This could be a make or break season for Tom Coughlin and the Giants. New York’s perfect 2014 preseason translated into the team’s exclusion from the postseason party for the third consecutive year.
ODDS
The Bengals opened as 3-point chalk with a total of 37. Cincy could be playing without its No. 2 quarterback giving the Giants a slight edge.
QUARTERBACK ROTATION
The Giants know what they have in starting quarterback Eli Manning: 167 consecutive starts and a top-end signal-caller. They think they know what they have in backup Ryan Nassib, now in his third year as Manning’s backup. Manning hasn’t missed a start in 11 years and the question, “What if?” always comes up. The Giants are focused on their backup quarterback competition in their preseason opener. Manning is expected to start, but he and the first unit won’t play long before turning things over to Nassib and third-stringer Ricky Stanzi. Nassib saw plenty of action in last year’s preseason opener leading seven drives and completing 12 of 21 attempts against Pittsburgh.
A.J. McCarron and Josh Johnson are fighting for the Bengals backup job to Andy Dalton, who hasn’t missed a full game because of injury during his four-year career. McCarron, the team’s fifth-round pick in 2014, missed all of last season with a shoulder injury and has looked good in camp. He’s likely to get a long look after Dalton plays a series or two, but McCarron has some soreness in the shoulder and didn’t suit up for practice on Wednesday. It’s unclear if he’ll be available for the preseason game.
COACHES' MOTIVATION
The team’s held a two-day joint practice just prior to the preseason opener, so don’t look for a lot of wrinkles in the game plans. They became very familiar with each other during the week and both coaches made it clear what their intentions are: work on developing a backup quarterback. It’s hard to assess a player when he hands the ball off making it likely we see plenty of opportunities through the air. Giants head coach Tom Coughlin won’t put too much emphasis on preseason games after his team won all five last season and limped out of the gate losing their first two regular season contests. The Giants went 6-10 in 2014 and missed the playoffs, putting the coach firmly on the hot seat after three consecutive non-playoff seasons.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“I just think going out and having a couple practices against somebody else, there will be a little more intensity, especially going into that first game. Maybe have your ones take a few more reps than they normally would because of the way the game will be played. It will really benefit our team.” – Giants head coach Tom Coughlin on joint practices with the Bengals.
POSITION BATTLE TO WATCH
The competition for roster spots and playing time at the wide receiver position is one of the most fascinating things taking place in Giants camp. Three players – Odell Beckham Jr., Victor Cruz and Reuben Randle – are locks. Dwayne Harris, who’s an exceptional special teams player, would seemingly have another spot nailed down. The other spots are up for grabs and assuming the Giants keep six receivers on their 53-man roster, that leaves two spots available. Corey Washington, Preston Parker, Geremy Davis, Juron Criner and James Jones will battle it out. With the Giants looking to get backup quarterback Ryan Nassib some reps and several players competing for what is likely two receiver spots, expect the G-Men to be chucking the ball all over Paul Brown Stadium.
INJURIES
Giants fans are waiting to have the receiver duo of Odell Beckham Jr. and Victor Cruz on the field at the same time. They’ll have to wait a little longer. Cruz is working his way back from a torn patellar tendon that ended his 2014 season after only six games. He’s been practicing with the team during training camp but will not play in the preseason opener.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
The Bengals are set up for another postseason appearance but this time around they would like to win a playoff game. Cincy has depth and experience at nearly every position and perhaps the deepest roster in the NFL. They do, however, lack a backup quarterback with experience. Rookie A.J. McCarron is the guy but an injury in practice this week may prevent him from taking his first NFL snap. Don’t expect starter Andy Dalton to see a lot of playing time and the Bengals could be running a practice squad player under center for a majority of the game.
New York 24, Cincinnati 20
BookMaker opened the spread for this Friday matchup at -3 in favor of the Bengals. The NFL odds total surfaced at 37. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
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