Giants hold off Titans as Jevon Holland makes interception in end zone in closing seconds
Jevon Holland of the Giants celebrates after defeating the Tennessee Titans at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Jameis Winston had high hopes for his first start of the season Sunday. His confidence led to sharing a prophecy for teammate Jevon Holland.
“I said, when the play is on the line, you're going to make the biggest play,” Winston said.
Holland did just that in Sunday’s 12-7 win over the Titans at MetLife Stadium. With rainy conditions and nervous fans watching the Titans march down the field, Holland intercepted Titans quarterback Cam Ward in the end zone with 17 seconds left in regulation.
It was his third interception in as many games. On a day when fellow defensive leader Brian Burns suffered a potentially serious knee injury, Holland did what Burns tried to do as an All-Pro linebacker last season.
Make a play.
“The ball’s just coming my way. I don’t know,” said Holland, who has four takeaways in three games. “Anybody can tell you, like, there’s no rhyme or reason to it. I’m just trying to catch the ones they throw to me.”
The play ensured the Giants (2-1) spend a second week this season above .500, something that hadn’t happened since 2022. It also gave Winston his first win as a Giants quarterback and spoiled the returns of Titans coach Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who used to coach the Jets and Giants at MetLife Stadium.
Winston was 0-for-2 last season and he took over this week with Jaxson Dart’s knee surgery ending his regular season. His numbers weren’t flashy: 14-for-22 for 118 yards with three sacks. His his longest completion went for 30 yards to Cam Skattebo on a broken play.
The Giants have yet to score a touchdown since Winston took over for Dart in the first quarter of the Rams' game last Monday night. But Holland’s takeaway — the team's second on Sunday after Zaire Barnes forced a fumble on the opening kickoff that Malik Harrison recovered — bailed the offense out. Rookie linebacker Arvell Reese had a breakout game with a team-high 12 tackles.
“We miss Jaxson and he means so much to this team and organization,” said Winston, who hadn’t won a start since Nov. 21, 2024 with the Browns. “So I’m just happy we were able to get that win to support him.”
Rookie kicker Dominic Zvada did all the scoring, going 4-for-4 on field goals. Yet the Giants nearly gave up the lead in the fourth quarter.
The Titans (0-3) struggled on offense for three quarters. The Giants greeted Daboll by holding his offense to just 122 yards entering the fourth quarter.
But then the Titans made things interesting. Ward's 4-yard TD pass Wan'Dale Robinson with 5:35 left capped a 13-play, 91-yard drive and suddenly it was 12-7. Robinson, in his first year with the Titans after playing his first four seasons with the Giants, finished with seven catches for 57 yards.
The Giants then punted after a five-play drive. Jordan Stout’s punt landed at the Titans’ 8-yard line but Elijah Campbell interfered with the fair catch, giving the Titans 15 more yards to start.
With 3:03 left, Ward and the Titans took over. As the Titans marched downfield, it reminded of how the Giants blew five fourth-quarter leads last season.
On first-and-goal at the Giants’ 7, Ward escaped the pass rush and looked to scramble before throwing. Holland watched him move, then leaped to make a play.
“I’m the free player so I was gonna go hold him up basically,” Holland said. “If he sees me running at him, he might stop and try to let the ball go, but then I saw him step to stay lateral and find people. [Ward] does scramble with his eyes downfield, and I just stayed around the front of the end zone.”
It saved a defense that could be without Burns for a while. He was questionable with an ankle injury after not practicing all week yet played as a reserve by mostly coming in on third-down rush packages.
In the fourth quarter, Burns was knocked down trying to rush Ward. He immediately punched the turf while grabbing his right knee and was helped off the field without putting weight on his right leg. John Harbaugh said Burns, who hasn’t missed a game since being traded to the Giants in 2024, will get an MRI to determine the severity.
It was another blow for a team already reeling without Dart. The offense struggled under Winston, especially in the red zone.
On second-and-goal at the Titans' 2 in the third quarter, an illegal shift penalty pushed the Giants back five yards. Jermaine Eluemunor was then flagged for holding to make it second-and-goal at the 17. After a Winston incompletion and short run by Cam Skattebo, Zvada converted his fourth field goal.
The sequence mirrored another red zone mistake in the second quarter. The Giants had first-and-goal from the Titans' 5 but called a direct snap for Skattebo. He ran backward with the Titans swarming on him for a 7-yard loss.
The Giants settled that drive with a 27-yard field goal for a 6-0 lead. Despite no touchdowns, they left Sunday as winners thanks to Holland's interception.
“That's the kind of player Jevonn Holland has always been,” Harbaugh said. “So, to see him flourishing right now, the way he is, it's wonderful.”
Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
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