EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- This is life without Odell Beckham Jr. for the New York Giants. Offensively, everything is a grind. Nothing comes easily.
First downs are hard to come by. There were four in the entire first half Sunday. There were no big plays by the injured Beckham ... or by Brandon Marshall ... or by Sterling Shepard, who missed his second straight game as New York lost 24-7 to the Seattle Seahawks. The Giants (1-6) have rookie tight end Evan Engramand little else to threaten opposing defenses.
This is their reality, now and for the final nine games of the season. Nothing is going to magically fix this offense. Not offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan calling plays. Not head coach Ben McAdoo calling plays. And not any stronger reliance on the running game.
It's going to be difficult for the Giants to score points and make plays. They managed 177 total yards against the Seahawks.
"We weren't sharp on offense," coach Ben McAdoo said in an understatement.
The Giants' offense never had a chance against a quality Seattle defense. They didn't gain more than 17 yards on any of their eight yards in the first three quarters.
There is plenty of blame to go around. Their problems are a combination of everything. The Giants don't have the pass-catching weapons they'd planned to have for quarterback Eli Manning, the offensive line can't pass-protect for long and the run game, while better in recent weeks, doesn't exactly strike fear into defenses. Manning also isn't capable of putting this group on his shoulders and carrying it. He doesn't have the weapons or the mobility.
It's an ugly combination that couldn't be disguised by a strong defensive effort Sunday against the Seahawks. The Giants wanted to run but finished with 46 yards on 17 carries. When they had some success in the second half with their running backs (6.0 yards per carry) they got away from pounding it on the ground.
"I think the game plan these last couple of weeks was try to keep the game close, get into the fourth quarter, try to make a couple big plays," Manning said. "We just didn't quite hit those big plays, didn't convert on some third-and-manageables today. But, we've got to get better with the guys that we got, and find a way to execute."
Everything needs to be perfect with the current composition of this roster. The Giants were down seven starters when Sunday's game began, and nine by the time it was completed.
The result is that Manning had 17 yards passing in the first half. He finished 19-of-39 for 134 yards and one touchdown. That's 3.4 yards per pass attempt. Engram accounted for 60 of those yards and the touchdown. The Giants' wide receivers had five catches for 45 yards one week after recording two receptions for 23 yards.
It's a problem. The offense can't score and the defense is constantly on the field feeling they need to win the game.
"It's a little difficult," safety Landon Collins said. "We harp on it. We know this defense has to win games. We try to. We work each and every week to do that because we know the outcome. We know the situation we are in."
The offensive struggles aren't going away. They were hidden in the stunning upset of the Broncos last week. But in that game, the Giants managed just 266 yards and 16 points on offense. (The other scoring was provided by Janoris Jenkins' interception return for a touchdown.)
On Sunday, the Giants were outgained 222 yards to 42 in the first half, yet -- incredibly -- still managed to lead 7-3. They were aided by several Seahawks implosions, but also saw rookie defensive end Avery Moss force a fumble early in the second quarter deep in Seattle territory that led to the Giants' only touchdown.
But an inability to move the ball eventually caught up with them. It was inevitable. Every special-teams or defensive miscue gets magnified. The Giants had a punt tipped and were on the wrong end of a joint catch that was ruled a touchdown by the Seahawks to put the game away. The defense slowly wilted as the game progressed.
This is the Giants' reality.
"It's definitely long-term," Collins said. "It's our mindset. We have to do that."
The Giants are going to have to play perfectly over the final nine games to have any chance because their offense isn't anywhere close to good enough.