5 winners and losers from Giants preseason win over Panthers

The New York Football Giants have a lot to be happy about after winning their first preseason game against the Carolina Panthers, 21-19. After last week's loss to the Detroit Lions, fans were excited for another week of Giants football, this time with starters in action.

The starting offense shined as they marched their way down the field. Darren Waller was the star of the show behind a mobile and sharp Daniel Jones. The starting receivers complimented Waller very well, as the Giants couldn’t be stopped from finding the end zone.

Unfortunately for fans, they only got to see one set of the starting offense before head coach Brian Daboll made substitutions. A tiny sneak peek that is leaving fans extremely excited and optimistic about September 10th.

As for the defense, the starters looked good. They were able to make plays and limit movement from the Bryce Young lead offense. Kayvon Thibodeaux rose to the occasion while Deonte Banks struggled.

Special teams looked normal with Graham Gano leading the pack in consistency, while Jamie Gillan wasn’t. Gray looked promising on the returning end, and has almost fully taken over that role unless he somehow makes a major mistake moving forward.

The second half was a major scoring drought for the G-Men as they were unable to get any points on the board, but luckily for them their first half performance was able to lift them to a victory.

An overall very successful and productive day for the G-Men, brought a lot of strengths and weaknesses up to the surface. After observing certain individual performances, let's break down five winners and losers from preseason game number two.

Winners

No. 1 - Darren Waller

In his small amount of time on the field, Darren Waller looked fantastic for the Giants. Waller recorded three catches for 30 yards and helped lead Big Blue down the field on their opening drive. Waller used his size and shape to bully defenders, break tackles and make huge plays.

Daniel Jones 1st drive of preseason

8/9 69 yards 1 TD

Just flawless stuff from Daniel Jones and oh hey Darren Waller is sick pic.twitter.com/6KNzaDoU53

— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) August 18, 2023

The only downside to his performance was the one drop he had after he took a big hit, but it was completely understandable as he got rocked.

Darren Waller with ANOTHER catch but takes a big hit going across the middle, he was WIDE open #NYG pic.twitter.com/1EhtuVMdV6

— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) August 18, 2023

No. 2 - Kayvon Thibodeaux

Thibodeaux looked alive and fast during his time on the field. Thibbs' several pressures, and multiple rushes forced the Panthers quarterbacks to get rid of the ball quickly and oftentimes throw the ball away. He statistically had a good night, recording one sack, one solo tackle and one tackle for loss. Thibbs’ performance only continued to strengthen fans' hope that he will have a breakout sophomore season.

#Giants DE Kayvon Thibodeaux had an average get-off tonight of 0.67 seconds, per NFL’s NextGen stats.

That’s very, very good. pic.twitter.com/lSt8xOEpVx

— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) August 19, 2023

No. 3 - Tyrod Taylor

Taylor continued to show that he can be a successful QB2 in New York, as he went 9/13 for 90 yards and one touchdown. He also recorded 21 yards for three carries on the ground, with a long of 16 yards. Taylor looked comfortable in the pocket and made some nice plays despite pressure. One play in particular that stood out was his touchdown pass to Jalin Hyatt, a 40-yard throw he completed even with intense pressure in his face.

Tyrod Taylor touchdown deep to Jalin Hyatt! Wide open for the Giants! Cooked the safety pic.twitter.com/moes5xC9nB

— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) August 19, 2023

No. 4 - Eric Gray

Gray really popped off in the second preseason game, recording 16 yards and one touchdown for five carries. Gray’s touchdown run was beautiful as he bullied his way through the Panthers defense to the end zone. Gray sealed the deal that he is the Giants RB2 and showed that he will be a great complement to the Giants offense as well as a great weapon to have when Barkley takes a rest. The Giants run game will no longer stop when Barkley is not on the field.

Eric Gray punches it in! 💪

(via @Giants) pic.twitter.com/T3X5kcf4ox

— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) August 19, 2023

No. 5 - Isiah Hodgins

Hodgins led the receiver room (just like last season) with two receptions for 45 yards. His presence on the field was not overlooked as he made some clutch catches to help the Giants succeed. One play in particular that stood out was in the second quarter when he broke a tackle to turn a potential 10 yard play into a 25 yard reception.

Isiah Hodgins with the dance move 🕺 😳 #giants #panthers #nfl #football #NFLTwitter #NFLPreseason pic.twitter.com/SBudhirqWv

— Last Take™ (@TheRealLastTake) August 19, 2023

With a very loaded receiver room in New York, Hodgins has not been forgotten about. His performance today solidified him as one of Big Blue’s top receivers and starters.

Honorable Mention: Daniel Bellinger

Despite Darren Waller taking most of the spotlight Daniel Bellinger put on display his importance to the Giants. While he may not be TE1, Bellinger will be an excellent TE2 and compliment to Waller. Bellinger looked great in preseason game two, recording one touchdown and four yards for one reception.

Daniel Jones touchdown pass to Daniel Bellinger! Flawless drive for the Giants! pic.twitter.com/ZmAtk1KyZC

— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) August 18, 2023

While Bellinger may not be Big Blues' best, he is certainly showing how impactful he can be. With Waller drawing most of opposing defenses attention, don’t be surprised to see the Giants using a two tight end formation more often than not. The Bellinger-Waller combo is going to be a serious 1-2 punch for opposing teams this season.

Honorable Mention: Jalin Hyatt

Hyatt was a huge piece of the Giants offense. His speed and footwork allowed big plays down field to be made, including his touchdown reception. Hyatt recorded four receptions for 35 yards and one touchdown. A very solid line for the rookie as he continues to climb the receiver ladder.

One moment that really stood out was the drop Hyatt made and then on the next play made up for it with a touchdown catch. A great switch of mentality for the first year that Head Coach Brian Daboll liked.

"Good next play metality, positive approach"

Brian Daboll talks about Jalin Hyatt catching a touchdown the play after making a drop: pic.twitter.com/uqOQbFmeFv

— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) August 19, 2023

Hyatt is going to be really fun to watch this year as he will only make this Giants offense better.

Losers

No. 1 - Deonte Banks

Banks did not necessarily play badly, but he did not match his stellar performance from last week. Banks recorded two solo tackles, but struggled a bit during 1v1 matchups. One play in particular, Banks got beat and allowed a first down catch, but was able to stay with the play and make the tackle despite being stiff armed.

Even though this play happened, Banks held his ground (for the most part) the rest of the night. One other thing to note on the night was that Banks was seen with a heavy wrap on his left forearm, something to keep an eye on.

The future is definitely bright for Banks, and these preseason games are so crucial to further his development and get the kinks out before season

No. 2 - Tommy Devito

Similar to Banks, DeVito didn’t play badly, but he didn’t match/follow up his performance from the previous week. DeVito made some really nice plays escaping pressure, but ultimately had some poor throws.

Tommy DeVito shows off his moves 🔥

📺: #CARvsNYG on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/L9mPiySUki pic.twitter.com/aX3m3274Pc

— NFL (@NFL) August 19, 2023

DeVito was 9/11 on the night with 88 yards. Tommy could have had a David Sills V for a touchdown, but unfortunately he overthrew it. Not a bad performance from DeVito but not a good one.

No. 3 - David Sills V

Sills was blank on the night with no receptions or yards, however if DeVito could have given him less of an overthrow it would have been a different story. Although it's preseason, and things like that happen, it is unfortunate for Sills, as every preseason game he is slowly falling back in the depth chart. With Sills not being an eye catcher on the stat sheet there are other receivers that are producing and doing more. Sills is working his way into a practice squad role at best, and at worst no role at all.

No. 4 - James Robinson

Robinson saw some action in the fourth quarter which was not a great sign for him as he is falling in the depth chart. While the Giants have their RB1 and RB2 solidified in Saquon Barkley and Eric Gray, finding room in the running back room is very slim right now.

With Jashuan Corbin looking okay (7 carries for 5 yards) it still leaves the door open for Robinson. However, if Robinson keeps putting up stats like tonight (4 carries for 10 yards) he isn’t making it much of a competition for a spot either.

No. 5 - Sterling Shepard

Shepard didn’t see a ton of action in the Giants preseason game, but he did see some later in the game. Shep recorded one catch for six yards, this catch being his first of of preseason. Shep will surely get more time in the next preseason game against the Jets as the Giants are leaning him into playing time.

While Shep is still recovering from the ACL, time and his health are his only enemy. As Shep is trying to get back to where he was, other players are getting better, faster and building connections. When Shep is healthy he is a consistent target for Daniel Jones and he knows how to make plays and makes them when they need to be made.

Daboll had some words post game about the process Shep has been going through and how he gives him “credit” for being back on the field.