What has become of the Giants can be described in multiple words. Devastating. Unwatchable. Painful. Embarrassing. Pitiful. It’s a matter of picking the word that best describes a Giants fan’s version of pain.
EDITOR’S NOTE: One home win does not solve what is clearly a team culture and leadership problem.
To think, the New York Giants have won two Super Bowls in the 21st century and now find themselves starting another quarterback since the retirement of Eli Manning.
A storied franchise in the NFL with a litany of Hall of Fame players that include Lawrence Taylor, Phil Simms, Michael Strahan, Tiki Barber (if you must), and of course, Eli, has found themselves so close to the bottom of the league that it could rival any deplorable season the Lions’ fans lived through before the arrival of Dan Campbell.
The list of head coaches that didn’t work out is almost as exhausting as listing all the New York Jets head coaches that didn’t pan out. A game show competition of which head coach was worse would nearly be unwatchable, if not truly comical, at the many people who have failed to live up to any expectations. While both metropolitan teams face seasons of ineptitude, the one New York team that resides in New York has benefited from a model of consistency over the past few seasons, led by Josh Allen and Sean McDermott.
Successful with theBills, not with the Giants (photo courtesy NBC News)
Now, seemingly, Giants fans can add Brian Daboll to the list of coaches who failed to make any actual headway for the organization. Barring the one playoff win of Daniel Jones’ career against the Minnesota Vikings, Daboll’s regime has left plenty to be desired.
If the ineptitude of head coaching hasn’t been painful enough, watching Saquon Barkley win a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles could send any reasonable person over the edge. The Giants’ organization sent Barkley packing like a cheap duffel bag, and Daniel Jones, even having a semblance of success with the Indianapolis Colts, is like repeatedly watching a bad television show win an Emmy. It’s almost unfathomable, and yet it is happening.
After Eli Manning retired from the NFL, the New York Giants had a coaching carousel that included Ben McAdoo, Steve Spagnuolo, Pat Shurmur, Joe Judge, and Brian Daboll. A quarterback carousel of Daniel Jones, Colt McCoy, Tommy Devito, Tyrod Taylor, Drew Lock, and Russell Wilson. A carousel that Giants fans have looked at with more than anything. With all those moving pieces, the puzzle has never fit quite the way it should. And while it is easy to blame all those movable pieces, the truth of the matter is that the Giants’ GM Joe Schoen and the Mara family, the owners of the team, must shield most of the criticism.
Photo courtesy CBS Sports
After Manning’s retirement, the selection of a quarterback has consistently underachieved. The fanbase didn’t necessarily agree with the choice of Daniel Jones, and he never quite lived up to the expectations of being drafted as high as he was. While Jones may be a decent quarterback, he was never the right fit for New York. That falls on the general manager and the team representatives. Scouting is the most important and most underrated part of being an executive, and the Giants’ powers have failed dramatically. The offensive line hasn’t been formidable, even dating back to the Eli Manning days. And how Barkley was ever successful is more of a testament to who he is as a player.
Drafting good defensive linemen is formidable, but failing to draft consistently good secondary players is another sign of ineptitude. Malik Nabers was worth the investment, but when the ball barely finds him in an offense that feels like a snooze fest, that investment has no way of paying back dividends. It all comes back to executive decisions and failing dramatically.
Many questions, few answers (photo of GM Joe Schoen courtesy AP/Bryan Woolston)
Following a disappointing season in which the Giants fell out of any real playoff contention midseason, the Giants’ organization still showed its confidence in Brian Daboll. In full transparency, that feels like an ill-gotten decision. The fanbase has been scratching their heads for season after season of subpar play, and putting a vote of confidence in another failing regime seemed misguided. There was almost a sense of betrayal when the Giants’ powers shoved Barkley out the door, but a much greater understanding of betrayal occurred when they allowed a coaching staff that had underachieved to remain. Never one advocating for coaches to be fired, but the apparent undeserved stamp of approval was almost unfathomable.
For a fanbase in the NFL, a season can be full of emotional waves. Injuries, questionable coaching decisions, close wins, and heartbreaking losses pull any team’s fans to the brink of emotional breakdowns. That doesn’t even include fantasy football team statistics week to week, which led to even more taxing emotions. When an NFL team has multiple seasons of being under 500 and even more so, seasons where the team isn’t even competitive, the feeling of happiness seems like a far-off dream. Those two championships, which included an iconic catch by David Tyree, seem like an illusion. It almost feels like it never happened, as it seems like ages since the team was anywhere near that level of competence.
Every team goes through periods where the struggles outweigh the successes, and every fanbase knows every season won’t read like a fairytale, but it seems like a Giants fan is somewhere lost in the looking glass, like Alice in Wonderland. Too bad there is no Mad Hatter to save the day.
Good luck, Jaxson Dart.
From a Giants fan
Great article