Everything you need to know about Week 12's Patriots-Giants matchup

FOXBORO -- Can you feel the energy around this weekend's Patriots-Giants showdown? 

There's nothing like a 2-8 team visiting a 3-8 team in late November. It's NFL football at its finest! 

Yeah, this one doesn't carry the juice of previous Patriots-Giants matchups. A good chunk of fans on both sides will be cheering for their team to lose this weekend and improve their draft positioning. That is really all that can be gained -- or lost, really -- in this tilt.

Both teams are a bigger mess than a kitchen after Thanksgiving dinner. The Giants are on third-string QB Tommy DeVito, who brings a fairly wholesome story to the table as a 25-year-old who still lives at home. It's not as fun in New England, as the Patriots won't tell us who will be playing quarterback on Sunday afternoon in New Jersey. 

Given their respective issues at quarterback this season, it should be no shock that this weekend will pit the NFL's worst offense against the NFL's second-worst offense. So don't expect to see this one featured on NFL RedZone all that much.

At least the Patriots have a middling defense, while the Giants... well their defense is just as bad as their offense. They're ranked 28th in both points allowed (25.9 per game) and total defense (371.6 yards per game). So maybe the Patriots will be able to do some scoring. 

But we've felt that way a few times before this season, and been massively disappointed. Maybe the Patriots can buck that trend coming out of their bye week. Here's all you need to know about this Week 12 matchup.

Patriots-Giants

-Overall, the Patriots are 7-4 against the Giants in regular season play. The last time they met came during the 2019 season, when the Patriots won 35-14 at Gillette Stadium. 

-New England is 12-3 all-time at MetLife Stadium, but only one of those games came against the Giants. The Patriots won that one, 27-26, on a last second 54-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski during the 2015 season. 

-The Giants are 2-0 against the Patriots in the postseason, but we won't stir up those memories. This season has been tough enough, no need to relive the past. (At least not that past.)

Patriots-Giants Connections

-You may have heard that Bill Belichick spent some time with the Giants in another lifetime. He was on the Giants' coaching staff for 12 seasons, starting in 1979 as a special teams coach for Ray Perkins. He was the defensive coordinator from 1985-90, overseeing the defense for the Giants' victories in Super Bowls XXI and XXV. 

-New England defensive back Jabrill Peppers played three seasons for the Giants before joining the Patriots in 2022. Linebacker Calvin Munson played 14 games for New York during the 2017 season.  

-Patriots' assistant head coach Joe Judge was 10-23 in his two seasons as head coach of the Giants. He was fired after a 4-13 season in 2021.

-There are two former Patriots on the Giants in receiver Gunner Olszewski and offensive tackle Yodny Cajuste (practice squad).

-The New York coaching staff is chock-full of former Patriots connections, starting with head coach Brian Daboll (2000-06, 2013-16). Assistant defensive line coach Bryan Cox, defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson, offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, and defensive line coach Andre Patterson also have stints with the Patriots on their resumes. 

Everything else you should know about Patriots-Giants

-The Patriots are 16-7 coming out of their bye week under Belichick.

-Belichick will tie Don Shula on an all-time list this weekend -- just not in the category he really wants. This weekend will be Belichick's 423rd overall game since joining the Patriots in 2000 (including postseason games) which will tie Shula for the third-most games coached with one team. After this weekend, Belichick will only trail George Halas (506) and Tom Landry (454) on the list.  

-The Patriots' offense has actually outgained the Giants' offense 2,945 to 2,884 despite playing in one less game so far. Neither offense is all that good at finding the end zone though, with New York scoring 16 touchdowns to New England's 15. The Giants are last in the NFL at 13.5 points scored per game, while the Patriots rank 31st at 14.1 points per game.

-The Giants lead the NFL with 63 sacks allowed this season, which is a dozen more than the Commanders. While it feels like the Patriots should be near the top of that list as well, they've allowed only 23 sacks through 10 games. 

-Tommy DeVito is coming off his best game as a pro, tossing three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 31-19 win over the Commanders. The Jersey native completed 18 of his 26 passes for 246 yards in the victory.

-Devito put up those impressive numbers despite being sacked nine times in the win. Yes, Mrs. Bueller, he was sacked NINE times by the Commanders. Overall, Devito has been sacked 22 times in his four games this season. 

-With 13 rushing touchdowns for his career, Rhamondre Stevenson needs one more to move into the top 20 for rushing touchdowns in Patriots' team history. His next rushing score will move him into a four-way tie 19th all-time. 

-Demario Douglas needs 13 receptions to tie Deion Branch for the most receptions by a Patriots rookie receiver under Bill Belichick.

We'll get you ready to Sunday's Patriots-Giants tilt all week on WBZ-TV -- the flagship station of the New England Patriots. Coverage begins Wednesday night with Patriots 1st Down at 9:30 p.m. on TV38, and continues Saturday night with Patriots All Access at 7pm on both WBZ and TV38. Pregame coverage kicks off Sunday morning at 11:30am with Patriots GameDay, and after the game, tune in to Patriots 5th Quarter on TV38.