CANTON, Ohio — Finishing his night off after two series would not have been very kind to Eli Manning, who had almost nothing to show for his first preseason game, other than that there’s much work to be done to get the new Giants offense where it needs to be.
“I’m glad we had that last opportunity to get something going,’’ Manning said Sunday night.
Granted a third series, Manning finally put together something worth remembering, helped generously by a thumping running game fueled by a precocious rookie, Andre Williams. Manning got the starting offense in the end zone and the crisp 80-yard drive provided something to build on in a 17-13 victory over the Bills in the preseason-opening Hall of Fame Game in front of 22,052 at Fawcett Stadium.
No one expected the Giants to unveil their new West Coast offense and have it look like a thing of beauty. There were the predictable bumps and stops and starts in the first trial run.
Manning’s initial series running first-year coordinator Ben McAdoo’s attack resulted in a three-and-out. The second series ended with Manning taking a sack and losing the ball. Defensive tackle Kyle Williams launched himself at Manning, who was sacked and fumbled for a loss of 21 yards, with former Giants linebacker Keith Rivers making the recovery for the Bills on the Giants’ 22-yard line.
“I probably had bad pocket movement,’’ said Manning, who is learning new footwork in the new system. “I probably should have stepped up rather than spin out.’’
Series No. 3 finally brought some positive results. Manning had to throw only two passes — both short and complete — as Rashad Jennings and Williams (37 yards on the drive, including a 21-yard burst) carried the load and cashed in when Williams followed fullback Henry Hynoski’s block on a 3-yard touchdown run. The drive, though, came against the Bills’ second-string defense. Presumably, the Lions, in the Sept. 8 regular-season opener, will keep their starters in the entire game.
“We didn’t throw it many times, we did utilize some of the underneath stuff, which was good,’’ coach Tom Coughlin said.
“That’s what you’re trying to accomplish. As we get a little bit better with our pass protection, the ball will go down the field a little bit more.”
Williams, the nation’s leading rusher last season at Boston College, finished with 48 yards on seven attempts and, as a fourth-round pick, could be a draft-day steal.
“I feel like I’m built to run the ball,’’ Williams said. “When I get the football and tuck it away, I feel I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.”
The goal in the new offense is for Manning to complete 70 percent of his passes — it’s really more of a best-case scenario, not a truly realistic standard for Manning to hit — and in his first crack, he went 6-of-7 for only 43 yards. He said there were no communication issues with McAdoo, calling plays for the first time in his life.
The best throw of the night belonged to Ryan Nassib, who helped himself in his bid to win the backup quarterback job.
His sailing missile found rookie Corey Washington for a leaping, catch-and-run 73-yard touchdown to give the Giants the lead with 13:18 remaining. Nassib, playing in front of his former coach at Syracuse, Bills head coach Doug Marrone, was 7-of-12 for 139 yards for a rating of 126.7.
Washington is a 6-foot-4 long shot from Newberry College, attractive to the Giants because they have no tall receiver.
Washington has made some plays in training camp and now he has made one in his first preseason game.
“These games are important for small-school guys like myself,’’ Washington said.
On defense, the Giants starters had little trouble with EJ Manuel and the Bills. The only points allowed came via a 30-yard field goal by Dan Carpenter after Manning’s fumble put the Bills on the Giants’ 22-yard line, and it would have been a shutout if linebacker Jacquian Williams had been able to hold onto what should have been an interception.