SEATTLE — This is as far from home as the Giants can go, and the cross-country trip proved to be a pleasant diversion for a team that headed home looking and feeling a whole lot better about itself and its prospects for the season.
Before the Giants could get their legs under them on Sunday they gave up a hard-to-believe touchdown on a 101-yard fumble return in what was a 14-point reversal of fortune.
That could have deterred the Giants but instead, they dominated for long stretches, got vintage play from quarterback Daniel Jones and came away with a well-earned, 29-20 victory over the Seahawks at Lumen Field.
The Giants (2-3) did it without Malik Nabers, their rookie sensation wide receiver, and without starting running back Devin Singletary.
They had to improvise on offense and head coach Brian Daboll did so with aplomb, trusting youngsters who had not done much in the first four games.
Rookie running back Tyrone Tracy gained 129 rushing yards and rookie tight end Theo Johnson was a part of the passing attack.
Jones (23 of 34, 257 yards) tossed touchdown passes to Wan’Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton and did not turn the ball over.
Slayton, filling Nabers’ big-play role, had eight catches for 122 yards.
The Giants needed a final defensive stand to hold on, as the Seahawks, trailing 23-20, took over with 1:40 left.
They got into field goal range but with 55 seconds remaining the Giants came up with a huge play on special teams.
Jason Myers lined up for a 47-yard field goal attempt to tie the game, but Isaiah Simmons leaped up and made the block.
The ball was scooped up by Bryce Ford-Wheaton, who raced 60 yards for a touchdown to turn tension into exhilaration for the Giants.
It was 10-10 at halftime and it looked as if the Seahawks would strike first in the third quarter, but Deonte Banks forced a fumble on DK Metcalf that rookie Tyler Nubin recovered on the Giants 26-yard line.
It had been a bunch of short stuff until then, as Jones uncorked a perfectly placed ball on the right sideline to Slayton for 41 yards and followed that up with a 30-yard scoring strike, as Slayton beat Tre Brown badly.
That put the Giants ahead 17-10.
Banks made a play on Metcalf on third down to stop a Seattle drive and Myers’ 48-yard field goal pulled the Seahawks within 17-13 midway through the third quarter.
A 25-yard run by Tracy led to Greg Joseph’s 31-yard field goal to extend the Giants lead to 20-13.
Mike Macdonald, the Seahawks’ first-year head coach, rolled the dice and came up empty on a huge gamble early in the fourth quarter.
It was fourth-and-1 on the Seattle 35-yard line and rather than punt the ball away, Macdonald kept his offense on the field.
It proved to be a bad decision, as Brian Burns stormed in for a sack of Geno Smith, giving the Giants the ball on the 27.
That led to Joseph’s third field goal, a 24-yard chip shot to extend the Giants lead to 23-13 with 11:54 to go.
Dexter Lawrence, with another monster performance, and Kayvon Thibodeaux got to Smith for a 10-yard sack on third down of the ensuing Seahawks possession.
Nothing comes easy for the Giants, though, and Smith put together a 95-yard drive, hitting Jaxon Smith-Njigba on an 11-yard touchdown pass with 2:09 remaining to narrow the Giants lead to 23-20.
The Giants went three-and-out, taking just 29 seconds off the clock, giving Seattle one final chance.
The Seahawks got within field goal range, but the block saved the Giants.
It was an almost inconceivable turnaround late in the first quarter that turned what should have been a rousing Giants drive and an early lead into a shocking 7-0 deficit.
Eric Gray caught two screen passes for 37 yards to help his team to a first-and-goal at the 5-yard line.
Gray ran for 2 yards, Jones on a keeper ran for two and a pitchout to Gray was stopped for nothing, setting up a fourth-and-inches situation.
Rather than have Jones try to muscle in on a sneak, the call went again to Gray and disaster struck.
The second-year running back tried to leap his way in, was stopped short of the goal line and lost the ball on a hit by linebacker Jerome Baker.
The ball deflected into the end zone, where safety Rayshaw Jenkins was there to scoop it up.
For a moment, everyone froze — everyone that is, other than Jenkins, who raced the ball out of the end zone and almost casually sprinted down the field, with no one in pursuit.
He walked in for a 101-yard fumble return for a touchdown and all that good work by the Giants resulted in heartache.
To their credit, the Giants did not allow that colossal momentum swing to deter them.
They got the ball and moved it 81 yards in eight plays, with Tyrone Tracy picking up 27 yards on a run and Johnson hauling in a 22-yard reception.
Jones hit Robinson on a 7-yard scoring toss, with Robinson angling into the end zone ahead of former Giants safety Julian Love.
The next time they got the ball, the Giants held it for 12 plays and took 5:12 off the clock on a possession that featured Robinson and Jones both showing off tackle-breaking abilities.
Robinson, though, went to his knees and failed to secure a pass that forced the Giants to settle for Joseph’s 38-yard field goal for a 10-7 Giants lead with only 22 seconds left before halftime.
There was the first defensive let-down of the half, though, allowing Smith to complete two passes before Myers hit a 43-yard field goal to make it 10-10 at the break.
It should have been a Giants lead, considering how forcefully they dominated the first 30 minutes.
The Giants held the edge in first downs (15-5), total yards (225-90), rushing yards (90-2) and time of possession (21:55-8:03) but Gray’s fumble seemed to be a killer.
In the end, it was not.
