It may only be two weeks in, but whatever momentum we thought was propelling the New York Giants into this season was all hype and no substance.
The Giants allowed 60 unanswered points to begin their campaign before marching back to post 31 in a comeback win over the depleted Arizona Cardinals.
That begs the question of how the Giants will be able to handle a significantly tougher test with the NFC favorite San Francisco 49ers on Thursday Night Football.
The 49ers have scored 60 points and are looking for a 3-0 start for the first time since 2019.
San Francisco has looked every bit as good as projected. It may feel easy to take a favorite with 10 points on the spread against a banged-up underdog — especially with the amount of public action they’re seeing.
Giants vs. 49ers pick
The Giants’ defensive unit has been ineffectual, with zero turnovers or sacks.
Their offensive line has been even more of an issue than expected, as Daniel Jones is the second-most sacked quarterback in the league at 10 in just two games.
He’s also second in interceptions thrown with three.
Things won’t look better with running back Saquon Barkley and left tackle Andrew Thomas out of the picture.
Matt Breida takes over as the lead backfield option — the veteran had 4.7 YPC in his first season with the G-Men in 2022.
In last week’s second-half awakening, Jones showed some of the reasons he signed a $160 million contract and threw for 250-plus yards with three total touchdowns.
He’s been able to rush for an average of 51 yards through two games, which will be an asset when evading Nick Bosa, last year’s leader in sacks, quarterback hits and pressures. Bosa only has a couple of tackles to start the season, but San Francisco’s defense has six sacks and four interceptions.
Tight end Darren Waller saw an uptick from his lackluster Week 1 stat line with six catches for 76 yards but has not been the immediate difference maker that was expected in New York’s passing game. For what it’s worth, he leads the Giants with 13 targets.
Waller and Jones will need to be at their best to contend with Brock Purdy’s 102.8 rating. Purdy has completed 66.7 percent of his passes and has yet to throw an interception. The 49ers have won eight straight regular season games with him starting under center and 12 overall.
He may be without wideout Brandon Aiyuk as the team’s receiving yards leader will be a game-time decision. But the fact is San Francisco’s offense is too multi-faceted for any one player’s absence to have a severe effect on its potency.
Purdy can pivot to either WR Deebo Samuel or TE George Kittle, both of whom combine for a 49 percent target share.
If that’s not enough, the league’s rushing leader in RB Christian McCaffrey, has a favorable matchup against a Giants defense, allowing 136.5 rushing yards.
McCaffrey is recording 6.4 YPC and has ripped off longest runs of 51 and 65 yards in the first pair of contests.
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Tony Pollard and James Conner just racked up 109 and 106 yards, respectively, against the Giants.
In McCaffrey’s last go-around with Big Blue, he hit 102 yards on the ground and averaged 6.8 yards per carry with the unavailing 2022 Panthers. Now, in Kyle Shanahan’s juggernaut system, the world will be McCaffrey’s oyster against a Giants team that’s trying to find itself.
Would it be a good time to add that New York has already allowed the second-most rushing scorers while San Francisco is tied for scoring the most?
It’s wishful thinking to assume the Giants will ride their late groove out of Arizona. But the 49ers are no Cardinals. And without their best offensive player and a quiet defense, I don’t see how they can keep pace with arguably the most complete team in the league while on the road.
And if they start this game like either of the last two, this game will be over before it begins.
New York Giants vs. San Francisco 49ers pick
49ers -10 (-110, Caesars)