Buccaneers at Giants
THE STORY: The New York Giants have had 11 days to fix the problems that cropped up in their season-opening loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 5. Unfortunately, less than two weeks might not be enough time to fix a secondary that got burned for a pair of long touchdowns in that setback. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers don’t have quite the same explosion in their offensive game but showed off a disciplined attack in a Week 1 win over the Carolina Panthers under new head coach Greg Schiano. What the Buccaneers lack in style they make up for in substance, playing strong on both sides of the line and tying a club record by allowing only 10 rushing yards to the Panthers. New York has taken three straight in the series and has not started 0-2 since 2007, when it went on to win the Super Bowl.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Giants -7, O/U 44
ABOUT THE BUCCANEERS (1-0): Schiano preaches ball security and discipline and Tampa Bay was strong in both regards last week. The Buccaneers did not turn the ball over and committed only four penalties in the 16-10 triumph. Schiano has taken the pressure off quarterback Josh Freeman by using a ball-control offense and featuring the running game. Tampa Bay held the ball for over 37 minutes and ran it 37 times in the win. The Buccaneers have plenty in common with New York when it comes to philosophy, as Schiano’s two top assistants have ties to the Giants. Offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan and defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan were both member of New York's staff last season. Tampa Bay produced a pass rush that would make the Giants proud last week, sacking Cam Newton three times and picking him off twice.
ABOUT THE GIANTS (0-1): New York's vaunted pass rush could not completely cover over the problems in the secondary, where Prince Amukamara was out with a high ankle sprain. The Giants gave up two passing touchdowns of over 30 yards and allowed Tony Romo to complete 22 of 29 passes for 307 yards. Amukamara is questionable for Week 2 as is backup Michael Coe, who left the opener with a hamstring injury. The offense was plagued by dropped passes and a key fumble from rookie David Wilson. New York has never lost to the Bucs under quarterback Eli Manning, going 3-0 including the playoffs. Manning, who passed for 213 yards against Dallas, has five touchdowns and no interceptions against Tampa Bay in his career.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Schiano is making his return to New Jersey, where he served as head coach at Rutgers from 2001-11.
2. Freeman has failed to reach 200 yards passing in four of his last six starts, dating to last season.
3. Giants LB Michael Boley (hamstring) and DT James Brewer (back) each join Amukamara and Coe as questionable.