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An inside look at Sunday’s Giants-Saints Week 14 matchup at MetLife Stadium:
Marquee matchup
Saints FS Tyrann Mathieu vs. Giants QB Drew Lock
Mathieu has three interceptions this season and the Honey Badger has 36 picks in 175 games in his 12-year NFL career.
He has a nose for the ball and Lock has a tendency to throw it up there.
Lock messed up a screen pass for a pick-six against the Cowboys on Thanksgiving and he has a brutal ratio of 28 touchdown passes and 24 interceptions in 32 NFL games.
“The gunslinger always comes with the pro and the con,’’ Lock said. “The guy that’s going to go out there and be able to make every throw, but the negative side of that term is you might put the ball at risk sometimes. There’s a balance.’’
Paul’s pick
The Saints aren’t any good but they are favored on the road. What does that tell you about the state of the Giants?
Derek Carr has lost his top targets but he is a proven, decent NFL quarterback.
Can the Giants say that about Drew Lock, the third QB they’ve used this season? If you have Alvin Kamara in fantasy football, prepare for a big week of rushing and receiving stats.
Saints 26, Giants 13.
Four downs
Mr. reliable: Darius Slayton is a remarkable player and not because he is remarkable as a wide receiver.
It is that he is remarkably consistent in his production.
Slayton in 11 games has 34 receptions for 477 yards. If he continues that pace in the final five games, he will end his sixth season with the Giants with 50 receptions for 694 yards.
In four of the past five seasons, Slayton clocked in with 46-50 receptions and 724-770 yards.
“I think I’ve improved every year that I’ve been in the NFL,’’ Slayton said. “Whenever the season ends, I believe I’ll go into the offseason, I’ll go to work, and I’ll come back a better version of myself for Year 7.’’
Depth chart deep dive: This is often what happens down the stretch of a bad, bad season — players fall by the wayside.
The Giants will play without three more starters on defense — LB Bobby Okereke, CB Deonte Banks and DE Rakeem Nunez-Roches — in addition to finishing out without stud NT Dexter Lawrence.
And on Saturday, starting CB Cor’Dale Flott (quad/knee) was added to the injury report, listed as questionable.
The two starting offensive tackles, Jermaine Eluemunor (doubtful) and Evan Neal (questionable), are hurting and that is in addition to Andrew Thomas already on injured reserve.
Get ready for practice squad callups and newcomers Elijah Garcia, Casey Rogers and Cory Durden on the defensive line and possibly Josh Ezeudu and maybe Chris Hubbard (questionable with a knee issue) at offensive tackle.
Jersey boys: Is there something in the water around the Meadowlands?
The Giants and Jets are the only NFL teams to not have a 300-yard passer in a game, and also the only two teams to not give up 300 passing yards to an opposing quarterback.
Much of this is because neither team has been able to stop the run — the Giants are 29th in the NFL, the Jets are 20th — so why pass it when you can run it on ’em?
This may come as a surprise: The Giants are the only team in the league that has yet to allow an opposing receiver to gain at least 100 yards.
Tight spot: These last five games would have been a wonderful opportunity for TE Theo Johnson to end his rookie year with a flourish.
Alas, he underwent foot surgery early in the week and is done for the season.
That further depletes a thin position group, as Daniel Bellinger (fourth-round pick in 2022) fell into disfavor with the coaching staff and barely plays.
New on the scene is Greg Dulcich, who was cast aside by the Broncos in late November.
Dulcich was a third-round pick in 2022 and he had 33 catches for 411 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie. Maybe the long-haired Dulcich shows something down the stretch.
