New York Giants Week 15 Musings: An Offensive Loss
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Lots to say this week.
1. I really do want to believe in head coach Joe Judge and his ability to get this team on track, but every week when I see the same issues popping up, it gets harder and harder.
I'm talking about the lack of discipline on the field. I'm talking about the play calls getting in late to where they either have to take a time out or get a delay of game penalty. I'm talking about the play-calling like that quarterback sneak with Mike Glennon on 4th-and-1. I'm talking about the lack of urgency shown by the offense in the closing seconds of the first half.
I have said this before and will say it again. This coaching staff has regressed--badly at that. I get it that no operation is perfect. Still, when the same mistakes are made repeatedly, I have to question the preparation and execution among the coaches, overseen by the head coach.
2. Every head coaching change a team makes means starting over. Although the Giants have started over three times already since Tom Coughlin left, they never got the general manager and head coach on the same timeline.
They could have an opportunity to do that this off-season if they want. But they need to leave that decision up to whoever comes in for Gettleman (assuming he does retire after this year).
As I see things, a lot of the players Judge handpicked for the locker room probably won't be back next year--can anyone right now think of a single Giants unrestricted-free-agent-to-be that they have to re-sign?
Let's not forget that the new general manager will have to dump several high-priced contracts held by injured players or those who have underperformed since the Giants, per Over the Cap, are estimated to be $9,910,984 in the red when it comes to the Top-51 list.
The Giants did a sweep back in 1979, which worked out pretty well for them over the next decade. They should not be afraid to do the same in 2022 if Gettleman is indeed out.
3. In what universe did Freddie Kitchens, or whoever came up with the idea of having 6'7" rail-thin quarterback Mike Glennon attempt that 4th-and-1 conversion that deep in Giants territory, think it was going to work? Aren't those situations why you have bigger, more able-bodied running backs?
4. I guess we all know why the coaching staff has been reluctant to play Matt Peart at right tackle. Two false starts on one drive, including on a 4th-and-1 the Giants were set to attempt, is just inexplicable.
5. On the other hand, I thought Jake Fromm brought some much-needed energy to the offense. Fromm, unlike Glennon, actually gets the ball into the intended receiver's catch radius, whereas Glennon just barely does so, often making the receiver work for their catches. And that's a good way to string a guy out to where he takes a huge hit.
That all said, I can't see any way for the Giants coaching staff not to give Fromm more of a look next week, assuming Daniel Jones is out again. Fromm, I think, has a potential future on this team next year.
Glennon, I think, does not. I also think everyone knows what Glennon is and isn't by now, so with the season another lost cause, why not see what Fromm can do for an offense that has averaged 11.8 points per game over its last five games and which has also failed to score a touchdown in two of its last three games.
6. The Giants came into this game short-staffed in the defensive backfield thanks to injuries and COVID-19 designations, so to compensate, it looked like the Giants didn't do a lot of substituting as usual.
"Guys stepped up," said outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter, who had his best and most productive day as a Giants in recording four tackles, two sacks, two tackles for a loss, and three quarterback hits.
"It doesn’t matter what guys we have, we all know our job as a defense is to limit points and everybody has to step it up. It doesn’t matter when a guy goes down, the next guy is going to answer the call and that’s what I love about this team."
7. The Giants, under head coach Joe Judge have yet to win a game where an opponent has scored at least 21 points. (For those wondering, the Giants open as a 10-point underdog next week against the Philadelphia Eagles.)
8. Devontae Booker finished with 74 yards on eight carries and Saquon Barkley 50 yards on 15 carries. Granted, Barkley is still bothered by the ankle he sprained against Dallas in Week 5.
With each passing week of watching him dance behind the offensive line while Booker just hits the hole and moves the pile, it's becoming harder to not aim for more of a split.
More Giants-Dallas Postgame Coverage
9. Am I the only one bothered by how the Giants managed the clock on their final drive of the first half? They got the ball back with 1:39 and immediately picked up a first down on a 15-yard pass to Barkley. The ensuing play was an incomplete pass that started with 1:11 on the clock, and then the last play of the drive--the Barkley fumble--was run with 49 seconds left on the clock.
Think maybe if the Giants had shown more of a sense of urgency, they might have been able to run at least two more plays and maybe, just maybe, inched closer into field goal range? Or was it simply the plan all along to run out the clock since they were getting the ball back to start the second half?
Whatever it was, it didn't work out as Barkley lost the ball, Dallas recovered, and they extended their lead to 15-6 on a six-play, 37-yard drive to close out the half.
10. I'm usually not one to criticize a freebie, but I agree with former Raiders CEO turned CBS analyst Amy Trask's criticism of the Giants' decision to give its season ticket holders one free medium Pepsi product as part of a Fan Appreciation event.
The "gift," as I understood it, was for one complimentary medium-sized beverage per account. So if you had four season tickets, you only got one voucher for one drink.
Fountain drinks, I'm told, are one of the least expensive items that have the greatest markup at venues. And not for nothing, but who wants to drink a cold soda on a cold day?
And in having seen pictures of what was offered, the drinks came in regular paper cups, would it have been that big of a deal to have thrown in a souvenir cup?
The Giants' hearts might have been in the right place, but as has been the story with the team all season long, the execution left a lot to be desired.
Bonus Thought
This isn't specifically Giants-related, but a comment by Dr. Allen Sills, the NFL's Chief Medical Officer in Peter King's weekly FMIA column, caught my eye.
The NFL has decided to roll back the testing of all players for the COVID-19 virus and will instead do targeted testing. As part of that plan, they hope that players will come forward to self-report symptoms.
At least that's Sills' hope, as he told King, "I still think players who aren’t feeling well will self-report. They don’t want to get their teammates sick.”
Perhaps. But does anyone honestly think if a player who has a monetary performance incentive on the line won't seek an approved over-the-counter remedy to suppress any symptoms and to avoid being targeted for testing?
Put it this way. If concussions haven't stopped some from self-reporting symptoms and haven't eliminated the need for a spotter at games, what makes the league think guys who develop symptoms won't try to hide them or pass them off as a cold or allergies?
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