{"id":1193,"section":"sports","section_label":"Sports","url":"https://www.brokenews.co/sports/1193","headline":"Giants beat Texans 27-21 in overtime in McCarthy's first start","dek":"J.J. McCarthy and Cam Skattebo connected to lift New York past Houston and improve the Giants to 4-2-1.","body":"J.J. McCarthy made his first start for the Giants count, leading New York to a 27-21 overtime win over the Texans in Week 7. The victory pushed the Giants to 4-2-1 after weeks of uncertainty at quarterback and running back.\n\nThe Texans struck first when Ka'imi Fairbairn drove a 58-yard field goal through the posts after Houston's opening drive, with New York's defense limiting them to three points thanks in part to three solo tackles from Micah McFadden. The addition of Paulson Adebo and Tyler Nubin appeared to steady a secondary that had been shorthanded for weeks.\n\nNew York answered fast. McCarthy opened his first drive as a starter with two throws to Cam Skattebo before Jameis Winston briefly spelled him, and the Giants quickly turned the possession into a touchdown. McCarthy played a mostly mistake-free game that validated the team's decision to hand him the job, a move head coach John Harbaugh had explained by pointing to McCarthy's skill set after the quarterback had been with the team for four weeks.\n\nThe game stayed tight into overtime before McCarthy and Skattebo connected again to seal the 27-21 win for New York.","published_at":"2026-10-25T21:34:33.259650+00:00","source_count":5,"written_from":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy, Cam Skattebo connect for Giants' 27-21 OT win against Texans","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/j-j-mccarthy-cam-skattebo-203311009.html"},{"outlet":"The Athletic","publisher":"The Athletic","title":"J.J. McCarthy validates Giants' decision to turn to him in overtime win vs. Texans","url":"https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7723295/2026/10/25/giants-texans-nfl-week-7-result-takeaways/"},{"outlet":"Pro Football Talk","publisher":"NBC Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy, Giants take 7-3 lead on Texans","url":"https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/j-j-mccarthy-giants-take-7-3-lead-on-texans"},{"outlet":"New York Post","publisher":"New York Post","title":"J.J. McCarthy’s running capability comes with cautionary caveat for Giants","url":"https://nypost.com/2026/10/24/sports/giants-j-j-mccarthys-running-capability-comes-with-cautionary-caveat/"},{"outlet":"CBS Sports","publisher":"CBS Sports","title":"Giants' John Harbaugh details J.J. McCarthy decision with convincing explanation: 'Heck of a skill set'","url":"https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/giants-john-harbaugh-details-j-j-mccarthy-start/"}],"more_coverage":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Giants at Texans matchup: J.J. McCarthy vs. talented Houston defense","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/giants-texans-matchup-j-j-133000725.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Giants’ J.J. McCarthy Receives ‘Areas of Concern’ Warning After Earning Starting Job","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/giants-j-j-mccarthy-receives-131339953.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Survey results: Giants fans support the quarterback change","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/survey-results-giants-fans-support-155341890.html"},{"outlet":"New York Post","publisher":"New York Post","title":"Giants turning to J.J. McCarthy experiment with hopes of unlocking untapped potential","url":"https://nypost.com/2026/10/24/sports/giants-turning-to-j-j-mccarthy-with-hopes-of-unlocking-untapped-potential/"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Former NFL MVP: J.J. McCarthy not ready to start for New York Giants","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/former-nfl-mvp-j-j-210101332.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy’s running capability comes with cautionary caveat for Giants","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/j-j-mccarthy-running-capability-004642919.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy carries four-game winning streak into first start for Giants","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/j-j-mccarthy-carries-four-161852972.html"},{"outlet":"Pro Football Talk","publisher":"NBC Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy carries four-game winning streak into first start for Giants","url":"https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/j-j-mccarthy-carries-four-game-winning-streak-into-first-start-for-giants"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Giants rumors: The actual plan for J.J. McCarthy after John Harbaugh’s cryptic comments","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/giants-rumors-actual-plan-j-164758391.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy hits Malik Nabers with deep ball, leads TD drive on first possession as Giants starter","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/breaking-news/article/jj-mccarthy-hits-malik-nabers-with-deep-ball-leads-td-drive-on-first-possession-as-giants-starter-174147602.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy updates: QB makes his Giants starting debut (UPDATED)","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/giants-j-j-mccarthy-looked-192935794.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Giants’ Jameis Winston vultures TD as J.J. McCarthy renaissance continues vs. Texans","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/giants-jameis-winston-vultures-td-210630036.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy's first Giants start is a triumph – and reminder of QB's value","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/j-j-mccarthys-first-giants-210930917.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Giants' J.J. McCarthy 'had a blast' during first start with new team: 'This is just the beginning'","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/giants-j-j-mccarthy-had-230604994.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"J.J. McCarthy has message for NFL after impressive Giants debut","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/j-j-mccarthy-message-nfl-234645478.html"}],"image":{"url":"https://nbcsports.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/370eb5f/2147483647/strip/false/crop/1920x1080+0+0/resize/1920x1080!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fhdliveextra-a.akamaihd.net%2FHD%2Fimage_sports%2FNBCU_Sports_Group_-_nbcsports%2F386%2F106%2Fnbc_pft_showme_261023.jpg","credit":"Pro Football Talk","width":1920},"embed":null,"license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/","attribution":"Analysis data is licensed CC BY 4.0. Credit brokenews and link to the story page you took it from. Source headlines, story titles taken from a source headline, and quoted passages remain the property of their publishers and are quoted for comparison, not licensed onward.","terms":"https://www.brokenews.co/about#reuse"}