How does the Chicago Bears offensive line stack up against the New York Giants Defensive Line?
The New York Giants run a base 3-4 defense. On early, run stopping downs, you will see a beefed up front including Dalvin Tomlinson, Dexter Lawrence, and Leonard Williams. That will include Lorenzo Carter and Markus Golden on the edge. On pass rushing downs, Lawrence and Tomlinson will head out for an extra defensive back and B.J. Hill, who is a primary pass rushing option.
The New York Giants run defense ranks 13th in power rate, which is the converted 3 and fourth and shorts as well as goal line carries. They rank 19th in stuff rate, which yards for zero or less yards. They rank 15th in second level yards, and 32nd in open field yards as well.
This can show from their Week One performance against Benny Snell. Snell had two carries amount for over 50 yards, and finished with 119 yards on 17 carries. His two big open field runs, broke the Giants dam.
Charles Leno
Leno is expected to spend most of his day against Lorenzo Carter. Carter is hoping to break out in year three, and had a nice showing in Week One to start that campaign. He led the Giants in pressures, and was second behind linebacker Blake Martinez in run stops.
Carter plays off of the ball as an outside linebacker, but was second on the team in pass rush snaps as well. This is a nice matchup for Leno on paper, though.
We know by now the issues with Leno and his strengths as well. He is not going to win with power, but he can get off of the ball fast and is light on his feet. Carter is an athlete with burst, but is unrefined with his moves, and is not a power rusher. These are the types of players that Leno can play well against.
James Daniels
This is going to be the matchup of the game. He is going to see most of his time against Dexter Lawrence on run downs, and Leonard Williams on passing downs. On run downs, Williams may also load that side up, and get chances to use his power against Leno.
However, like Leno, that has been the issue with Daniels as well. He is fast, and good with hands, but he can get pushed back at times. While Leno is who he is, Daniels is younger than most rookies in this past draft class. He can gain strength.
However, Sunday will be a test. We saw Matt Feiler get walked back a time or two for the Steelers and he is a veteran. Lawrence is a first round pick who was drafted solely off of his power, and while Williams has not lived up to his draft status, he has turned it on a bit with the Giants. Daniels was key in helping getting the run game straight, but this will be a tougher matchup than Detroit.
Cody Whitehair
The way the Giants beef up their line will make it tough for Whitehair to help Daniels, at least when it comes to the run game. Whitehair will see Dalvin Tomlinson on early downs. Tomlinson is quick footed and slippery for a nose tackle, and while Whitehair has the advantage in most matchups, his hands being full will show up a lot of Daniels, and Germain Ifedi in one-on-one scenarios.
Germain Ifedi
Ifedi could see bits and pieces of all of the names mentioned. On run downs, he will see Williams at times while Daniels takes on Lawrence. If Whitehair is preoccupied with Tomlinson, we will see how far Ifedi has come. Both Williams and Ifedi did not live up to draft status, but Williams has the upper hand as of now.
However, on pass downs, Ifedi will see the most of B.J. Hill. Hill has nice burst, but is inconsistent overall, and is a sound matchup for Ifedi due to their athletic profiles. Overall, the interior should fare better stylistically with the Giants pass rush plan, than their run defense.
Bobby Massie
Markus Golden is an outside linebacker, but he hardly plays off of the ball. In terms of scheme, the Giants use Lorenzo Carter similar to Leonard Floyd in how he plays off of the ball, while Golden is a traditional pass rusher, used similarly to Mack. Of course, luckily for Massie, he is not quite Mack.
However, Golden is coming off of a season with 10 sacks, which is more than Mack. Massie and Golden are a bit familiar as well. The last year Massie spent in Arizona was the rookie year for Golden there.
Golden did not have a big game against Zach Banner, but did have two pressures. Beyond that, the Steelers have 11 carries for 63 yards off of the right tackle. Still, of any pass rusher, he would be the biggest stylistic mismatch for Chicago. If Massie can handle Golden, the line should be able to get through two weeks unscathed.