The New York Giants opened their 2024 preseason slate with an impressive 14-3 victory over the Detroit Lions, which came on the heels of back-to-back joint practices that spiraled into chaos.

Both teams avoided those issues on Thursday night -- likely due to $400,000 in total fines by the NFL -- and played an otherwise clean game that the Giants primarily dominated.

Precious few starters took the field for either team as the backups were heavily showcased. And in what should encourage fans, the Giants had the advantage in almost every area.

Here is a look at some of the studs and duds (and studly duds) from the Week 1 preseason victory.

STUD: RB Eric Gray

Second-year running back Eric Gray made his presence felt on both the ground and through the air on Thursday night.

With Tyrone Tracy Jr. also performing well, Gray stole the early show. He had a nice catch and run over a trailing linebacker, powered it in from short yardage, and juked a defender out of his shoes on a 48-yard touchdown scamper.

When all was said and done, Gray gained 98 yards from scrimmage and scored two touchdowns.

DUD: QB Drew Lock

Drew Lock was given the start over Daniel Jones (inactive, ACL) and quickly displayed why DJ would start in Week 1. After opting to pass on a wide-open Malik Nabers, Lock made this decision on the very next play.

What exactly did he see?

On the subsequent offensive series, Lock held onto the ball too long, missing another open receiver. When he attempted to throw, his arm was hit resulting in an incomplete pass.

His final two attempts also fell incomplete before he went down with an apparent injury.

STUD: LB Dyontae Johnson

Dyontae Johnson, who has been impressive throughout training camp, brought his "A" game against the Lions.

Save for one bad penalty, Johnson was making plays all over the field. He finished the game with four tackles (two solo, two for a loss), one QB hit, and 1.0 sack.

Micah McFadden still seemingly leads the way at ILB alongside Bobby Okereke, but Johnson will not go quietly into the night.

DUD: LB Azeez Ojulari

Linebacker Azeez Ojulari recorded two early tackles and then essentially fell silent. He struggled to generate pressure against reserve offensive linemen and didn't perform as well as he had throughout training camp.

And it's not as if Ojulari was given a quick glance and sent to the sideline. He spent most of the first half on the field and simply didn't factor in more often than not.

There were several plays where Ojulari avoided a pile and just allowed his teammates to make the tackle. And while that may be good for his health, it's not exactly what the Giants would want to see in a game that counts.

STUD: Offensive line

Although the Giants' starters did not play on Thursday night, the vast majority of their reserves did step up to the plate. They handled the Lions' pass rush and blitz with seeming ease, gave the quarterbacks time to throw, and created good lanes for the running backs.

The O-line wasn't exactly helped by the wide receivers, who struggled to create separation at times, but showed that the Giants have more depth than in years past.

Perhaps more than anything else, this should encourage the team and their fans.

DUD: Team discipline

As impressive as the Giants were on Thursday night, there should be some criticism of the coaching staff and team discipline. They committed an unacceptable 10 penalties, including an illegal formation, too many men on the field, and a delay of game.

All three of those penalties, specifically, were entirely avoidable and would be considered unacceptable in a game that counts.

Several of the other penalties were also the result of lacking situational awareness.

This is definitely an area the Giants have to clean up.

STUDLY DUD: CB Tre Herndon

Veteran cornerback Tre Herndon showed great awareness with a second-quarter interception but immediately turned around and made a rookie mistake.

After losing track of the players trailing him, Herndon attempted to make more out of his return by cutting back toward the middle of the field only to be met with a nice hit by Lions wide receiver Tom Kennedy.

Herndon fumbled the ball, it was recovered by the Lions, and the Giants lost what would have been solid field position.

He did also record three tackles (two solo).

Other STUDS:

Other DUDS:

This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Studs and duds from Giants' Week 1 preseason win over Lions