Lions vs. Giants Week 8 Scouting Report: Youth movement in New York

Special Teams

The Lions’ red zone efficiency against the Vikings last week meant that kicker Matt Prater was only called upon for one field goal attempt, which of course he hit from 46-yards. A false start penalty on long snapper Don Muhlbach – really, Mule? – did however push the Lions out of field-goal range on their first drive, their second week in a row with a costly special teams infraction.

The Lions would love to keep Prater on the sidelines again this week when they reach Giants territory, but they have no reservations about having him kick from any distance. Prater is a perfect 4-4 from 50-plus yards this year.

The Giants’ ninth-from-the-bottom yardage average and their league-high 18 giveaways have extinguished countless scoring opportunities this year, as their six field-goal attempts rank second from the bottom in the NFL. Kicker Aldrick Rosas has missed two of those tries, including his only attempt from 40+ yards. He is, however, a perfect 16-16 on extra-point attempts.

Lions returner Jamal Agnew continues to put his ball security issues further behind him each week and has helped the Lions climb to sixth-best in kickoff return average at 29 yards per return. Conversely, the Lions rank near the bottom in punt return average at just 3.2 yards per return.

Tate and receiver Corey Ballentine are the Giants’ primary returners, and the team ranks in the top ten in both kick and punt return yardage. Punter Riley Dixon is tenth from the bottom in net punting yardage at 41.7 per punt. For your random stat of the day, the Giants are one of just two teams – along with the Chicago Bears – to return both a punt and a kickoff for at least 50 yards this season.