“Traitors.”
That’s how New York Giants defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson referenced some of his players for their Week 6 performance against the New Orleans Saints.
“I look at guys that don’t run at the ball, and I call them traitors because they’re traitors to the defense,” Wilson, who’s in his first season as the Giants’ defensive coordinator following two years as the defensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans (2024-25), said in a press conference on Thursday morning. “When you have a traitor to the defense you either have to make adjustments to get them off the field, you have to get somebody else on the field, or they have to correct their behaviors.
“Last week was one of those things where we did not, on every play, run to the ball, and it was unacceptable, and the guys know it. And, this week, when you see them out there, they will be flying around 100 mph with their hair on fire.”
Regarding the aforementioned loss, the Giants, who led the Saints 10-0 with 2:27 remaining in the second quarter, proceeded to give up 34 consecutive points in an eventual 34-27 loss. Their defense gave up 175 rushing yards on 4.6 yards per carry, with four different players, including Saints quarterback Tyler Shough, tallying at least 30 yards on the ground. Meanwhile, Shough threw for three touchdowns.
In all, New York’s defense is fifth in the NFL in opponent passing yards (190.2 per game), 14th in opponent total yards (325.7 per game), 19th in opponent points (23.3 per game), tied for 27th in sacks (8.0) and 29th outright in opponent rushing yards (135.5 per game).
“We got to come downhill, and we got to tackle. Last week was one of our worst tackling games, for whatever reason,” Wilson said of his defense. “It’s really going back to the basics. … A few plays got out, especially in the pass game, because of missed tackles. And then, last week, we’re not happy, and I wasn’t happy with our effort running to the ball.
“We put some stuff on tape that was not characteristic of a New York Giants defense, and it’s unacceptable, and it will be changed.”
As for individual standouts this season, rookie linebacker Arvell Reese, the No. 5 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft out of Ohio State, has logged an NFL-high 34 solo tackles, one sack, one interception and one fumble recovery; fellow linebacker Tremaine Edmunds has totaled a team-high 50 combined tackles and two sacks; safety Jevón Holland has reeled in an NFL-high three interceptions; star linebacker and three-time Pro Bowler Brian Burns suffered a torn ACL in Week 3.
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The 3-2-1 Giants have a Week 7 road bout against the Houston Texans (2-4) on Sunday afternoon (1 p.m. ET on FOX). New York is starting J.J. McCarthy, who it acquired from the Minnesota Vikings last month, at quarterback. McCarthy threw for 243 yards in the fourth quarter last week in relief of Jameis Winston, who had been New York’s starting quarterback in place of the injured Jaxson Dart.
