The Giants.com crew members give their takeaways from Sunday's 34-24 loss to the 49ers.

John Schmeelk: The old phrase "next man up" has been used so much, it has become a bit of a trope. It doesn't mean that it isn't technically accurate, just that it is something easy to say but often doesn't translate into real life on an NFL field. The Giants were missing their top two outside cornerbacks on Sunday, as well as one of their top two starting safeties. It showed.

Unlike an NFL offense, which can be helped exponentially by one star, an NFL defense is an interconnected machine that only works when all the parts and pieces are turning the right way and working together. The Giants pass rush was largely intact in the game on Sunday, but it ended up not mattering much because of the way the 49ers were able to play offense

Mac Jones' average time to throw on Sunday was a mere 2.48 seconds, giving the Giants pass rush little time to get home. Jones would hit the top of his drop and the ball would come out on-time to an open receiver. He threw only five incomplete passes and didn't attempt a pass that traveled more than 20 air yards. Receivers got open quickly and Jones found them. The offense was quick hitting and efficient.

Given the health issues in the secondary, I'm not sure how much that is going to change until Paulson Adebo, Cor'Dale Flott and Jevón Holland return from injury. For the pass rush to get home, the coverage has to be better to force the quarterback to hold the ball longer.

Jones also only had throw the ball 24 times versus 39 rushing attempts by the 49ers. The front seven has no one else to blame for that but themselves, allowing the 49ers to rush for 159 yards and over four yards per carry. This is where improvement has to begin for the defense, but it might not matter until the team gets healthier in the secondary.

That's just the defense. Unfortunately for the Giants offense, the two biggest injuries to Malik Nabers and Cam Skattebo will not resolve themselves until next year. Jermaine Eluemunor returning will help pass protection on offense, while Daniel Bellinger's return would allow the Giants to get back to utilizing 12 personnel more like they were in the past few weeks.

Dan Salomone: One phrase stuck out in Brian Daboll's postgame press conference when he responded to a question about Jaxson Dart's performance and overall progression. "We've got to do a good job of finishing plays around him, too," Daboll added after praising the rookie quarterback for the way he battles and competes for 60 minutes.

On Sunday, Dart set a franchise single-season record with five games having both a rushing and passing touchdown. He is just the third NFL rookie all-time to do it that many times. The others are Cam Newton (eight in 2011) and Justin Herbert (five in 2020). Both players went on to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Dart has accomplished the feat while, as the starter, getting just 25 snaps with Malik Nabers. Now, he has played a game and a half without Cam Skattebo, the fourth-round draft pick who was leading all NFL rookies in yards from scrimmage and touchdowns until he suffered a dislocated ankle in Philadelphia.

That means players have to step up.

Theo Johnson caught his fifth touchdown on Sunday and is now two away from becoming just the fifth tight end in Giants history with at least seven touchdown catches in a season (Aaron Thomas, Joe Walton, Mark Bavaro, and Jeremey Shockey twice). But the second-year pro also had a key drop on third down late in the first half of a 10-point game at the time. Wan'Dale Robinson had nine catches, but they amounted to just 46 yards, only 13 of which were after the catch. He lost ground on a few as the 49ers, as they are known to do, swarmed to the ball. Center John Michael Schmitz and rookie right tackle Marcus Mbow, who made his first NFL start in place of the injured Jermaine Eluemunor, were also called for back-to-back false starts on third down early in the second quarter at MetLife Stadium. Darius Slayton had a season-high 62 yards, but 48 of them came after the 49ers had extended their lead to 17 points in the fourth quarter. He was also unable to complete a catch in the end zone just before the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter

Football is the ultimate team game, but quarterback is the ultimate position. And no one can play it without help.

Matt Citak: Between the second half of the Week 6 matchup against the Eagles and the first three quarters of the Week 7 outing against the Broncos, the Giants' defense went five consecutive quarters without allowing a single point. Since then, the unit has struggled. The Broncos stormed back with 33 points in the final frame, and the following week, the Giants surrendered 38 points in the rematch against the Eagles. Things didn't get much better on Sunday.

With Brock Purdy injured, 49ers quarterback Mac Jones started under center and finished the game 19 of 24 (79.2 percent) for 235 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, earning a passer rating of 135.2. While Christian McCaffrey was held somewhat in check on the ground with his 28 rushes for 106 yards (3.8 avg.), the Giants could not contain him in the passing game. McCaffrey led the 49ers with five receptions for 67 yards and a touchdown, one of two scores on the day, while Brian Robinson Jr. mixed in and added five rushes for 53 yards and a touchdown. Both backs had three runs of 10+ yards, with Robinson's score coming on an 18-yard run that saw several Giants try and fail to bring him down. San Francisco converted on six of 11 third down attempts, along with their only fourth down try. More importantly, they were able to score a touchdown on four of five trips inside the red zone. The Giants have now gone three consecutive games with 33 or more points allowed, the franchise's longest streak since 2018.

"We're working, we're working at it," coach Brian Daboll told the media Monday about the issues on defense. "We had a long meeting like we do after every game and looked at some of the things that were good and then a lot of the things that need to improve. And that's collectively, that's all of us, from the coaches to the players. We're doing everything we can do… There were some good things in the run game and then there were some things that weren't. It wasn't one person, it wasn't one position, it wasn't one call, it wasn't one missed tackle. Just overall, we need to be better."

As John mentioned above, the Giants have been hit pretty hard with injuries, especially when it comes to the defensive backfield. Going up against a potent, Kyle Shanahan-led offense is tough when fully healthy, but trying to slow that unit down with a depleted secondary makes the challenge even tougher. As we all know, though, injuries are a part of the game. Every team across the NFL is dealing with injuries. And things are not about to get any easier with the upcoming three-game stretch against NFC North opponents, all of whom enter Week 10 with five wins on the season and with a top 11 scoring offense. The defense needs to find some answers on how to turn things around in the second half of the season.