It seems as if every week the Giants (3-5) are finding new ways to look bad. They dug themselves a 14-point hole within 10 minutes of the season’s start against the Lions, were shut out by the Eagles in Week 6, and on Monday night they surrendered 40 points to the visiting Colts.
Next up is a visit to the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks (5-3) in Seattle, a venue where the champs rarely lose. However, these Seahawks are quite beatable — they lost to the struggling Rams on Oct. 19 — as they experience the championship hangover. Here’s a look at three ways the Giants can maximize their chances of snapping a three-game losing skid Sunday afternoon.
Time for tractionThe Giants have done a lot of running in place since Rashad Jennings went down with a knee injury. He’s not expected back until at least next week, so that means more of Andre Williams and his 3.0 yards per carry this season. The Giants might be better off riding Peyton Hillis (4.4 ypc) this week, although the Seahawks’ fourth-ranked run defense could make that a moot point.
Share the wealth
Seattle also ranks sixth in passing defense, so it’s not as if the air is the definite way to go. However, Eli Manning’s preference to spread the ball to multiple receivers will make it easier to negotiate the NFL’s top cornerback, Richard Sherman. Additionally, it will be up to either Rueben Randle or Odell Beckham Jr. — whichever isn’t stuck with Sherman — to get open and make the Seahawks pay.
Watch for Wilson
The Seahawks are third-to-last in passing offense, but that masks how effective a quarterback Russell Wilson is when he’s on his game. With a QB rating of 93.1 and an 11-3 TD-INT ratio to go along with multiple 100-yard rushing performances, he’s the NFL’s prototypical hybrid quarterback. The Giants will need someone to spy on him for a large portion of the game to make sure Wilson doesn’t create big plays.
