New York Giants
2019 Record: (4-12) 3rd
NFC East
2019 Season Recap:
Offense
Points: 21.3 (19th)
Yards: 338.5 (23rd)
Pass Yards: 233.2 (18th)
Rush Yards: 105.3 (19th)
Defense
Points: 28.2 (30th)
Yards: 377.3 (25th)
Pass Yards: 264.1 (28th)
Rush Yards: 113.2 (20th)
As the 2019 league year opened, a
blockbuster trade occurred which sent star receiver Odell Beckham to the Browns
for player and draft pick compensation. Fans cringed believing this could
become a very long off-season. In terms of the rookie draft process, looking for
the heir apparent to Eli Manning was the objective – and drafting Daniel Jones
was the outcome. This draft selection sent shock waves throughout the Giants
fan base which led to groans and disappointment on draft day. Staying the
course and defending the pick, coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Dave
Gettleman tried their best to reassure everyone this was the best pick for the
team.
Moving ahead to what transpired from
this past season, New York witnessed a good level of turmoil and dysfunction
which led to a 4-12 record for the club. Opening the season with Eli Manning as
the starting quarterback, making the change to insert Jones only took two weeks
after two losses. Coach Shurmur had clear pressure to play his young pivot
while trying to keep pace and save his job for one more season. To the
jubilation of the fan base, Jones preformed admirably in his first NFL showing
which led the Giants to a late comeback victory over the Buccaneers, seeing
Jones scramble for the go-ahead touchdown.
With the club riding high and showing
they made the correct move in the draft for the most important position,
nothing hardy materialized as this team couldn’t manage to win contests amidst
decent productivity. Adding to the mess, losing their star running back Saquon
Barkley to a high ankle sprain did the Giants no favors as well – his return
was quick only missing three contests in the process.
Pulling positives from a lost season,
New York found talent in their rookie pass catcher Darius Slayton which lifted
the overall outlook for this core. With Golden Tate and Sterling Shepard all
playing key roles, Slayton was a welcomed prize while leading the team in
receiving yards. With that said, the NFL is a production based business to
which the Giants failed to secure anything tangible.
Having some building blocks to make them
better for the following season – the choice to remove Shurmur as the bench
boss, to hire former New England Patriot Joe Judge was the outcome. Limited
experience in leading a team, Judge’s knowledge is based on special teams and
being Bill Belichick’s wide receiver coach. Time will tell if this is the
correct hire, but a youth movement at the coaching ranks is clearly the way the
league is moving.
2020 Offseason
WorkBook:
The Offense
Diving right into what the Giants hold
on offense, there is a good amount to get excited about. While the jury is
still out on Daniel Jones being an elite level passer, he showed flash and
poise in a number of contests to go along with growing pains. Statistically,
Jones was strong in his rookie season throwing for over 3000 yards and 24
touchdowns while only starting 12 games. With that, we would like to witness
him take better care of the ball as he accounted for a whopping 18 fumbles (11
lost) and 12 interceptions. Many of these turnovers put the defense in terrible
situations and made it extremely difficult to engineer any sort of comeback.
All-in-all, the first campaign for Jones
wasn’t horrible but could be seen as a true growth season in hopes to provide
much better showings in year two. With future hall of famer and two time super
bowl champion (Eli Manning) announcing his retirement from the NFL – the torch
has been passed for a new leader to emerge as the face of the franchise.
Switching gears to dissect the running
back situation for the Big-Blue, New York truly has nothing to worry about in
this regard as Barkley is literally the cream of the crop. Elite talent and
ability graced the game film once again as opposing defenses still have no
answer in how to corral this young super star. Even as a high ankle sprain
derailed the overall output we expected from Barkley, turning out another 1000
yard season came to pass. The one concern we witnessed in review of how Barkley
was used this past season – less production in the pass game was a result of
Jones not using the check down more often. With the hiring of Jason Garrett as
the clubs offensive coordinator, we should see a full transition back to giving
Barkley all he can handle. Baring any injury in 2020, Barkley will jump back
atop the league leaders in most categories.
Continuing down the path of positivity,
this receiving core isn’t one to overly fear but does hold a great level of
skill to get things done. Golden Tate slotted in perfectly to be that safety
blanket for his quarterback while Darius Slayton showed he could be a true game
breaking target. And while Sterling Shepard was supposed to take the next step
in his progression, injuries contributed to missed time and limited statistical
achievement. With full disclosure, we have never been huge supporters of
Shepard and wouldn’t be surprised to see New York add another receiving talent
through the draft this off-season.
Concluding the offensive side with
discussing the offensive line and tight end positions – we can show some level
of encouragement but want to see more talent added. This line did give up 43
sacks to the quarterback position but some of that should be attributed to
Jones holding the ball far too long. Nevertheless, adding more talent to this
group is most definitely required.
As for Evan Engram and his prospects,
it’s becoming challenging to throw any endorsement his way. Having been in the
league for three seasons and not having played a full 16-game slate – concern
fills our thought process. No one will argue the natural talent he holds but
missing 14 contests already in his career isn’t something encouraging to say
the least. With Engram, this offense has the potential to compete on a weekly
basis – however time could be running out in trusting him to be that consistent
difference maker.
The Defense
Heading to the defensive side of the
ball, we find ourselves far less stimulated with what rests on this unit.
Seeing the tape and statistical rankings prove our opinion there are a handful
of players to covert from this group.
When it comes to the defensive line,
Leonard Williams is the obvious choice to throw support toward but he is a
pending free agent. Using draft capital to bring him aboard from the Jets last
season – it would be a shock to see him hit the open market. With that, the
talent on this defensive front does drop off quite significantly after Williams
but Dalvin Tomlinson and Dexter Lawrence are two youthful players that could
improve with more talent behind them. Ultimately we should see New York search
for more depth pieces with the potential to earn another starter to help this
front this off-season.
Dissecting the line backing core on this
club, New York already made a roster move in cutting bait with the high priced
talent of Alec Ogletree. Looking to revamp this roster as a whole, the extra
dollars are a welcomed sight to this team. The main reason to secure more
dollars should be used to bring back their leading sacker from last season in
Markus Golden who was responsible for 10 take-downs of the quarterback. Lorenzo
Carter is another player we could get behind as his youth and untapped
potential still holds firm. Needless to say, this group will require much more
talent to be something special, but have sound rushing pieces already in place,
if Golden comes back that is.
As for the defensive backfield, we find
more concern resting in this room as this is a true weakness of the club.
Jabrill Peppers and Deandre Baker are the main pieces to build around with
Antoine Bethea serving as that stop gap for last season. Releasing Janoris
Jenkins during the season due to comments made via social media, creating
another hole to fill was the result. While Jenkins play did level off this past
season, creating a weaker group will have to be rectified this off-season.
Team Free Agents / Team Salary Cap
As we mentioned, the Giants have already
made a couple transactions to help add money to the books while looking to
rebuild the club under a new coaching staff. Already released was Ogletree and
Kareem Martin which inflated New York’s cap to hold a very healthy 73.3 million
in free space. Having a meek 21 team free agents to contend with, a new plan
should be in place to help move this roster build forward.
Not to sound overly redundant but
Leonard Williams and Markus Golden are the top commodities for the Giants to
consider bringing back to the mix. While we could speculate that Williams
should fetch a large extension – his market value sits at a reasonable 8.2
million on a five or six year pact. Given his lack of statistical achievement
in the NFL thus far, coming back to the Giants isn’t a given formality. Golden
on the other hand should be looking to cash in big from a productive 2019
campaign where his value rests around 13-14 million per season. It’s easy to
envision a four or five year deal worth 55-60 million forthcoming to this pass
rusher. Outside of that, Mike Remmers, David Mayo, and perhaps Russell Shepard
could sway interest from Gettleman to come back for another season – but time
will tell.
As for attempting to find more
unreasonable contracts to remove from the books, the Giants look good in that
regard not holding many bad terms or dollar figures. Rhett Ellison is one
player that could save some funds if released but given the health concerns of
Engram, they should stand pat with him on the roster in 2020.
As we gear up for the start of the
league year - 73.3 million is a nice chunk of change to help round out and
rebuild this roster.
The NFL Draft
To make matters a little better, the Giants
currently hold nine selections in this years draft with two extra seventh
rounders in their case. Having any extra ammunition in a draft can help round
out depth pieces and this will only help the situation.
With how the 2019 season concluded, New
York is set to pick fourth overall in the first round and could move in
multiple directions depending on what transpires with the first three picks.
And while selecting the best offensive lineman on the board looks to be the way
the Giants will go – in our mind trading back is the best scenario to help the
team for the long run. With many quarterback needy clubs existing in the
league, use that to your advantage and garner more selections in this years and
next years draft.
Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither
will this club if not done correctly. One would have to believe that
Gettleman’s seat is getting warm and will be forced to turn out a magnificent
draft with future potentials to save his gig. Offensive line at four does make
a great deal of sense but trading back a few spots (gaining picks), while still
having the ability to get a top lineman is on the table. We will be watching
intently to see how this all goes down for the Big-Blue.
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