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Players to Watch in Week 6 matchup vs. Bengals

PLAYERS-TO-WATCH-WEEK-6

The Giants will look to win back-to-back games for the first time this season when they welcome the Cincinnati Bengals to MetLife Stadium on Sunday Night Football.

Following a cross-country trip to Seattle, the Giants saw all three phases have strong performances as they defeated the Seahawks, 29-20. The Bengals took on the Ravens at home and lost, 41-38, in overtime.

Here are five players to watch in the Week 6 primetime matchup:

QB Daniel Jones

Daniel Jones is coming off what was perhaps his best overall outing of the season. Playing in a hostile environment in Seattle, Jones completed 67.6 percent of his passes (23 of 34) for 257 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, earning a season-high passer rating of 109.6. All of this came with star wide receiver Malik Nabers sidelined due to a concussion. The 27-year-old also ran for a season-high 38 yards while forcing six missed tackles, an impressive number for any ball-carrier let alone a quarterback.

"It's always been fun to coach him because he's a true pro," coach Brian Daboll said about Jones after Sunday's win. "Again, always want the results, but have a lot of confidence in him, how he's playing, how he's preparing. You know, feel comfortable putting the ball in his hands. That's what we did early in the game. We went after them a little bit throwing the ball. So got a lot of confidence in him."

Since Week 2, the sixth-year quarterback has three games with two passing touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 100+ passer rating, while his lone interception came on a Hail Mary at the end of a game. In each of the Giants' last three outings, Jones has also completed no less than 67.5 percent of his passes.

The Giants' passing attack has an opportunity to keep the momentum going this Sunday. Over their last three games, the Bengals are allowing an average of 271 passing yards per game, including 345 yards from Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson this past week. Jones has also recorded the seventh-highest total Expected Points Added (EPA) against man coverage this season, according to Next Gen Stats, while Cincinnati has run man coverage at the 10th-highest rate this season. Jones also completed both of his deep pass attempts against the Seahawks for 71 yards and a touchdown. Meanwhile, Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt has allowed 159 receiving yards in coverage on deep targets this season, the second-most of any defender.

View photos of the Giants on the practice fields at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center.

RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.

With Devin Singletary sidelined last week due to a groin injury, Tyrone Tracy Jr. got his first expanded workload of his young NFL career. And the rookie running back certainly delivered. Tracy gained 129 yards on just 18 carries for an average of 7.2 yards per carry. According to NGS, Tracy generated a +47 rush yards over expected on Sunday, the most by a Giants running back since Week 11 of last season, aided by his four runs of 10+ yards.

"I would say the butterflies is something that is always going to happen on game day," Tracy said after his breakout game. "I prepare the right way; I have people around me that help me prepare, help me throughout the week, help me with film study, knowing the backers, knowing the D-line. For me personally, when you get out there after that first snap, the butterflies need to go away. You have to stay focused, understand the game plan, and rely on your fundamentals and technique."

It remains to be seen if Singletary, who was a limited participant at practice on Wednesday and Thursday, will return for the Week 6 matchup on Sunday Night Football. But whether or not the veteran is on the field against the Bengals, Tracy likely earned himself a role in the offense. The Bengals enter this week's game ranked 30th in the league with an average of 151.4 rushing yards allowed per game, as four of their five opponents have recorded 149 yards or more on the ground.

"I don't think he surprised me," assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Mike Kafka said Thursday about Tracy's performance. "He's been putting in great work all through camp, since he's gotten here really. He puts really good intent into the meeting rooms and on the practice field he tries to be as detailed as can be. And (Running Backs) Coach (Joel) Thomas has done a nice job of getting him up to speed. So, no, there's no surprise there. He's a good player and it's a guy that we expect him to do what he does."

TE Theo Johnson

With Nabers sidelined for last week's game, the offense needed other players to step up. Enter Theo Johnson. The rookie tight end caught just three passes for 37 yards across his first four games. But against the Seahawks, the 6-foot-4 Johnson caught all five of his targets for 48 yards. Twenty-eight of those yards came after the catch, which ranked as the second-most on the team in Week 5.

"He brings, obviously, a big body presence in the middle of the field and even out wide, getting him matched up on some smaller defenders," Jones said Wednesday about the rookie tight end. "We have a lot of confidence in him. I know there was something made about him not having as many opportunities early on, but we have a ton of confidence in him, and you saw on Sunday what he can do and his physicality, his size and strength in the middle of the field."

"Theo is a young player and he's continuing to grow each and every day," Kafka added on Thursday. "You see it in the meeting rooms. He's getting more comfortable with it. You see it on the practice field. I think the more opportunities that come his way, he's going to make those plays. That's really for any young player. You're getting into what the NFL game is like. You're getting more comfortable and more confident and Theo is doing that."

The Bengals struggled to contain the Ravens' tight ends last week. Mark Andrews registered four receptions for 55 yards, Isaiah Likely caught two touchdown passes, and even Charlie Kolar, the team's No. 3 tight end, got into the action with three catches for 64 yards and a score.

DL Dexter Lawrence

In case anyone needed a reminder, Dexter Lawrence is an absolute force in the middle of the Giants' defense. Lawrence wreaked havoc on the Seahawks' offensive line last week as the back-to-back Pro Bowl lineman registered a career-high three sacks of Geno Smith while adding four quarterback hits and six total pressures. The 26-year-old led the way for the Giants' pass rush, which finished with seven sacks on the day.

We're only five games into the 2024 season and yet Lawrence has already recorded six sacks, just a half-sack shy of Detroit's Aidan Hutchinson for the most in the NFL. Lawrence is on pace to shatter his previous career-high of 7.5 sacks set in 2022, while his 23 total pressures also has him on pace to top his previous high-mark of 65 pressures set last season. The fact that he's having this much success as a pass rusher despite lining up primarily as a nose tackle, and while facing one of the highest double-team rates of anyone in the NFL, makes his performance even more impressive. Lawrence's sack production has helped catapult the Giants into the league-lead in sacks with 22 on the season.

"It's not an easy thing," Daboll said about Lawrence's performance in Seattle. "I mean, there was times last week where there were three guys on him. So, again, he understands that. When he gets his opportunities, he's got to make them go. Very thankful that he's on our football team."

The Bengals have done a relatively good job of protecting quarterback Joe Burrow this season, as their 11 sacks allowed are tied for the 11th-fewest in the league. However, Burrow has been sacked three times in three of five games. It will be important for the Giants to get pressure on the Bengals quarterback, as Burrow is completing 74.5 percent of his passes with no pressure this season. That number drops to 60.7 percent when facing pressure.

CB Deonte Banks

The second-year cornerback is coming off potentially the best game of his young NFL career. Banks lined up against Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf on 74.5 percent of his routes (35 of 47) and limited the two-time Pro Bowl wideout to just two receptions for 24 yards on four targets. Banks registered a career-high three passes defensed and also forced a fumble on Metcalf, which the Giants were able to recover to stop a Seahawks drive in Giants territory.

"I thought Tae did some good things yesterday," Daboll told the media Monday. "Again, there's plenty of things that we can all clean up. But it was a good step to get that ball out there on DK after they were driving down on a big play and get his hands on some balls to break them up. I thought (it was) a tough challenge there against DK the entire game. But, young players still keep on improving them."

Daboll added, "Tae is in a good spot. He keeps working hard. We're going to need to keep improving all of our young players that have played."

Banks has faced some talented wide receivers to start the season, including matchups with Justin Jefferson, Terry McLaurin, Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Metcalf. Well, things won't get much easier for the 23-year-old corner on Sunday night. It remains to be seen if he will shadow one Bengals receiver in particular, but whether he lines up against Ja'Marr Chase or Tee Higgins, Banks has a tall task. Chase caught 10 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns against the Ravens last week, while Higgins brought in nine passes for 83 yards and two touchdowns. Chase currently ranks second in the NFL with 493 receiving yards, while his five receiving touchdowns are tied with Mike Evans for the league-lead.

View photos of the history between the New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals.

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