DENVER – Brian Daboll Giants Take control of Denver Bronco for three quarters and then collapsed into a smothering job all the time in a crushing 33-32 loss at Empower Field at Mile High on Sunday afternoon.
Jaxson Dart scored a 1-yard rushing touchdown with 37 seconds remaining to go ahead, 32-30. But Judd McCatmany’s second kick that missed the extra point left the door open for Denver.
The Broncos immediately drove 56 yards for a 39-yard Will Lutz game-winning field goal as time expired. Denver scored all 33 of its points in the fourth quarter.
Coincidentally or not, the deluge began when Paulson Adepo left on a corner kick, and was replaced by Deonte Banks.
The Giants endured their eighth-largest lead in team history and their largest since taking a 21-point lead in 2014.
Daboll yelled at defensive coordinator Shane Bowen on the sideline Courtland Sutton He had a 22-yard reception to set up the game-winning kick, and Daboll continued his impassioned dialogue with Bowen as the coaches walked off the field and into the losing locker room.
The Giants led 13-0 at halftime, 19-0 with 2:41 remaining in the third quarter and 26-8 with 10:14 to play in the game. Dart threw three touchdown passes. Then he appeared to drive the Giants down the field for the winning score late in the fourth inning.
The drive included a fourth-and-19 conversion to Wan’Dale Robinson and a 38-yard pass interference penalty on Broncos corner Riley Moss on a punt intended for Beaux Collins.
But Dart’s interception of Broncos linebacker Justin Strnad with 4:47 remaining and the Giants leading, 26-16, also aided Denver’s stunning comeback.
NFL teams have won 1,602 straight games when they led by 18 points in the final six minutes of the game
The Giants (2-5) return home to prepare for their second game against the rival Philadelphia Eagles (5-2) in three weeks. This will be in South Philadelphia at Lincoln Financial Field next Sunday.
The Dabolls just beat the Eagles, 34-17, at MetLife Stadium in Week 6. But now their prospects are bleak in last place in the NFC East behind the Eagles, Dallas Cowboys (3-3-1) and Washington Commanders (3-4).
They will have a chance to compete in any game if their defense plays the way it did during the first three quarters Sunday against Denver.
Safety Dane Belton hit a hard hit on Sutton for a fourth-down stop and a goal-line stand with 3:35 remaining in the second quarter to keep the Giants ahead, 13-0, heading into halftime.
The Broncos’ offense was a mess, but Brian Burns’ second sack of the game sent the Broncos off the field in the first half, to boos. The Giants’ defense allowed just 101 yards and six Bronco first downs in the first half.
The Giants took their 19-0 lead on a 44-yard touchdown pass to Johnson on a coverage bust with 6:54 to play in the first quarter. Dart Cam then hit Skattebo with a 13-yard screen pass for a touchdown with 8:46 left in the half.
Tyrone Tracy Jr. delivered a 31-yard rushing touchdown on another Broncos defensive fumble for a 19-0 lead with 2:41 to play in the third period.
The Giants should have taken a 21-0 lead after those three scores. But kicker Judd McAtamney missed the extra point on a Scatepo touchdown, and Dart Robinson’s two-point attempt was blocked near the goal line after Tracy’s score.
They got two Brian Burns Sacks on defense. They also scored when Robinson dropped a spin pass on third-and-17, but the ball went straight into Theo Johnson’s hands. The tight end raced into the end zone for a 41-yard touchdown and a 26-8 lead with 10:14 to play.
But the Giants under Daboll will always find a loss if it’s still there. Just look at Week 2 in Dallas. Although defeat seemed impossible for most of Sunday, Payton’s team was ready to play in the fourth quarter.
And the Giants were not.