Geoff Schwartz
FOX Sports activities Betting Analyst
Once I check out NFL groups’ preseason win totals, the Giants‘ quantity at 6.5 stood out to me.
A giant purpose I’ve bought my eye on the Giants is as a result of they’re the most recent workforce to be featured on HBO’s “Arduous Knocks.”
Now, we already know that historical past hasn’t been variety to “Arduous Knocks” groups — not less than in terms of them profitable the Tremendous Bowl after being featured on the present.
However realistically, “Tremendous Bowl” and “Giants” do not even belong in the identical sentence. The give attention to New York must be about what number of video games it may win subsequent season, and one thing tells me that the Giants starring in an HBO hit present is not going to place them over the hump.
This can be a workforce that hasn’t performed constant profitable soccer for the reason that 2012 season.
In 2012, N.Y. received 9 video games, and that was a yr after profitable the Tremendous Bowl. Within the subsequent 11 seasons, the Giants bought to .500 simply twice. In each of these situations, they made the playoffs. New York has gone below 6.5 wins eight of the opposite 9 instances throughout that span.
Nonetheless, the G-Males have been plagued with misfortune. They’ve had turnover on the head teaching place, inconsistency at quarterback, accidents and poor drafts. Though the Giants have discovered their head coach in Brian Daboll, the remainder of the same old considerations are legitimate.
However let’s return to the quarterback scenario.
I’ll be brutally sincere right here: Daniel Jones is simply not a great quarterback. He is getting into his sixth season as a starter and with out a lot success to point out for it.
It is truthful to put among the blame on his earlier teaching workers and on the dearth of expertise round him. He additionally has a historical past that features two main neck accidents. However even when you think about all of that, there’s virtually nothing on movie or within the numbers to point out that he’s something higher than a median quarterback, at finest.
Since Jones entered the NFL, he ranks forty first in EPA. He ranked thirty ninth in EPA final season after rating eleventh in 2022. That 2022 quantity included an enormous enhance from his dashing sport, which is able to most likely be restricted transferring ahead contemplating his neck accidents.
Sure, the Giants added Malik Nabers within the first spherical, however I do not suppose his expertise is sufficient to enhance the Giants’ possibilities of being something greater than mediocre.
If New York put an all-star roster round Jones, that might probably make up for his lackadaisical play. Sadly for the Giants, although, that is simply not the roster they’ve at present.
Is it time for the Giants to surrender on Daniel Jones?
They’ve only one confirmed “sport wrecker” on offense — left sort out Andrew Thomas. He’s glorious. Rookie receiver Nabers may very well be elite in some unspecified time in the future within the yr. Possibly Jalin Hyatt racks up some explosive performs at receiver. It’s potential former first-round choose Evan Neal blossoms at proper sort out and that second-round choose John Michael Schmitz turns into top-tier in Yr 2.
However New York’s actual energy is its line of defense.
Brian Burns, who was traded this offseason from the Panthers, is a sport wrecker. So is Dexter Lawrence at defensive sort out. If defensive finish Kayvon Thibodeaux places collectively one other season like 2023, he’ll end the yr as a kind of dudes. And that’s it on protection.
The Giants have high quality gamers like linebacker Bobby Okereke and are hopeful that second-year nook Deonte Banks continues to enhance. But it surely’s a back-seven on protection that’s simply very mid proper now.
Then, their schedule doesn’t reduce them any slack, both.
The Eagles and Cowboys — the NFC East’s high two groups — will probably be good. If Jayden Daniels finally ends up being to the Commanders what CJ Stroud was for the Texans, that spells much more hassle.
NYG additionally has some matchups towards the AFC North, which we all know is probably the very best division in soccer.
Once I take a look at the schedule, I do not see wins which you could pencil into the schedule. I believe it will be one other arduous knocks, dangerous season for the Giants.
PICK: Giants Underneath 6.5 wins
Geoff Schwartz is an NFL analyst for FOX Sports activities. He performed eight seasons within the NFL for 5 completely different groups. He began at proper sort out for the College of Oregon for 3 seasons and was a second-team All-Pac-12 choice his senior yr. Comply with him on Twitter @GeoffSchwartz.
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