AT A GLANCE

After two heated rounds of joint practices earlier in the week, the New York Giants and Detroit Lions got reacquainted in the preseason opener on Thursday night at MetLife Stadium. Propelled by two touchdowns from second-year running back Eric Gray, the Giants came out on top with a 14-3 victory.

UP NEXT

The Giants resume training camp on Sunday and will gear up to face the Texans in Houston on Saturday, Aug. 17 (1 p.m. ET). After that, the Jets will host the Giants for a joint practice in Florham Park leading up to their preseason finale on Saturday, Aug. 24. Three days later, clubs must reduce active rosters to a maximum of 53 players.

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE OFFENSE

With Daniel Jones and the first-team offensive line getting the night off, below is a look at the starters on Thursday night:

• QB Drew Lock
• LT Joshua Ezeudu
• LG Jake Kubas*
• C Austin Schlottmann
• RG Aaron Stinnie
• RT Joshua Miles
• WR Jalin Hyatt
• WR Malik Nabers*
• TE Daniel Bellinger
• TE Chris Manhertz
• RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.*

*Rookie

Eric Gray reminded people why the Giants selected him in the fifth round of last year's draft. The running back racked up 98 yards from scrimmage (52 rushing and 46 receiving) while finding the end zone twice. He opened the scoring with a 48-yard touchdown run – he had 48 rushing yards in 13 appearances as a rookie – and later punched in another from a yard out, giving the Giants a 14-3 halftime lead.

Additionally, rookie Dante "Turbo" Miller added 63 yards on 12 carries. Miller signed as a rookie free agent in April after three years at Columbia (2018-21; the Ivy League did not play in 2020) and the 2022 season at South Carolina. He had hoped to play for the Gamecocks in 2023 but was ruled ineligible by the NCAA after the deadline to declare for the 2023 NFL Draft. Instead, Miller became a free agent that was not included in the 2024 draft class.

Overall, it was a good sign for a young and inexperienced running back room behind veteran Devin Singletary.

"These young guys have performed well when called upon," Daboll said recently, "and this will be an important preseason for all of them."

Lock left with 2:03 left in the first quarter due to a hip injury and was replaced by Tommy DeVito.

Brian Daboll, the first person to win both Coach of the Year and Assistant Coach of the Year awards, returned to his roots as a play-caller for the offense on Thursday night. Assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, who called the plays in Daboll's first two seasons as coach, remained in the coaches' booth.

"I have people that I rely on the last two years, communication-wise," Daboll said recently when asked how he will handle all of the responsibilities. "That's part of the process of going through all those things and seeing it. It'll be good to do. … That's what these preseason games are for. Go through that process. I think every team we play this year that has an offensive head coach besides one, they call the plays. I've talked to plenty of people. I just want to go through the process of the preseason, the mechanics of it, the communication with my staff, really in all three phases, plus the people that help me with game management. So that's much needed."

Daboll added, "It's very similar to how we've done it, other than you're communicating to the quarterback during the offensive series. I have a great staff that you rely on in between series so you can communicate, stay on the line, when the defense is on the line. Be able to communicate with special teams with situations that come up. I have a separate line that I'm able to talk to the two guys that help me, (director of football data & innovation) Ty (Siam) and (offensive assistant/game manager) Cade (Knox). That's what this is for. A little bit of trial and error, just to see how it goes here for the preseason, but I feel confident in it."

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE DEFENSE

The starting lineup for the defense on Thursday night:

• OLB Boogie Basham
• DL D.J. Davidson
• DL Ryder Anderson
• DL Jordan Phillips
• OLB Azeez Ojulari
• ILB Dyontae Johnson
• ILB Darius Muasau*
• CB Deonte Banks
• CB Tre Hawkins III
• S Dane Belton
• S Tyler Nubin*

*Rookie

Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen issued a challenge to his players on the morning of June 12, the final day of spring practice.

"I want to see guys grab these opportunities," Bowen said before the team dispersed, "and run with them."

At the time, Bowen was a little more than four months into his new job, the same one he held for the previous three years with the Titans. Bowen had seen improvement but "not enough" in his view.

"I think it's going to be more telling come August," he concluded.

Now the time has come, and the preseason is underway.

"I think they accepted the challenge going into the offseason," Bowen said. "I'm very pleased with how they came back in shape, ready to go. I feel like there's been good recall from the spring in terms of what we're asking them to do, and guys are making plays. They've shown up. It's been various guys as we've went here, but we're kind of starting to see guys show up, making plays, and give themselves a chance to earn a bigger role."

Count linebacker Dyontae Johnson among that group. The 6-foot-2, 230-pounder has made some noise at training camp after he spent last season on the Giants' practice squad as an undrafted rookie out of Toledo. He backed that up with a strong outing against the Lions, showing good pursuit for a sack on the Lions' opening possession. On the second series, he teamed up with defensive lineman Jordon Riley for a run stop to force a punt.

Speaking of young and physical defenders, rookie Dru Phillips delivered a big hit on running back Jermar Jefferson for a loss of two yards. The third-round pick out of Kentucky debuted on the first unofficial depth chart as the top nickel cornerback.

Rookie linebacker Darius Muasau, a sixth-round pick, also made his presence felt with a four tackles.

Overall, the Giants recorded four sacks among eight tackles for loss while holding the Lions to five third-down conversions on 17 attempts. Detroit was also unsuccessful on four fourth downs and three trips to the red zone, where last season Bowen boasted the No. 1 defense inside the 20 with Tennessee.

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT SPECIAL TEAMS

On a scale of one to 10, special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial said the new kickoff rules are a "seven" in terms of how different it is for players and coaches to learn.

"There's always been studies based off of expected points where you get the ball at, field position," Ghobrial said. "With special teams, it's undeniable that it is the game of field position where you position the offense, where you position the defense, directly correlates to whether you can prevent somebody from coming out with points or, when it's your team, score points. So there are, obviously, yard-line studies based off of expected points and everything. With this new kickoff rule and kickoff return rule, I think, ultimately, the strategy comes into play once we actually practice it in a game to know what you're actually seceding when you kick a touchback, how that feels. Let's say your offense does get a first down, but then has to punt. What does that feel like to the opponent? What does that feel like to you? That's where this game is going to be very, very revealing."

In preparation, Ghobrial has drawn up 50 different return possibilities.

"Now, does that mean that I'll be able to have all 50 come into action? I don't believe so," he said. "I think, ultimately, the foundational piece of your kickoff return scheme has to start simple. I think a lot of people will be simple to start in preseason, and that will ultimately tell you how complex you can get with your scheme in a few games."

With 32 clubs still figuring out how it's all going to work, Isaiah McKenzie was the first returner up for the Giants and returned the opening kickoff for 31 yards. However, it was negated by a holding penalty on Isaiah Hodgins.

On the other side, Detroit returned three kickoffs under the new rules for 76 yards (25.3 yards per return).

GAMEDAY CAPTAINS

S Dane Belton, TE Daniel Bellinger

IN-GAME INJURY REPORT

QB Drew Lock (hip)