Grading the Giants' Week 5 tie with the Washington Commanders

OFFENSE

As bad as the offense was in the first half (77 yards), Jameis Winston was excellent after halftime. He made big throws downfield. Isaiah Likely and Malik Nabers both had 11 catches, with Likely adding two scores and Nabers having his second straight 100-yard game. But the Giants couldn’t run the ball well and still don't have many explosive plays. They finished with a measly 3.7 yards per carry. Cam Skattebo had just 26 yards in regulation and his fumble overshadowed his 33 rushing yards in overtime. Despite 408 yards of offense, the run game issues are concerning and so is Skattebo's fumbling problem.

Grade: B-minus

DEFENSE

The pass rush came alive with five sacks and defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson did a great job bringing more pressure on Jayden Daniels. Rookie Arvell Reese got his first NFL sack and shared the team lead with nine tackles. Dru Phillips also had two sacks and Abdul Carter had one. The run defense, though? Atrocious. They gave up three touchdown runs of 26 yards or more after not allowing a run longer than 22 yards all season. The Commanders finished with 202 rushing yards and averaged 6.7 yards per carry. It reminded that for all the improvements up front, the Giants are still susceptible to too many chunk plays. Their seven-game streak with an interception also ended Sunday as the Giants didn’t get any takeaways.

Grade: C-minus

SPECIAL TEAMS

Dominic Zvada picked the wrong time for his first missed kicks as a pro. The rookie set a new career-long by converting a 56-yard attempt but he was wide left on a 46-yard attempt in overtime that would have put the Giants ahead. He also missed from 50 and 57 yards but that’s less on him because he shouldn’t have been put in that position with the poor weather. Charlie Jones had a fine day on kickoff returns and Jordan Stout was mostly a spectator with two punts.

Grade: D

COACHING

John Harbaugh trusted his young kicker too much, settling for four field-goal attempts of 50 yards or more in the rain. The right call was made in the run game by pulling Skattebo for a few drives after he couldn’t find much running room. Shuffling J.J. McCarthy in and out on five plays was questionable. McCarthy isn't a rookie who benefits from a taste of game time and none of the plays gained positive yards so he was a non-factor. The offense took too long to get going. The defense was burned by not having a spy on Daniels, who ran free for two touchdowns and 103 yards. It could've been worse: at least the Giants didn’t end the game with terrible clock management like the Commanders did.

Grade: C

By Evan Barnes

evan.barnes@newsday.comevan_b

Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.