From
The Atlantic:
Washington -3.5 vs. Giants
We loved the Broncos laying a field goal against the Giants last week because it was a significant strength on weakness matchup whenever the Giants had the ball. That will be exactly the case for the Giants offense again this week.
Washington dropped their season opener to the Chargers, but they made life tough for an offense that comfortably rates from good to great. Justin Herbert got 7.2 yards per attempt, not including kneel-downs; the Chargers ran for 89 yards on 25 carries. Austin Ekeler grinded his way to 57 yards on 15 totes. The Chargers got just 5.4 yards per play, which ranked 20th over the full year last season. Washington’s defense wasn’t an overwhelming force in that matchup, but it more than did its job against an already-good offense that’s expected to take a step forward in Herbert’s second year.
And now it gets the Giants.
Put, I see little chance that the Giants’ offensive line can keep Chase Young, Montez Sweat and company off Daniel Jones. The Giants’ surest way to keep the Washington pass rush honest would be to deploy a fully healthy Saquon Barkley, but, likely, he’ll still be operating at less than 100%. The strongest unit in this game is, without question, Washington’s defense, and they’re playing at home on a short week.
Washington’s offense has some issues of its own. Ryan Fitzpatrick is out for multiple weeks because of a hip injury, leaving the offense in the hands of Taylor Heinecke. Antonio Gibson is expected to play on Thursday, but he suffered a shoulder injury, likely a sprain of his AC joint, last week. Curtis Samuel remains on short-term IR. It’s reasonable to be concerned about this group on a short week, as well.
Heinecke, however, was effective in a tough spot last week, completing 11 of 15 passes for 122 yards, 8.1 YPA and a touchdown. The game was played entirely within a one-score window while he was on the field, too, so it wasn’t a matter of him finding a soft landing spot. Running backs routinely play through sprained AC joints, so while Gibson could have some added pain on Thursday, no evidence suggests he won’t be his usual self. I’d play this up to Washington -5, but I am happy to lock it in at -3.5.
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