The running attack has not been the strength of the New York Giants in 2016. Time and again, New York has sputtered with a rush game ranked at the bottom of the league. As cold weather football commences in earnest, the G-Men clearly need a boost. Part of that boost occurred with the return of guard Justin Pugh. Now phase 2 must happen with Paul Perkins taking over for Rashad Jennings as starting halfback.

Jennings Time

Rashad Jennings is a professional running back. There really is not much, good or bad, to say about his game, except he gives 100 percent on a weekly basis. Jennings has no glaring weaknesses, as he blocks and catches the ball too. But there also is no upside to Jennings game at this point. He is what he is.

This season, Jennings averages 3.2 yards per carry. According to NFL.com, only two running backs with more than 100 carries average less. Only Tampa Bay’s Doug Martin (2.9 yards per carry) and Minnesota’s Jerick McKinnon (3.0 yards per carry) are less efficient than Jennings.

The Giants needed Jennings to step up yesterday against the Lions, yet he did not produce as needed. And it was not due to a lack of usage. “Jennings tied his second-highest total of carries this season, but he struggled to produce and finished with an unimpressive average of 2.1 yards per carry,” CBSSports.com posted on Dec. 18, 2016.

Now if Jennings was on your Fantasy Football to begin with, then you have obviously ignored the waiver wire. As far as the Giants on field product, Jennings has carried the 516 times in his Giants’ career to a 3.9 yard average. Unfortunately, that type of production will not make Big Blue a Super Bowl contender.

Perkins Time

In defense of the coaching staff, Paul Perkins was not ready for prime time in training camp. In fact, it could be argued that he was the worst running back performer this summer. But after the Orleans Darkwa experiment failed, Bobby Rainey got a shot. Ball security still rears its ugly head with Rainey, so the team turned to Perkins.

According to Pro Football Focus, Perkins was one of the top five offensive performers for Big Blue yesterday. “On 18 carries, starting RB Rashad Jennings managed just 38 yards (36 after contact), but his rookie understudy enjoyed better success. Paul Perkins tallied 56 yards on 11 touches, with 32 of his yards coming after the catch.”

Perkins was given a (73.4) grade for yesterday’s work against the Detroit Lions. Behind Perkins production, the ground attack surpassed 100 yards against the Lions (114 yards).

Some will point to the fact that Perkins 3.8 yards per carry average as reason not to turn the page. That thinking ignores the upside potential of Perkins. Against the Cowboys, Perkins carried the ball 15 times, and this week he had 11 carries. His improvement is noticeable.

With Justin Pugh back in the fold, it’s time to give the rookie 20 carries to prepare him for the rigors of the playoffs.