We haven’t yet seen what the New York Giants offense is capable of, and we’ll have to wait for the first regular season game to see if the G-Men have turned a corner under new coach Pat Shurmur. Saquon Barkley gave fans a glimpse by ripping off a long gain on his first carry, but he’s been sidelined with a sore hamstring. Odell Beckham will have to wait to see his first action of the year and Eli Manning had a solid outing in his final tuneup, getting a win for the Giants, who conclude the preseason with a matchup against the New England Patriots in Week 4.
This preseason Week 4 matchup will go down Thursday, August 30, 2018, at 7 p.m. ET at MetLife Stadium.
NFL Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
New England Patriots +3
New York Giants -3
Over/Under 38.5
Odds Analysis
This is a rare time that the Patriots are an underdog, but given who will be on the field Thursday, it isn’t unexpected. The Giants get the value of home field and opened as a 3-point favorite and that could see movement with the Pats expected to start and play a rookie quarterback for a majority of the game. The total hit the board at 38.5.
Quarterback Rotation
Tom Brady got all the work he needed in the last two exhibition games and Belichick isn’t going to risk injury to backup Brian Hoyer, so that leaves rookie Danny Etling in line to get all the snaps on Thursday. It’s a strategy that Belichick has employed in the past with Jacoby Brissett playing the entire Week 4 game last season. The Pats turned around and traded Brissett shortly after that contest.
Etling had a nice career at LSU after transferring, throwing for 4,586 yards with 27 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. He was taken in the seventh round of the 2018 draft and is a candidate for the Pats practice squad since there are just three QBs on the roster. Etling has played sparingly this preseason with most of his work coming in the opener when he hit 2 of 5 passes for 21 yards.
There is a good chance the Giants keep three QBs on their opening-day roster, leaving Davis Webb and Kyle Lauletta to battle for the backup job. Webb was taken in the third round of last year’s draft while Lauletta was a fourth-round pick in April. Neither has thrown a pass in a regular season game. Webb got a bulk of the reps behind Manning in the dress rehearsal, which leads us to believe he has the job.
We know Manning won’t play in the finale, leaving the snaps to be divided among the three others on the roster. There’s also a chance Webb doesn’t see action, leaving Lauletta to make a name for himself. He’s played little the last two weeks and is 9 of 16 for 76 yards in this three preseason games. The Giants also have Alex Tanney on the roster and he could get some action after not playing last week.
Players to Watch
The Patriots foggy receiver position became more muddied when Eric Decker announced his retirement this week. Decker was slowly being worked into the rotation and his role wasn’t going to be vital at the beginning of the year, if it ever was. Still, his departure leaves many wondering if the Pats will reach out to Dez Bryant to add some clarity.
Julian Edelman started last week’s game but he will be out of the lineup for four games once the regular season begins. Chris Hogan is the only sure thing among the group of receivers. Phillip Dorsett and Cordarelle Patterson are going to get touches, but others need work. Riley McCarron, Devin Lucien, Braxton Berrios and Paul Turner will have a chance to make an impression on the coaching staff on Thursday.
Free ATS Pick
Belichick is just 7-11 in Week 4 of the preseason during his coaching career, so it gives you a good idea as to what his priorities are. His history tells us that we will see Etling for most if not all of the finale, and that puts the Pats in the role of an underdog.
We’re not sure what Shurmur has in mind for his quarterbacks other than knowing Manning won’t play. The likely scenario is that Webb and Lauletta play a few series before giving way to Tanney. The risk outweighs the reward, but the two fighting for the backup job need as much work as possible since neither has thrown a regular season pass. New York’s reserves have been good this preseason and it’s always a treat to knock off the Pats, even if it is in the preseason.
NFL Betting Odds: Giants 24, Patriots 18
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