Patrick Mahomes has had a disappointing start to his 2021 campaign, losing four of his last six NFL games with the Kansas City Chiefs. Can he stop the rut against the New York Giants and record the all-important victory in their Monday Night Football Showdown? Here's a preview of this Giants vs Chiefs matchup.
New York Giants installed as +9.5 underdogs
The New York Giants finally recorded their second win of the season with an impressive 25-3 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. It was a morale-boosting victory for the Giants, who entered the Week 7 showdown on a two-game losing streak. With the win, the Giants improved their record to 2-5 as they moved into a three-way tie for second place in the NFC East standings.
New York's win would not be possible without the stellar play of the Giants' defense. They played their best game of the season in the win against Carolina, limiting the Panthers to just 173 total yards.
Beautiful T/E stunt from Leonard Williams and Carter to force the Sam Darnold safety...
— Nick Falato (@nickfalato) October 25, 2021
The #Giants defense scored 2 points in the game, the Panthers offense scored 3 pic.twitter.com/tPcXcOhQyZ
The Giants forced a safety on an intentional grounding and managed to get an interception from former Panther James Bradberry. The Giants recorded six sacks in Week 7, 2 ½ of which came from rookie linebacker Azeez Ojulari.
They put pressure on Panthers QB Sam Darnold all afternoon long, and he struggled; as a result, completing just 16 of 25 passes for 111 yards with no touchdowns. Carolina's three-point performance and the 173 total yards that the Panthers generated were the fewest in the Matt Rhule era.
The Giants needed their defense to be excellent as they entered Week 7 with many injuries on the offensive end. Kenny Golladay, Kadarius Toney, Sterling Shepard, and running back Saquon Barkley were all inactive against Carolina.
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Kansas City Chiefs enter Week 8 as -9.5 favorites
The alarm bells are starting to ring again for the Kansas City Chiefs, who sit at the bottom of the AFC West standings with an abysmal 3-4 slate after a humiliating 27-3 loss to the Tennessee Titans in Week 7. The Chiefs struggled mightily on the offensive end as they recorded their fewest points in a game in the Andy Reid era.
To make matters worse for the Chiefs, star quarterback Patrick Mahomes exited the game in the fourth quarter of that blowout loss after taking a brutal shot to the head. He did clear the NFL's concussion protocol after that hit, but the Chiefs decided to bench him anyway with the Titans' victory already a foregone conclusion at that point.
Patrick Mahomes took a big hit and needed help getting off the football field. #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/8RQrYSR8d7
— Mitchel Summers (@MitchSummersTV) October 24, 2021
The good news for Kansas City is that Mahomes will be fit and ready to go for the Monday Night Football showdown with the New York Giants. What's concerning right now for the Chiefs is not the health of Mahomes but their erratic play on the offensive end.
Mahomes has already thrown nine interceptions this campaign after having just six picks all of last season. Mahomes has been sloppy with the ball of late, committing multiple turnovers in each of Kansas City's past three games.
Writer's Prediction
Kansas City wins and covers the spread.
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