Giants-Steelers Observations and Updates

Giants at Steelers: NFL Preseason Week 1

OUT for the Giants tonight: OL James Brewer (concussion)
WR Brandon Collins (hamstring); FB Henry Hynoski (PUP-knee); DT Markus Kuhn (PUP-knee); WR Hakeem Nicks (groin); DE Justin Tuck (back); DE Jason Pierre-Paul (PUP-back); OT Justin Pugh (concussion); G Chris Snee (hip); S Cooper Taylor (hamstring); CB Terrell Thomas (knee/hamstring); RB Ryan Torain (concussion)

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter

FG@10:24 NYG – Brown 23 yard FG. Drive: 4 plays, 0 yards in 0:55.
FG@4:12 PIT – Suisham 34 yard FG. Drive: 13 plays, 58 yards in 6:12.
TD@1:10 NYG – Cruz 57 pass from Manning (Brown kick) Drive: 6 plays, 80 yards in 3:02.

2nd Quarter

FG@9:08 PIT -Suisham 41 yard FG. Drive: 8 plays, 21 yards in 4:15.
FG@0:01 NYG – Brown 30 yard FG. Drive: 10 plays, 68 yards in 1:45.

Third Quarter Giants 15, Steelers 6

Time for the reserves. Giants receive the ball to open the half. Da’Rel Scott and Michael Cox watch the kickoff sail out of the ends zone for a touchback.  Curtis Painter, not Ryan Nassib starts under center.

Painter hit Jernigan for a 13 yard gain. On the second play, Painter took a hit while firing a pass over the middle to WR Kris Adams.  Adams went down trying to cut and went down holding his left leg/ankle and had to be carted off the field.  Painter threw the ball well, but ended up taking a sack on a third down and 8, leading to a punt.

On the next series, the Steelers began their drive on their own 3. Rookie QB Landry Jones, making his NFL debut, fumbled the snap and was downed by Adrian Tracy for a safety.

Second Quarter

Pittsburgh began a drive with 1:10 remaining in the first. Roethlisberger was relieved by Bruce Gradkowski.  Tom Coughlin won his first challenge of the year when Steelers’ WR Marcus Wheaton couldn’t keep his feet in bounds on a sideline play.

David Carr relieved Eli on Giants first possession of the quarter and was almost picked on his first pass when DB Robert Golden jumped the route on an out to Murphy but could not hold on.  Several plays later, Andre Brown couldn’t find the handle on a pitch and it was recovered by rookie LB Jarvis Jones at the Giants’ 44.

Pittsburgh drove the ball well again, but were stoned again by the Giants’ defense.  An 8-play, 21 yard drive ended in a 41 yard FG Suisham.

Carr could not get anything going for the Giants on the ensuing drive, running out of the pocket on one play and then getting sacked on a third and one by Jason Worilds for a13 yard loss.

The Steelers drove the ball 25 yards in two series but could not convert on a third and 10 and punted the ball away. Jerrel Jernigan was back to receive. He let the ball bounce into the end zone for a touchback.

Carr did not look particularly sharp on the next series, but still managed to drive the Giants 68 yards in 10 plays, leading to a 30 yard FG by Brown at the gun. Worilds was the big star, however, drawing a roughing the passer penalty on Carr and then an unnecessary roughness on Wilson.

First Quarter 

Giants in road whites, Steelers in traditional home black.  78 degrees at kickoff.  Giants kick off to start the game.

Josh Brown, the Giants’ new kicker puts his first kickoff out of the endzone for a touchback.

On defensive line, the Giants started with Jenkins, Joseph, Rogers and Kiwanuka. Paysinger. Herzlich and Rivers opened at LB. Webster and Prince at corner and Stevie Brown and Rolle at the safeties.  Giants mixed up fronts and packages almost every play.

Jenkins sacked Roetlisberger on a 3rd and 16 on the Steelers first drive. Jayron Hosley started at PR.  After a penalty by the Steelers caused a re-kick, Damontre Moore blocked the punt and it was recovered by Louis Murphy at the Pittsburgh five.

After a short run by David Wison, Eli Manning missed Murphy on second down and then threw short for Rueben Randle on the goal line.  Josh Brown kicked a 23 yard FG to make the score 3-0.

On the Steelers second drive of the quarter, they moved the ball freely on the ground as the Giants began to substitute on the defensive line. Pittsburgh put together a 13-play drive which ended in a 34-yard FG by Shaun Suisham.

Giants kept starters in for second possession since they only ran three plays on their first possession. On third-and-nine, Eli hit Randle on a nice run and catch for 16 yards and a first down.  On the next series, Eli found Victor Cruz free down the middle and Cruz did the rest, taking into the end zone for a 57-yard TD.