The Giants are officially in offseason mode. Monday, players will clean their lockers and return home for the off-season.
Many will not return for the 2021 season.
This is a Giants team that was at the height of the postseason, although it ended with a 6-10 record. If some small things had happened differently for the Giants this season, then this week would have been spent preparing for the playoff opening against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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Instead, they fell short of the postseason for the ninth time in 10 seasons.
Still, the Giants are feeling closer than they have been in years. With the right changes, perhaps in 2021 Joe Judge will be able to lead them back to the promised land.
But they need to do the right movements.
Here are the changes the Giants must make to the squad, the front office and the technical team.
(Note: these are people currently with the Giants, not external free agents)
Exit Dave Gettleman: There are many different ways to say this. The Giants are 15-33 in their three seasons. If Gettleman had built a better squad, the Giants would have made it to the playoffs this season. It’s that simple. They were 6-10 and were still alive when the Eagles lost their last game, but it should never have come to that anyway.
The Giants lost five games to less than 10 points, where they were clearly outnumbered in terms of talent. It took stellar training from defensive coordinator Patrick Graham – bypassing the talent shortfalls of the outside linebacker and cornerback – to even put the Giants in their position. Gettleman’s favorite project was the offensive line, and for most of the year this group was inconsistent at best, detrimental at worst. He put all his eggs in Daniel Jones ‘basket as the sixth choice in 2019, and Jones’ two-year career is unclear whether he is the long-term solution as a defender.
Gettleman deserves praise for his off-season in 2020, welcoming James Bradberry, Blake Martinez and Logan Ryan into the building as free agents and bringing in a quality recruiting class. But that should not allow him to escape the mistakes of his first two years, and some of this year. Overall, there were more mistakes than hits.
It’s time for a change at the top, and the Giants should be able to attract a quality GM candidate as well.
Get a new offensive coordinator: Only the Jets scored less points and gained fewer yards than the Giants this season, and the Jets went 2-14. Jones went through 11 touchdowns in 14 games after getting 24 as a rookie. Wide receivers have regressed. The offensive line has not developed enough. And Garrett used to be very conservative in his moves.
The Giants have never scored 30 offensive points this season – they scored 34 against the Cowboys in week 5, but a touchdown was defensive – and did not have a single 300-yard pass game.
“We have to play much better offensively,” admitted Garrett last week. “There is no doubt about it. But the biggest thing you try to do is focus on improving individual players, on the overall unity. Once again, I think we have moved forward from the beginning. “
Insufficient.
Sure, the Giants lost Saquon Barkley earlier this season, but the attack shouldn’t have collapsed the way it did without him. Have an offense be This one relying on a running back playing 16 games is not a smart approach.
At the end of the day, Garrett’s hiring looked like an arranged marriage to give Joe Judge, a young coach, a veteran who would help him in his first year on the job. The judge is clearly capable on this point. He doesn’t need Garrett, and the Giants can find someone better suited to build an attack around Jones, Barkley and any new weapons the team adds this season.
Perhaps Judge will simply elevate tight end coach Freddie Kitchens, but the smartest move would be to find a brilliant offensive mind from other teams.
Some names that come to mind – Chad O’Shea (Browns), Mike Kafka (Chiefs), Luke Getsy (Packers) and Ken Dorsey (Bills).
Trade Evan Engram: Engram is just a Pro Bowler in the name. In fact, this may have been his worst of the four seasons with the Giants. This was never more obvious than on Sunday, when Engram had two bad drops in passes that hit his hands, one of them bouncing into the arms of a Cowboys defender for an interception. Giants quarterbacks threw six interceptions this season when aiming at Jones, according to Pro Football Focus.
Judge was asked what his message to Engram was on Sunday. His response was shorter than usual: “Really simple: the ball is smooth, let’s get our hands closer, let’s keep playing for you, so get ready to catch it”.
He is an elite athlete in the tight final position and has shown tantalizing flashes of talent, but his mistakes are simply very damaging. Like Nelson Agholor when he left the Eagles, Engram could benefit from a change of scenery. The Giants refused to exchange Engram for anything less than a first-round choice in the exchange deadline.
Engram’s value plummeted, but he is still only 26 years old and earning a reasonable salary of $ 6 million in 2021. The Giants could use this limit economy – and the draft choices that could come in a deal.
Sign Leonard Williams again: The “Big Cat” was totally dominant against the Cowboys, receiving three bags and alone interrupting some offensive attacks. He did that a lot this season and ended up with 11.5 bags. Even though he didn’t make the Pro Bowl – he can still be an All-Pro – Williams is heading for a significant payout.
When NJ Advance Media suggested that Williams receive $ 20 million a season through a free agency, a league source replied simply, “That’s not enough.”
DeForest Buckner ($ 84 million in four years) and Chris Jones ($ 80 million in four years) will be the starting points.
And yet: The Giants should still sign him again. Williams was his only consistent impact pass rusher this season. They have already invested assets to put it in the building (two project options, $ 16.1 million). He is only 26 years old, a beloved in the locker room and an important part of Patrick Graham’s defense. Bringing him back may make it difficult to hire Dalvin Tomlinson, but Williams’ skills as a passenger make him more important.
“I’m not going to lie … it was never a question of money for me,” said Williams after the game. “I think I just wanted more respect and show the guys the reason for being in this championship. As I said, it’s more about respect for me than the contract. “
Williams may not care about the money.
But he will do a lot of that anyway.
Cap victims: If the Giants want to sign again with Williams and / or Tomlinson – or add someone new – they will need to clear the line. It is not yet clear what the 2021 ceiling will be for Logan Ryan’s new deal, but before considering that, the Giants are currently projected to $ 16.8 million in maximum space. Some possible victims to free up space:
– WR Golden Tate: Save $ 6.1 million, $ 4.7 million penalty
– OT Nate Solder: (Post-June 1) Save $ 10 million, $ 6.5 million penalty (2021), $ 4 million penalty (2022)
– TE Levine Toilolo: Save $ 2.95 million
– P Riley Dixon: Save $ 2,675 million, $ 250,000 fine
– LB David Mayo: Save $ 2.3 million
– WR Cody Core: save $ 2 million
If the Giants eliminated all six players, that would free up about $ 26 million in additional limit space.
Trade Will Hernandez: Before Week 8, Hernandez had started and played all the Giants snap on the left guard. Then he got COVID-19. Upon his return, Hernandez permanently became a rotating reserve behind newcomer Shane Lemieux. Last week, he played 10 snaps.
At week 17, he was healthy, active … and didn’t play anything.
He clearly fell out of favor with the new Giants team and there is little reason to believe that this will change in 2021.
Hernandez’s value is clearly diminished, but he is a young striker with a lot of initial experience and is still considered a good race blocker. The Giants have only six choices in the draft and should certainly get him another one in exchange.
Extend Kevin Zeitler – or change it too: This is going to be one of the most interesting decisions that the Giants will make this off-season. On the one hand, Zeitler has been the best and most consistent offensive striker for the Giants for the past two years. On the other hand, he is not a Pro Bowl player and cutting or switching him in this off season would save $ 12 million.
The Giants’ offensive line is not good enough to evict consistent players like Zeitler, but this is a precious space that could be used to fill a range of other needs or to fit Williams and Tomlinson. One way to meet in the middle would be to extend Zeitler’s contract to reduce the limit reached in 2021, although he does 31 in March.
If Zeitler leaves, there will be no obvious substitution on the list if Hernandez is traded.
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