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Storylines to follow in Week 10 matchup vs. Panthers

WEEK-10-STORYLINES

The New York Giants (2-7) will fly overseas to take on the Carolina Panthers (2-7) at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.

While the Panthers were able to snap a five-game losing streak in their win over the Saints this past Sunday, the Giants fell to the Commanders for their fourth consecutive loss.

The Giants will look to flip this recent trend when they travel to Germany for their fourth game all-time in the NFL International Series. All three of their previous international games took place in London, with the Giants earning a 3-0 record in those games.

Following the trip, both teams will have some time to rest as they enter their Week 11 byes.

Here are five storylines to follow heading into the Week 10 matchup.

Giants look to enter bye on high note

The midway point of the 2024 season is now in the rearview mirror. Heading into Week 10, the Giants are not where they wanted to be at the start of the season with their 2-7 record. Despite what the record shows, five of the team's seven losses were one-possession games late in the fourth quarter, which highlights the fight that this team has shown for most of the season.

"I think we've got a lot of the right guys that are made of the right DNA," coach Brian Daboll told the media Wednesday afternoon. "Team first players. Again, you're not happy about the results, but you control what you can control, which is the upcoming week. We've got a bunch of guys that do that each and every week."

Through the first nine weeks of the season, the Giants are among the league-leaders in snaps played by rookies. While a big part of this is due to their production on the field, the group of first-year players have also proven to have the right mindset as they get more and more comfortable playing at the NFL level.

"It's important for veterans to have leadership presence, but I'd say our rookies have a lot of leadership in them too," Daboll said. "Again, they're playing a lot of football. They're learning as we go, but they all have the right mindset. I'm pleased with how they act outside the building, inside the building, the work they put in and their skill set. I really enjoy working with these young guys. They're made of the right kind of stuff."

View photos of the Giants' 2024 rookie class in their first NFL season.

Continue to establish the run

It was clear heading into last week's game against the Commanders that the Giants' offensive game plan revolved around establishing the run. Quarterback Daniel Jones attempted just six passes in the first half as the Giants leaned heavily on its rushing attack. Jones, Tyrone Tracy and the rest of the Giants' run game combined for 21 carries for 142 yards in the first half alone, good for an average of 6.8 yards per carry.

Tracy once again finished as the Giants' leading rusher with 66 yards on 16 carries (4.1 avg.). The first-year running back has taken advantage of his opportunity since becoming the team's lead back in Week 5. Over the last five weeks, Tracy has three outings with over 100 total yards of offense, two games with an average of more than 7.0 yards per carry, and has found the end zone twice. Despite totaling just 12 rush attempts through the first four games of the season, Tracy leads all rookies in rushing yards (442) along with runs of 20- and 10-plus yards (four and 11, respectively).

The Panthers have struggled on the defensive side of the ball this year, especially when it comes to the run game. Carolina has surrendered 1,434 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground this season, both of which rank as the most in the league. Three of their last four opponents have rushed for more than 195 yards, and only one team has totaled less than 100 rushing yards against the Panthers this season.

Get the pass rush back on track

For the first time all season, the Giants' defense was held without a sack in last week's loss to the Commanders. Nevertheless, the Giants still lead the NFL with their 35 sacks on the season, four more than any other team, while their 63 quarterback hits rank fourth and sit just three behind the Ravens for the league-lead.

The Giants have registered a 35.0 percent pressure rate on the season, according to Next Gen Stats, which is the 10th in the NFL. Their 44.2 percent pressure rate when blitzing comes in at No. 11. However, the unit's 35.7 percent pressure to sack conversion rate leads all teams. Additionally, the Giants have recorded a sack on a league-leading 12.5 percent of opponents' drop-backs.

Defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence leads the team, and ranks second among all NFL defenders, with his nine sacks on the year. He also ranks third among defensive tackles with 28 pressures, according to NGS. The most impressive part about Lawrence's dominance this season is the fact that he's been double-teamed on a league-high 64.6 percent of his pass rushes. In fact, half of his pressures this season have come when double-teamed.

While Lawrence leads the team in sacks, outside linebacker Brian Burns leads the team with 35 pressures, including 17 quick pressures. The former Carolina Panther was held without a pressure this past Sunday for just the second time in his career. This comes after the 26-year-old picked up a sack in four consecutive games. Burns has lined up on both ends of the line at almost an equal rate this season, so he's likely to see both Panthers tackles on Sunday. Starting left tackle Ikem Ekwonu missed last week's game and his status for Week 10 remains in doubt. Backup tackle Brady Christensen played all 50 snaps at LT last week and allowed four pressures on 29 pass blocks (13.8 percent). On the other side of the line, Taylor Moton has allowed 14 pressures on 238 pass block snaps at right tackle (5.9 percent).

"He's been a good addition for us," Daboll said about Burns. "Good leadership, good player for us. Glad we got him."

Daboll added, "He's a difficult guy to block, good pass rusher and then not knowing the player, called some guys that have coached him in the past when we got him, I was excited we got him."

View rare photos of the history between the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers.

Injury & roster updates

Kicker Graham Gano has been designated for return to practice. Coach Brian Daboll announced the news Wednesday afternoon as the Giants began on-field preparations for Sunday's game against the Panthers in Munich, Germany.

Gano, who hurt his hamstring attempting to make a tackle on the opening kickoff of the Giants' Week 2 game at Washington, has been on injured reserve since Sept. 17.

The Giants had subsequently signed veteran Greg Joseph and the veteran made 13 of 16 field goal attempts in six games with his new team. However, Joseph missed this past Sunday's game against the Commanders with an abdominal injury and was placed on injured reserve. That opened the door for Jude McAtamney to make his NFL debut at MetLife Stadium, where he kicked a 31-yard field goal and an extra point.

In addition to Gano, Daboll also announced that the Giants signed cornerback Art Green from the practice squad to the active roster, and punter Matt Haack, who was released on Tuesday, has re-signed to the practice squad. The team also signed center Bryan Hudson to the practice squad.

"He's been doing a good job," Daboll said Wednesday about Green. "Going to give him an opportunity at gunner. Some DB stuff, kind of fourth, fifth DB. He's done a good job since he's been here. So, that's what we did."

In other injury news, Daboll said that wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton (Achilles), defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence (veteran rest day), wide receiver Darius Slayton (concussion protocol), and guard Greg Van Roten (shoulder) would not practice Wednesday.

The head coach said Slayton is not where Tracy was in the protocol at this point last week, putting his status for Sunday's game in question.

"He could possibly not travel," the head coach said about Slayton. "We'll see where he's at. Yeah, that hasn't been decided yet, but if he's not progressing where he needs to progress, there's a chance we could not travel him."

Scouting the Panthers

Let's start with the offense, where the Panthers rank 29th in points and 30th in yards on the season, while their 15 turnovers are tied for the third-most. Carolina's also has the league's 29th-best third down offense and 31st-ranked fourth down offense. The Panthers have converted on 63.6 percent of their trips inside the red zone this season, the eighth-best mark in the NFL, although their 22 red zone attempts are tied for the fourth-fewest.

Panthers head coach Dave Canales announced Wednesday that Bryce Young will get his third consecutive start at quarterback this week. The second-year signal-caller has thrown for a total of 395 yards across his last two starts to go with three touchdowns and three interceptions. He has also completed 63.5 percent of his passes during that span. This is a stark improvement from his first two starts, when he completed only 55.4 percent of his passes for 245 yards, zero touchdowns, and three interceptions.

Running back Chuba Hubbard has enjoyed some success in the run game this year. He is averaging 5.0 yards per carry after gaining 665 yards on 133 attempts along with five touchdowns. The veteran has added 26 receptions for 108 yards and an additional score. The Panthers also appear likely to get Jonathon Brooks on the field for the first time this season. The rookie running back has been recovering from a torn ACL suffered last November while playing at Texas. Canales expressed optimism that the second-round pick would make his NFL debut in Munich this Sunday.

Following their trade of veteran wide receiver Diontae Johnson last week, the Panthers have emphasized a youth movement among their pass-catchers. Rookie wideout Xavier Legette leads the team's wide receivers with 26 receptions and four touchdowns, while his 244 receiving yards fall one short of rookie tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders for the most on the team. Legette has caught a touchdown pass in three of the last four games, while Sanders is coming off a season-high 87 receiving yards on four receptions. Undrafted rookie wide receiver Jalen Coker has also totaled six receptions for 114 yards and a touchdown over the last two weeks.

The Panthers' defense ranks last in the league in both points and yards allowed this year. As mentioned earlier in this article, their run defense has given up the most yards and touchdowns in the NFL. Their pass defense has been a bit better, ranking 25th in yards and 28th in touchdowns allowed through the air. Carolina also has the No. 32-ranked third down defense, while their red zone defense comes in at No. 28.

Outside linebacker Charles Harris leads the team with three sacks, while former Giants defensive lineman A'Shawn Robinson is right behind him with two. As a team, the Panthers have totaled just 10 sacks through nine games, tied for the second-fewest in the NFL. Harris and Robinson have also combined for 10 of the Panthers' 25 quarterback hits.

The Panthers' secondary is fresh off one of its best outings of the season. Starting cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Michael Jackson both allowed zero receptions as the nearest defender in coverage in last week's win over the Saints. Horn, Jackson and safety Xavier Woods have accounted for the defense's three interceptions in 2024, while Horn and Jackson have a combined 16 passes defensed. The rest of the team has a total of 13 pass breakups.

View photos from the New York Giants' previous regular-season trips to Europe, where they are 3-0.

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