Giants stun Titans after missed field goal, clutch 2-point conversion in massive survivor pool upset
Brian Daboll wasn’t going to settle for overtime in his first real game leading the New York Giants.
And it paid off.
The Giants beat the Titans 21-20 after Tennessee kicker Randy Bullock missed a 47-yard field goal as time expired. That final drive came after the Giants went for a two-point conversion to take their first lead with just about a minute left, a clutch decision that ended up winning them the game.
The loss had major survivor pool implications, too. The Titans were the most popular pick in Yahoo Sports survivor pools, drawing nearly 18% of the Week 1 picks. That loss, paired with the Indianapolis Colts’ tie with the Houston Texans, knocked out almost 32% of entries.
The Giants used a 12-play, 73-yard drive capped by a 1-yard pass from Daniel Jones to Chris Myarick to bring them a point from tying the Titans with 66 seconds left. Instead of kicking the extra point, Daboll went for the two-point conversion.
Jones then found running back Saquon Barkley on a shovel pass to convert and suddenly take their first lead of the day.
Saquon converts the two-point conversion and the Giants take the late lead 👀pic.twitter.com/g9iQsJUrbl
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) September 11, 2022
Daboll said the decision to go for the two-point conversion was never in doubt, and his players were instantly on board.
Brian Daboll asked when he knew he was going for 2 points: “When we got the ball.”
Why? “Go for the win.”
Said he grabbed some defensive players and asked them if they’d be ok with that. “F yeah,” they told him#Giants— Pat Leonard (@PLeonardNYDN) September 11, 2022
“He’s been very clear in training camp and throughout the week kind of preparing for this game that he’s going to be aggressive in those situations,” Jones said of Daboll, via The Athletic’s Charlotte Carroll. “So I wasn’t surprised.”
Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill drove Tennessee down to the Giants’ 29 yard line — thanks to a pair of timely penalties — to set up the field-goal attempt. Bullock’s kick, however, was wide left.
And Randy Bullock misses the game-winner.
Just a terrible day for kickers. pic.twitter.com/CfECfW8wn3— Cincinnati 💔 (@CincyProblems) September 11, 2022
Barkley finished the day with 164 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries. Jones threw for 188 yards and two touchdowns with an interception.
Though the game ended up knocking out plenty of survivor pool players, it was certainly an entertaining way to start off the new season and the Daboll era in New York.
