Giants vs Chiefs: Week 3 Preview

Another 0-2 start, and it only gets harder from here.

After a gut-wrenching loss at the hands of Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys in Week 2, the Giants enter Week 3 with the pressure of the football world looking down on them. Home opener. Sunday night football. Prime time. The New York Giants' worst nightmare.

Oh, did I forget to mention they will be playing the Kansas City Chiefs? Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Taylor Swift are bringing their talents to MetLife Stadium on Sunday night. In what will surely be the toughest test of the season so far, the Giants will need to play some of their best football, even with the Chiefs limping into this one.

Both teams are 0-2 and looking for their first win. Let's get to it. Here are three things to watch for under the lights on Sunday night.

Patrick Mahomes' legs vs the Giants' run defense

So far, the Giants have been one of the worst teams in the league against the run. Through two weeks, they've allowed 355 yards, good for dead last in the NFL. They have given up:

• 220 rushing yards to the Commanders in week 1

• 135 rushing yards to the Cowboys in week 2

Patrick Mahomes has rushed for 123 yards over two weeks, good for about 62 a game. He is the Chiefs leading rusher, as Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt have had a lot of trouble getting the run game going. He sees the field so incredibly well and from watching the film of all of his rushes so far, it's apparent that he recognizes quickly when he has an open runway. If the Giants want to win this battle, they can't let their run defense continue to sputter like it has in the first two games. The point of attack needs to be addressed and the front has to show up, because Andy Reid will take what he has seen from this run defense early on and build a gameplan that plays into those strengths. The Chiefs will attack the Giants on the ground and try to get their run game going to then open up the field for Mahomes. That is a really, really bad sign if they let that happen.

Shane Bowen has preached aggression from his guys, and we need to see more of that from his defense. They have been flat in the trenches and the worst thing that could happen is to have Mahomes rack up some rushing yards while letting the Chiefs unlock the duo of Pacheco and Hunt.

Penalties and discipline

The Giants came out of last week with 14 penalties for 160 yards. On one drive to start the game, James Hudson picked up four consecutive penalties for 40 total yards, and was benched for the rest of the game in favor of Marcus Mbow. There was an unnecessary roughness penalty from Dru Phillips on CeeDee Lamb and Phillips ended the day with two penalties for 32 yards per NFL Penalty Data on X. Yes, two Giants players on each side of the ball ranked in the top-6 in number of penalties in week 2. Not ideal for a coach fighting for his job and a team trying to find their identity.

Ultimately, there needs to be more urgency from Brian Daboll and his coaches to whip this team into shape. There can't be boneheaded penalties like we saw against the Cowboys. This is especially true against the Chiefs, who are quite literally the definition of a team that executes properly and is prepared week after week. There are no second chances, as it feels like the Chiefs always find a way to capitalize on costly penalties. This is why I hope this week's practice sessions stressed the importance of knowing snap counts, understanding correct formations, and when and how to hit the quarterback. These seem like fundamentals, but the Giants have not gotten these things down over the first two weeks of the season and it has shown. For this to carry over into another week would be an utter disaster, and would be another blemish on Daboll's record if it were to lead to a loss. Being undisciplined in the NFL is a recipe for disaster, and the Giants have to be smart out there this week.

Play-calling from week 2 needs to carry over

I was very happy with the way in which Brian Daboll and Mike Kafka recovered in week 2. After what was an abysmal showing all around from the offense against the Commanders, they took it upon themselves to make adjustments and strategically plan for a suspect Cowboys defense. And well, would you look at that? It worked!

Russell Wilson's deep ball was humming, Cam Skattebo got into the end zone, and Malik Nabers and Wan'Dale Robinson each eclipsed 140+ yards receiving. They attacked the Cowboys secondary all day long and put up 37 points. This was just the second game since November 19th, 2023 in which the Giants have scored 30 points or more in a game, the first being that weird Colts game in 2024 where they scored 45 points and lost out on the first overall pick.

It was plays like the one below that got me excited. They found the holes and weaknesses in the Cowboys defense and attacked. However, the Chiefs are a lot better than the Cowboys on the defensive side of the ball and have allowed just 398 passing yards through two weeks. They also have Chris Jones rushing the passer. That guy alone will wreak havoc on the interior and will look to make John Michael Schmitz Jr., Greg Van Roten, and Jon Runyan uncomfortable. But the Giants have a chance to make a statement against a Chiefs defense that has been underwhelming so far, as they rank in the middle/bottom half of the league in turnovers forced, sacks, and QB hits.

Malik Nabers (top of the screen) makes an acrobatic touchdown grab in the second quarter of Giants vs Cowboys

Steve Spagnuolo is going to try and dial up the pressure and throw some different looks at this offense. They will try and pressure Russell Wilson and force him into errant throws. Guys like Leo Chenal, Drue Tranquill, and Nick Bolton are excellent at rushing the passer, and I wouldn't be surprised to see maybe five or six guys rushing at times for the Chiefs. The Cowboys sent a lot of four-man rushes in Week 2, and that led to a ton of clean pockets for Wilson. The Chiefs will be much different in their approach so expect to see more disguises and pressure from Spags. This is where smart play-calling and quick passing will benefit the offense. Get the ball out quick with shallow crossing routes, slants, and quick throws to Theo Johnson in the middle of the field when the rush is coming. As much as that should be on play-calling, Wilson also needs to recognize the alignment of the defense and readjust his offensive alignment if needed.

There will be a lot of focus on the offense this week to see if they carry over their success from week 2, and a strong gameplan and play-calling will go a long way against a tough opponent.

Final Thoughts

Hey, it's the 2025 home opener. Brandon Jacobs will be the Giants legend of the game. If anything, do it for one of the best bruising running backs of all time. All jokes aside, I really hope another home opener doesn't end by the first half because, that has been a trend of recent years. A statement against the Chiefs on home turf could go a long way for this team's confidence.

The defense has to keep finding ways to get to the quarterback, having racked up six sacks through two weeks. Brian Burns has three, and ranks in the top-5 in the NFL in sacks. Discipline needs to be at a high level and penalties should be kept to a minimum. Of course, Mahomes and the Chiefs are going to get some calls here and there throughout the game because that's the way it goes with the NFL. But the big emphasis needs to be on self-inflicted penalties. Keep false starts, holdings, and unnecessary roughness penalties to a minimum, and the Giants will be fine. The offense has a chance to further prove they can be competent in this league with Russell Wilson under center. There have been rumblings about Jaxson Dart jumping in if this week doesn't go well. Does Russ have it in him to go out and save his job? I think he does after what I saw in Week 2.

The opportunity is there to take down a Chiefs team not playing their best football. I think the Giants can compete, and a lot will be determined about this team when the clock hits zero on Sunday Night Football.

Giants vs Chiefs. Let's go.