Studs and duds from New York Giants’ Week 16 loss to Atlanta Falcons

The New York Giants made history on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and not of the positive variety. Or at least not entirely of the positive variety.

Yes, wide receiver Malik Nabers did break the franchise record for rookie receptions, which had been held by Odell Beckham Jr. and Saquon Barkley (91). But that was overshadowed by much uglier franchise history — 10 consecutive losses, the most ever by a Giants team.

And it wasn’t particularly close at that. After a solid start, the wheels quickly came off the Giants, who were humiliated yet again, this time by the Atlanta Falcons, who ran away with a 34-7 victory.

Here’s a look at some of the studs and duds (and studly duds) from Sunday’s Week 16 loss.

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Rookie linebacker Darius Muasau came to play on Sunday. He was a menace at the line of scrimmage and a headache for Bijan Robinson. He was filling gaps and making sound tackles from the jump and eventually took over the defensive headset when Micah McFadden left with an injury. It was the best performance of his young career and the only blemish was missing out on a would-be sack of Michael Penix Jr. (good play by the QB).

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Astonishingly, head coach Brian Daboll didn’t make a quarterback switch in this game. Drew Lock was simply awful, from wildly overthrowing his receivers early on to his stare-down pick-6 (the first one). He was never in sync, never looked comfortable, held the ball far too long, and displayed a complete lack of pocket presence. He had three turnovers that directly led to 14 Falcons points and it would have been more if not for Kyle Pitts.

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It was a nice rebound day for rookie cornerback Andru Phillips, who had struggled a bit in three consecutive games (broken up by injury). He made several nice solo tackles at the line of scrimmage, made sure to wrap up, and was otherwise disruptive and disciplined. The one negative is that Phillips undercut a would-be interception late in the fourth quarter but pulled up for some reason.

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There had been moments this season when right tackle Evan Neal looked solid. Sunday was not one of those days. Both he and right guard Greg Van Roten were a mess and acted like they never played alongside each other. There was constant miscommunication and both whiffed on too many blocks, including Drew Lock’s second pick-6 of the game. Neal was also flagged for three false start penalties. Ugly all around.

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Tyrone Tracy Jr. didn’t have a ton of room to run on Sunday and with the Giants playing from behind, barely saw action on the ground. However, when he did get the ball he ran hard. He also made an impact as a receiver, hauling in four receptions on four targets for 43 yards and a very impressive toe-tapping touchdown.

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Rookie cornerback Deonte Banks returned on Sunday and brought with him the inconsistency that is enough to make anyone mad. He had two nice passes defensed — one that broke up a touchdown — but also committed an ugly and unnecessary defensive pass interference. Banks also gave up several other big plays. He was too aggressive when it wasn’t called for, and too passive when he needed to be aggressive. The rookie does not trust himself.

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It was a strange day for cornerback Cor’Dale Flott, who had the luxury of a Kyle Pitts drop land right into his hands for an interception — the team’s third this season and just the second by a defensive back. Beyond that, it was a mixed bag for Flott, who was neither dominant nor picked on. It was a mid-tier game where he made some nice plays and good tackles and had some moments he’d like to forget.