The Giants’ Week 2 clash with the Cowboys started off in the most bizarre way. Instead of a quick and clean drive, New York embarked on a 16-play, 110-yard journey. Yet, all they got were three points. Why? Penalties. Fans in the Big Apple were already shaking their heads in disbelief, wondering how things could spiral so fast.

Meanwhile, the penalty trouble didn’t stop there. The Giants racked up six penalties just in the opening stretch. Shockingly, one came right on the opening kickoff, followed by five more during the first drive. What made it worse was James Hudson’s performance. The left tackle, starting due to Andrew Thomas’ foot injury, was at the center of the mess. In fact, CBS Sports research pointed out that Hudson became the first player since at least 2000 to get flagged four times on a single drive. That’s historic, but not in a good way.

On top of that, Hudson drew two flags for unnecessary roughness and two for false starts. At one point, he just slapped James Houston on the head for no good reason. The Giants somehow managed to squeeze out a 38-yard field goal by Graham Gano, capping that miserable drive.

Because of Hudson’s antics, Giants head coach Brian Daboll didn’t hesitate. He benched Hudson and threw Marcus Mbow into the game. The rookie, picked in the fifth round of the 2025 draft out of Purdue, got his shot. Hudson wasn’t happy about it. Yet, Giants fans were louder in their disappointment. They wanted stricter action.

Giants fans lose it over James Hudson’s historic blunder

Right after that disaster of a first drive, Giants fans couldn’t hold back. Social media blew up with frustration. “Cut this dude tomorrow,” one fan tweeted, while another added, “Waived coming tomorrow.” Hudson, now in his first season with the Giants, spent four years with the Cleveland Browns. The 26-year-old came into the league in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, picked out of Cincinnati. But with just 19 starts in 51 games, his career hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing.

Interestingly, Hudson wasn’t ejected from the game. Yet, the slap he gave Houston raised eyebrows. And the reason is similar to what happened earlier in the season with Chargers’ Teair Tart, who slapped Travis Kelce but wasn’t ejected either. However, he was fined $12k for his actions. Nevertheless, one fan didn’t mince words: “He had 4 straight penalties. I would cut him.” The outrage was real.

After all the flags, Coach Brian Daboll pulled him from the game immediately after that train wreck drive. Teammates didn’t hold back either, clearly giving Hudson plenty of side-eye. Fans piled on as well. “You’re not good enough, Chad,” one tweeted, while another said, “Yeeaaah he gone.”

However, later, backup QB Jameis Winston seemed to have a quiet word with Hudson. Observers say Winston’s body language made it clear: Hudson can’t let himself lose control and cost the Giants yardage like that.

Moreover, Hudson’s meltdown seemed to shake the whole Giants squad. In fact, New York racked up five more penalties in the first half, totaling nine accepted flags for 80 yards — their worst half in 20 years. Though they fell short of the NFL record for penalties in a game, which came when the Oakland Raiders committed 23 accepted penalties in 2016 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they still ended up with 14 penalties for 160 yards in a 40-37 OT loss. That was quite a game now, wasn’t it?