Week 8 Monday Night Football Preview - New York Giants vs. Kansas City Chiefs

While the Chiefs have struggled at times this season, Patrick Mahomes and company are always appointment viewing in primetime. But they will need to try and slow down a Giants offense that could give their defense problems.

New York Giants

The New York Giants are coming off of a win last week, picking up their second victory of the year over the Carolina Panthers. New York has won both of their games against NFC South opponents this season, beating the Saints earlier in the year before holding the Panthers to just three points in Week 7. But this game against the Chiefs will be a much stiffer challenge for the defense of Joe Judge’s team.

Aside from the challenges the Chiefs pose to the Giants’ defense, injuries to offensive players will also serve as an obstacle for the Giants. Saquon Barkley and Kenny Golladay will miss this game due to injuries, which will make things much more difficult for New York. In a game that could turn into a shootout given the potency of the Kansas City offense and the porous Chiefs defense, missing key skill position players could hurt the Giants significantly.

Kansas City Chiefs

Last week, the Kansas City Chiefs suffered one of the worst losses in recent franchise history when they were beaten 27-3 by the Tennessee Titans. Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City offense could not get anything going early, which allowed the Titans to build an insurmountable lead and run the clock down in the second half. This week, back at home, the Chiefs will look to get right against a subpar Giants squad.

If the Chiefs are going to get right, their defense is going to have to stop making them vulnerable by giving up so many points. Kansas City has allowed 27 or more points in all but one of their games so far this season, with that lone outlier coming against a less than stellar Washington Football Team. The Giants are having a bad year, but Daniel Jones has shown that he can lead the Giants to big offensive numbers occasionally and cannot be counted out here.

Keys to the Game

Any team that plays the Chiefs will know that their defense is the key coming into the game, and the Giants are no exception. They just lost Jabrill Peppers for the year with a season-ending injury, which will only make things tougher against one of the most potent offenses in the league. If the Giants even want a chance to cover the 10-point spread in this matchup, let alone have a chance to win the game, they will need to pressure Patrick Mahomes and not give Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce time to get open.

For the Chiefs, defense is the biggest key to this game. Everyone on the planet knows that the Chiefs can score points in high quantities. But if the Chiefs want to avoid another disappointing defeat, they will need to get their defense off the field by forcing punts and turnovers rather than giving up touchdowns as they have been all too often.