Andrew Thomas, Giants look to put 'embarrassing' loss to Cowboys behind them

The Cowboys are coming to town on Thursday night, and no one needed to remind Andrew Thomas of that.

The Giants left tackle injured his hamstring last year against the Cowboys in the opener at MetLife Stadium, and neither he nor the Giants recovered fully during the 2023 season.

The injury happened when Thomas tried to chase down a return of a blocked field goal in what would become a 40-0 Dallas rout.

The 2023 season represents a memory that Thomas surely wants to forget. And one that coach Brian Daboll likely doesn’t have time to consider in this, a short NFL week for the Giants.

“I think each individual person is motivated by different things,” Daboll said. “And my main focus is getting ready to play this team, 2024, the team that's just played these first three games. Different players, different schemes, making sure that we're prepared. Doing a good job in our walkthroughs, in our meetings, in our communication. But our focus is on the task at hand."

On Sunday against the Browns, Daniel Jones orchestrated a 13-play, 81-yard scoring drive for a touchdown in the first quarter that finished with a one-yard run by Devin Singletary. Jones also led a 14-play, 93-yard drive for another that culminated in Malik Nabers finding the end zone. Nabers added another touchdown catch. 

On Monday, Thomas noted the win Sunday and the short week.

“Yeah, it was the next game, the next opportunity to win, and we did,” he said. “It's a great feeling. But it's a short week, so we put that one to bed and we're on to Dallas.”

A game that always brings added importance with it. The Cowboys (1-2) enter off two straight losses at home (coincidentally, Dallas and the Giants both picked up their lone win at Cleveland). 

“It's a division game, so there's more emotions to it,” Thomas said. “To play meaningful football in December, you have to win the division games. So, it's definitely going to be a top-notch matchup, and we're excited about it.”

Asked how he was feeling on Monday, Thomas answered, “I’m feeling great.”

But that doesn’t mean that Thomas has forgotten about that rout in the season opener against Dallas a year ago.

“Yeah, that game was embarrassing,” Thomas said. “Home opener, that's a tough way to lose. But it's a new season, a new team. Some guys carried over from last year, and like I said, it's a divisional opponent, so even if we won that game, it's the same mentality. I'm sure they have the same mentality on the other side. You want to win that game, so that's what we're looking forward to doing.”

Thomas shared his approach to the season.

“Yeah, you just try to approach every week at hand,” he said. “You try not to look too far forward or too far behind in the past, and we're just focusing on this weekend. We get a win, then, like you said, things look different.”

For Thomas, usually the top dog among the linemen, Sunday's game was “bittersweet” because he thought his play was not up to his usual standards.

“We got the win, and the other four guys played great,” Thomas said. “I'm disappointed in my play and I take that wholeheartedly and I'm doing everything I can. It's a short week, but trying to make the corrections so that I can be ready for Thursday.”

Notes & quotes: Asked about possibly facing Dallas receiver CeeDee Lamb on Thursday with a few injured cornerbacks, Jason Pinnock said, “It'd be a challenge, regardless. But our personnel, we believe in all of our depth, really. I don’t have too much on that.” In three games this season, Lamb has 13 receptions on 24 targets for 218 yards and one touchdown . . . Asked about the team being booed by the home crowd in Week 1, Thomas said: “Honestly, just give them something to cheer about.”

By Kimberly Jones

kimberly.jones@newsday.comkimjonessports

Kimberly Jones covers the Giants for Newsday, a beat she first worked in the early 2000s before joining the YES Network to cover the Yankees. She worked for the NFL Network for more than a decade and has been heard semi-regularly on WFAN.