): "It's just a tough group. Obviously, we gave up some plays there to (Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark) Andrews and in the run game a little bit, tightened down up in the red zone, but when it counted the most, the players and Wink dialed up a couple of good schemes and the players executed well in the fourth quarter. It's hard to stick with it and get ready to play the next series and not worry about if you just got beat on a pass or if you got sacked.

Kayvon Thibodeaux — Giants fans were waiting ... and waiting for the No. 5 overall pick to get his first NFL sack. He couldn't have picked a more dramatic ...

As the Giants were rallying down the stretch the veteran wide receiver was standing on a bench waving towels to hype the crowd and exhorting his teammates as they earned another unexpected victory. Brightwell had a 47-yard second-quarter kickoff return to set up the Giants first touchdown. Sunday, he had a career-best five receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown. the He took advantage of an ill-advised throw from a panicked Ravens’ quarterback Lamar Jackson to set the Giants up for the eventual game-winning touchdown. Another week, another late-fourth quarter game-winning drive for Jones — his fourth of the season. The truly impressive drive for Jones was the 12-play, 75-yard fourth-quarter touchdown drive with the Giants trailing, 20-10. He played just 15 snaps, but had three catches for 37 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown. Why is Shepard, on IR with a torn ACL, getting a ‘Kudos’? and waiting for the No. Wan’Dale Robinson — The second-round pick returned after a four-week absence due to a knee injury, and quickly showed what the Giants have been missing. He is playing the most dominant football of his four-year NFL career.

The Giants are getting some solid play from their 2022 draft class, and tight end Daniel Bellinger is leading the way.

It can bring a hybrid to the game, just helping our offense whether we need a big block on a run or a slip out for a pass.” They've had to look more towards Bellinger for a Giants offense that has been decimated with injuries at the wide receiver position. It’s a big part of the game. Bellinger has also made his presence known in the run game. I think it comes down to keep going in that manner and just knowing what to do,” Bellinger said. Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka have put their trust in Bellinger, as he’s had some big plays over the last few weeks. Just keep going and keep moving.” The most exciting one was wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson, who caught three passes for 37 yards and hauled in his first career touchdown. In addition to Bellinger, edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux had the strip sack on quarterback Lamar Jackson late in the fourth quarter to seal the game. We fight hard, and we just keep fighting when the tables are down. They’ve shown that they are a second-half team, usually starting the game off very slowly and then turning it up once the fourth quarter begins. “It's more or less just keep fighting," Bellinger said of the team's 5-1 start.

Yes, you read that correctly. The odds makers list the 5-1 Giants as underdogs ahead of their Week 7 road game against the 2-3 Jaguars.

[the Giants tied an NFL record in the Super Bowl era](https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/34811454/giants-tie-mark-4th-win-underdog-first-6-games) when they defeated the Baltimore Ravens Sunday. Both games were close, so perhaps the Jaguars' ability to keep things close, combined with the aforementioned elements, is the reason for the early-week optimism. That's right, the Giants are an underdog. Whatever the reason, it's a curious decision. - Listen and subscribe to the daily [open as a 3.5-point underdog](https://www.sisportsbook.com/football/usa/nfl/new-york-giants-jacksonville-jaguars-e-438569/) to the 2-4 Jacksonville Jaguars.

Browns (2-4) at Ravens (3-3). Featured Game | Baltimore Ravens vs. Cleveland Browns. Powered by Caesars Sportsbook.

[Bears](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/CHI/chicago-bears/) (2-4) at Patriots (3-3) [-365BET NOW ] [-7.5-110BET NOW ] [o39.5-110BET NOW ] [+285BET NOW ] [+7.5-110BET NOW ] [u39.5-110BET NOW ] [Buccaneers](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/TB/tampa-bay-buccaneers/) (3-3) at [Panthers](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/CAR/carolina-panthers/) (1-5) [+400BET NOW ] [+10.5-110BET NOW ] [o40.5-110BET NOW ] [-550BET NOW ] [-10.5-110BET NOW ] [u40.5-110BET NOW ] However, that has since come down to -7 as they take on a Seattle team that is a respectable 3-3 on the year and just held the Cardinals to three field goals in a win on Sunday. [Browns](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/CLE/cleveland-browns/) (2-4) at Ravens (3-3) [-292BET NOW ] [-6.5-110BET NOW ] [o46.5-110BET NOW ] [+235BET NOW ] [+6.5-110BET NOW ] [u46.5-110BET NOW ] [Tom Brady](/nfl/players/187741/tom-brady/) and the offense struggled in the red zone, converting for a touchdown on just one of their four trips. After opening as a 1-point favorite in the spring, Jacksonville moved to a field-goal favorite in the lookahead and that's held through the events of Week 6. was a 7.5-point favorite when this line opened in May and still held that mark in the lookahead last week. [Jets](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/NYJ/new-york-jets/) taking down the [Packers](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/GB/green-bay-packers/) at Lambeau Field, the [Falcons](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/ATL/atlanta-falcons/) beating the [49ers](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/SF/san-francisco-49ers/) by double digits, and the [Steelers](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/PIT/pittsburgh-steelers/) outlasting the Bucs at home. [Carson Wentz](/nfl/players/1907522/carson-wentz/) after he fractured a finger on his throwing hand. Not only that, but the [Eagles](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/PHI/philadelphia-eagles/) remained undefeated with a win over the [Cowboys](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/DAL/dallas-cowboys/), and the [Giants](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/NYG/new-york-giants/) continued their hot start to the season, moving to 5-1 after beating the [Ravens](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/BAL/baltimore-ravens/) at MetLife Stadium. Baltimore was a 5-point favorite when this line first opened in the spring and jumped to a 6-point favorite in the lookahead line. This line jumped up to Cardinals -2.5 on the lookahead after initially opening up at 2-points in the spring.

The Giants.com crew reacts to the 5-1 start, including the most recent comeback win over the Ravens.

It was clear after the game that the players on defense rallied around their coordinator in Sunday's game against the Ravens, where Martindale had spent the previous 10 seasons. More importantly, the defense registered turnovers on each of the Ravens' final two possessions, one of which led to the game-winning touchdown and the other that sealed the victory for Big Blue, including the defense's first interception of the season. Red zone efficiency or the lack thereof turned out to be a huge difference maker as the Giants once again walked the very fine line of winning and losing in the NFL. The defense held 2019 league MVP Lamar Jackson to a 53.1 completion percentage and a 71.1 passer rating, some of his lowest marks of the season. The Giants' defense deserves credit given tight end Mark Andrews was open on one of those plays before a Dane Belton deflection caused the ball to ricochet off Andrews and fall incomplete. Lance Medow: If there's one statistic that defined Sunday's game for both teams, it's play in the red zone on both offense and defense. "To sit up here and say that we're going to do this or we're going to do that, like look, all I know how to do is work," Daboll said at the press conference in the middle of winter. When the Ravens got the ball twice late in the fourth quarter with a chance to win the game, the Giants forced two turnovers. That's the QCs, that's the people underneath the head trainer. A week removed from his Buffalo offense putting on a show for the ages against Kansas City in a divisional playoff game, Daboll had just driven through a snowstorm after being offered the job in East Rutherford. Lamar Jackson's interception gave the Giants the ball on the Ravens 13 to set-up Saquon Barkley's touchdown. The Ravens had four plays go for 20 or more yards, including two that went for 30.

The New York Giants improbable run continued on Sunday with their 24-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 6. Wins like this past week over the Ravens ...

They just don’t have the ability to beat themselves AND the other team. The Ravens were able to play with more defenders close to the line of scrimmage and Barkley saw a stacked box on 36.36 percent of his carries, per NFL NextGenStats. The Giants’ inability to consistently move the ball through the air is starting to be a real problem for them. But I would contend that Joe Schoen needs to start talking to his financial people about extending Lawrence following the 2022 season. Hopefully Robinson’s return to the field will help alleviate that problem. A big reason why the Ravens were able to bottle Barkley up was that the Giants don’t really threaten teams down the field. Without being in the meeting room, we can’t say why, but we’ve seen evidence of the Giants taking short gains as opposed to longer ones. That opened the door for the Giants to capitalize and stun their opponent. However, the first significant action of his NFL career was a breath of fresh air. The Giants are obviously a flawed team. It looked as though the Giants would have a hard-fought loss against the Ravens. While the Giants were far from the incompetent mess we’ve seen in previous years, they looked every bit the “scrappy underdog” for much of those games.