**
AT FIRST GLANCE**
|
|||||||||||
For the first time since Oct. 5, the Giants tasted victory with a 36-7 win over the Tennessee Titans at LP Field, snapping their seven-game losing streak to improve to 4-9 on the season.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Giants return home in Week 15 to host the Washington Redskins (3-10 after losing 24-0 to St. Louis) for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff at MetLife Stadium.
WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE OFFENSE
Similar to last week in Jacksonville, the Giants dominated the time of possession early on to take a sizeable lead into halftime.
But this time they were able to sustain it as the Eli Manning-to-Odell Beckham Jr. connection continued to grow.
The rookie wide receiver eclipsed 100 receiving yards in the first half alone, including a 50-yard catch on the Giants' second possession that set up his 15-yard touchdown three plays later.
Overall, Beckham was targeted 15 times and finished with 11 receptions for 130 yards.
From there, running back Andre Williams, another rookie who handled the bulk of the workload with Rashad Jennings fighting through an ankle injury, broke the game open with a 50-yard rushing touchdown early in the third quarter, an area that had been a problem all season.
Entering Sunday, the Giants were an NFL-worst minus-75 in the third quarter.
WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE DEFENSE
Despite placing two defensive ends -- including the Giants' season sack leader Robert Ayers Jr. -- on injured reserve this past week, the Giants were able to pressure a rookie quarterback for the second week in a row.
After sacking Jacksonville's Blake Bortles seven times last Sunday, the Giants notched eight in Tennessee against Zach Mettenberger and a banged-up Titans offensive line. Two of the sacks were also forced fumbles, including one that defensive tackle Markus Kuhn returned 26 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter.
WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE SPECIAL TEAMS
When Beckham's not making jaw-dropping catches, he's helping out field position in the punt return game. On Sunday the rookie added 49 more all-purpose yards on four returns for a 12.3-yard average with a long of 21. Meanwhile, Josh Brown, who missed his first field goal of the season last week, was perfect on Sunday, knocking in all five attempts from 20, 19, 36, 52, and 42 yards.
INACTIVES
These 5 players stood out in the Giants win over the Titans
WR Odell Beckham Jr.With 11 catches for 130 yards and a touchdown, Beckham became the first rookie in franchise history to record four 100-yard receiving games.
RB Andre WilliamsBeckham wasn't the only rookie to shine on Sunday. Williams notched the first 100-yard game of his professional career, carrying the ball 24 times for 131 yards, including a 50-yard touchdown.
LB Devon KennardThe rookie linebacker notched six solo tackles and two sacks, one of which was also the forced fumble that defensive tackle Markus Kuhn scooped up and returned for a touchdown. It was Kennard's second straight multi-sack game after recording two against Jacksonville.
DT Markus KuhnKuhn notched the Giants' first defensive touchdown of the season on a fumble recovery, which he took 26 yards into the end zone for a score in the first quarter.
Kicker Josh BrownAfter missing his first field goal of the season last week, Brown was perfect on Sunday, knocking in all five attempts from 20, 19, 36, 52, and 42 yards in addition to three extra points.
Giants: LB Jacquian Williams, LB Mark Herzlich, OT James Brewer, CB Jayron Hosley, G Eric Herman, and RB Chris Ogbonnaya. Titans: WR Kendall Wright, RB Shonn Greene, DB Jemea Thomas, OT Michael Oher, OT Taylor Lewan, DL DaQuan Jones, and LB Kamerion Wimbley.
LINEUP CHANGES
Giants: Spencer Paysinger for J. Williams at LB; Andre Williams for Rashad Jennings at RB. Titans: Will Svitek for Lewan at LT; Byron Stingily for Oher at RT; Derek Hagan for Wright at WR; Quentin Groves for Wimbley at OLB.
