Giants Miss Damon Harrison
One of the few moves that left me scratching my head come the trade deadline, was the Giants trading Damon Harrison. It made no sense in a multitude of ways. First off, he is due an average of just $6.75 million over the next three years.
Second, he was the heart and soul of that defense. His experience and leadership in the locker room showed, especially for the young guys. After Harrison was traded, there was going to be a huge hole to fill–no pun intended. Since his departure to the Detroit Lions, he’s been missed exponentially.
With Harrison on their defense–Weeks 1 through 7, they allowed just two RBs to top 75 rushing yards. Those two RBs were Ezekiel Elliott and Alvin Kamara–two elite RBs in the NFL. Since he’s been gone, the Giants have allowed RBs to have a field day on them.
Since Week 8, the Giants have allowed 80 or more yards to each RB they’ve faced. Those RBs were Adrian Peterson, Matt Breida, Peyton Barber and Josh Adams. The Giants defense has heavily missed the mere presence of “Big Snacks”.
Adams was the beneficiary in Week 12 of Harrison’s absence. He rushed for 84 yards and a score, which gave the Eagles the lead late in the fourth quarter. It’s hard to believe they’d struggled this bad if Harrison was manning the middle.