In a low-scoring affair, the New York Giants upset the Kansas City Chiefs in East Rutherford on Sunday, as Aldrick Rosas’ 23-yard field goal ultimately gave his team the 12-9 win in overtime.
Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith uncharacteristically threw two costly interceptions in the contest, the latter of which setting up New York for a key field goal in the second quarter.
Giants’ Eli Manning, on the other hand, managed to keep the ball in his own team’s hands for the duration of the contest, as he completed 19 of 35 passes for 205 yards. His leading receiver Roger Lewis was responsible for one of the few offensive highlights on the day, as he hauled in a 34-yard pass late in OT to set up Rosas for the game-winning field goal.
With that, we give you our PFF exclusive takeaways from the contest for each team.
Top 5 Grades:
S Daniel Sorensen, 85.6 overall grade
T Mitchell Schwartz, 83.6 overall grade
LB Derrick Johnson, 83.5 overall grade
Edge Justin Houston, 83.3 overall grade
LB Reggie Ragland, 82.9 overall grade
Performances of Note:
QB Alex Smith, 50.5 overall grade
Smith and the Chiefs offense struggled to get much going, keeping it fairly safe throughout the game with a number of screens, and quick throws underneath On the day he threw 27 of his 40 attempts under 10 yards in the air, including 11 passes completed behind the line of scrimmage. Smith completed just three passes over 10 yards in the air, with a number of misfires including a badly forced an overthrown INT to Janoris Jenkins over the middle of the field. Smith was protected fairly well throughout the game, but struggled when he was forced to play off of rhythm and could not make enough plays down the stretch.
RB Kareem Hunt, 73.3 overall grade
Hunt and the running game were a bright spot for the Chiefs offense, although he did not get many opportunities as Alex Smith dropped back to throw 45 times on a day he clearly was a bit off. Hunt managed 73 yards on 18 carries, with 36 yards after contact and forced 5 missed tackles. The Giants defense did a good job of taking away big plays, as Hunt's longest carry of the game went for 12 yards.
S Daniel Sorensen, 85.6 overall grade
It was a solid game for Sorensen, especially when it came to his coverage. Sorensen finished the game with a coverage grade of 88.3, which was the highest grade on the Chiefs. He was targeted four times all game and allowed just two catches for 15 yards. He also had his big interception on the Giants trick play in the first quarter. Sorensen was solid against the run too, recording two solo stops and finishing with an 82.0 run-defense grade.
Edge Justin Houston, 83.3 overall grade
Houston didn't quite take advantage of Giants' first-time starting right tackle Chad Wheeler as many expected, but he still had many plays in which he completely blew up whatever the Giants were trying to do. Houston finished with five quarterback hurries on 25 pass rushes, good for a pass-rushing productivity score of 16.3. He also finished with a run-defense grade of 86.3 thanks to four solo run stops and multiple other plays in which he forced Giants' running backs to change where they wanted to go.
Top 5 Grades:
S Landon Collins, 88.9 overall grade
CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, 86.1 overall grade
QB Eli Manning, 82.9 overall grade
CB Janoris Jenkins, 80.4 overall grade
WR Roger Lewis, 80.1 overall grade
Performances of Note:
QB Eli Manning, 82.9 overall grade
Manning had himself a solid day for the Giants, despite not much offense happening by either team. But he took what the Chiefs were giving him and didn't make many dangerous passes. He was very efficient when he was kept clean in the pocket, going 18-of-25 for 171 yards on clean pocket throws. Compare that to just 1-of-8 for 34 yards on plays where he was under pressure, the one completion coming on WR Roger Lewis' ridiculous catch in overtime that set them up to win the game.
WR Roger Lewis, 80.1 overall grade
With the Giants down their top three receivers from the start of the season, Lewis became the de facto number one target for Manning and he made it count when he was given the chance. He only saw three catchable targets, but he caught all three for 55 yards. All three catches went for first downs, including the aforementioned overtime catch while being interfered with. Lewis finished the day averaging 1.62 yards per route run on the day.
S Landon Collins, 88.9 overall grade
Collins was all over the field, making a number of key stops in the running game and continuously keeping his targeted receptions in check for short gains. He was often down in the box and quick to trigger on the run, with a team-high 12 tackles including 6 solo stops. He was most impressive against the pass, where he allowed 3 receptions on 7 targets for just 3 yards. He managed to pick up an interception, taking advantage of a poor throw by Travis Kelce on a trick play in the fourth quarter.
CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, 86.1 overall grade
Rodgers-Cromartie played a big part in keeping the Chiefs passing game in check. He was targeted 7 times and allowed 5 catches, but just 20 yards on those 5 receptions. He was extremely sound coming up making the tackle after catches, allowing a long of 8 yards when he was targeted. The Giants defense managed to allow just 5.9 yards per attempt.
PFF Game Ball: S Landon Collins, 88.9 overall grade
*Grades are subject to change upon review
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