Kicking woes, thought to be behind the Giants, arose again in Thursday night’s 24-21 loss to the Commanders at MetLife Stadium.
In a low-scoring first half, Giants rookie kicker Dominic Zvada pulled a 33-yard field goal attempt wide left with 4:04 remaining in the first quarter to end their second offensive possession.
The Giants, on their first possession, had a drive stall on the Washington 37-yard line and opted not to send Zvada out for what would have been a 55-yard field goal attempt.
It’s been a weird, inconsistent season for Zvada, who went 4-for-9 on field goals over a three-game stretch. That included three misses in a Week 5 tie against the Commanders and two misses in Week 7 against the Texans.
After the Houston game, the Giants entered their bye week and there was speculation that head coach John Harbaugh might bring in other kickers. But he didn’t, deciding to stand by Zvada.
The rookie kicker then went 4-for-4 on field goals (including a 53-yarder) in windy conditions Sunday at Philadelphia in a 19-11 Giants win.
The Giants won a replay challenge in the first half on a bizarre deflected pass play by the Commanders. Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels threw a pass to WR Stefon Diggs that was broken up by Giants CB Deonte Banks. The ball deflected off Diggs’ helmet and into the arms of WR Treylon Burks.
Harbaugh immediately threw the challenge flag, arguing that Burks never gained complete control of the catch, and won. That forced Washington to kick a field goal.
In a weird scene at the start of the second quarter, Giants RB Cam Skattebo threw up near the bench on the sideline but moments later was seen laughing about it. He didn’t miss a play. … Giants S Jason Pinnock hurt his back in the third quarter.
Giants backup QB Jameis Winston continued his prowess in short-yardage situations. He kept a scoring drive alive in the second quarter with a 1-yard QB sneak. And at the end of the drive, on first-and-goal from the Washington 1-yard line, he came in and handed off to Skattebo for a TD run.
Among the Giants’ inactives for the game was cornerback Paulson Adebo, who was a healthy scratch for the first time this season. Colton Hood, who’s dealing with a dislocated finger, was on the game-day roster over Adebo.
The other Giants inactives included CB Nikko Reed, LB Malik Harrison, TE Thomas Fidone II, DL C.J. Okoye and OLs Josh Sills and J.C. Davis.
Washington’s inactives included CB Isaac Yiadom, DT Ricky Barber, G Tanoa Togai, C Lucas Patrick and TE Colson Yankoff.
