Referee Scouting Report for NY Giants' Week 5 Battle vs. Saints

The phrase "not good enough to survive mental mistakes" perfectly describes the New York Giants (1-3). Their margin for error was already small, but it is brutally slim following Malik Nabers' ACL injury.

Even in a game versus the winless New Orleans Saints, Big Blue must limit its penalties. There is always a chance the officiating crew makes that a tough task, however. 

Alan Eck is the lead referee for this Week 5 matchup, according to Football Zebras. It has been a while since the team saw him in action.

Eck, who has served as an NFL official since 2016, last worked a Giants game on Nov. 5, 2023. 

New York suffered a 30-6 defeat on the road to the Las Vegas Raiders. As one can see, a lot went wrong in that inter-conference battle, but penalties were actually not a problem. The Giants were flagged only three times for eight yards, per NFL Penalties.com.

That is music to fans' ears, but two years can make quite a difference. The Giants are tied for the third-most penalties committed (35) and have accumulated the most yards against this season (320). Luckily, Eck's crew has remained lenient when it comes to throwing flags this year.

There have been just 51 penalties through four games on the veteran ref's watch, with 20 of those coming in the Week 1 divisional showdown between the Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears. Penalties did not even reach double-digits in two matchups.

This trend is just what the discipline-challenged Giants need right now. One thing to note, though, is that the away team has accrued three more penalties than the home team in three of the four games Eck has officiated in 2025.

NY Giants already have so much to overcome; they cannot add to the list

Nabers is done for the year, Jaxson Dart is inexperienced under center, and the play-calling is still questionable.

This squad already faces a steep climb. It cannot afford to push itself further down the hill. 

The Giants need every advantage they can get, and maybe, just maybe, an Alan Eck-officiated game falls under that category.

If New York can stay sharp before the snap and exercise restraint in key moments, it should possess enough talent to outlast a franchise that has its own issues. 

The Giants definitely have glaring flaws, but the Saints could be the worst team in the league.