'I Was Pleased!' Daboll Reacts to Giants Preseason Win vs. Lions

On a dreary night in East Rutherford, football returned to MetLife Stadium. The New York Giants continued their momentum from a pair of intense joint practices to outlast the Detroit Lions 14-3.

Backup quarterback Drew Lock would leave with an injury, and rookie receiver Malik Nabers would go without a target in his professional debut; but the story of this game was largely settled on the ground. Backup running back Eric Gray scored the game's only two touchdowns and New York’s front seven held Detroit in check.

It was a successful, if uneventful, endeavor for New York. What did head coach Brian Daboll take away from the win?

He spoke after the game about the early-game offense, how it might translate, and the efficiency of the entire operation.

“Some good things, some things to clean up in all areas,” Daboll said. “The thing I was proud of was we controlled the line of scrimmage. Ran the football, which you need to do.

“Almost had weather every game we played here last year, so it was good to get weather tonight. Went backwards some on a few holding penalties but had some lanes, ran hard, blocked force. It was going to be an emphasis tonight to be able to run the football regardless of if it's raining or not.”

New York will lean heavily on running back Devin Singletary, but made some progress in delineating the rest of the backfield . Gray was the star of the show, breaking off a big run and finding an explosive play through the air, but rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr.’s technique looked far better than most expected.

As such, the Giants were able to find more success moving the football in the elements while the defense teed off on poor quarterback play, primarily from Lions quarterback Nate Sudfeld.

The defensive performance was admirable, especially for defensive coordinator Shane Bowen’s first chance to call plays for this unit. Detroit averaged just 3.4 yards per play compared to New York’s 4.6.

“Defensively, I thought we did a good job,” Daboll said. “Stopped them, I think, on four fourth-downs, (they were) 0-for-3 in the red zone. I thought Shane was really good. Just being the first time with him, very composed, got the play in quickly, good communicator with the signal callers.

“And I'd say the same thing with (special teams coordinator) Ghoby (Michael Ghobrial), very organized. They did a nice job creating field position for the first time out there.”

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The first preseason game is often messy, complete with miscommunications, scrambled substitutions, and some really ugly football. The weather may have played a role in muddying Thursday’s affair, but things went smoothly for the Giants.

“But the procedure, I was pleased with the procedure of the coaching staff and of the players.”