New York Giants Friday Five: The Dave Gettleman Edition
Regardless of what happens this year, whether the Giants win the division crown, is there anyone out there who will disagree with the statement that this team has made significant progress in the first season under head coach Joe Judge?
I keep going back to something offensive coordinator Jason Garrett said just before the fifth week of the season, how he said the coaching staff was still trying to learn about their players and what they did well.
A lot of people scoffed at that quote, but Garrett was right. This Giants team had no spring OTAs and no preseason games. For those who think that just being able to draw up a few plays on the whiteboard was enough, there is a significant difference between drawing up a play that never fails on paper and fitting it to the personnel.
Think of it this way. You find that perfect suit, but it might not be an exact fit, so you have it tailored to fit the contours of your body better.
That process took a little longer for the coaches, who would have ordinarily completed that in the spring and preseason. And that's a big reason why I believe the Giants struggled out of the gate.
Now for a few thoughts on Gettleman.
1. Having seen what this team has done in terms of progress, can we finally all just admit that Gettleman isn't the bumbling buffoon some have portrayed him to be?
This isn't to say he's been perfect--no general manager bats a thousand every year. But Gettleman's approach to free agency this year in which he didn't overspend on players that the coaching staff likely requested to run the show is admirable.
The most significant difference in the free agency approach is that Gettleman didn't go crazy spending for potential production; instead, he paid for guys with established production histories.
Linebacker Blake Martinez, cornerback James Bradberry, safety Logan Ryan, and kicker Graham Gano--the free agents who got the most lucrative contracts--had all produced with other teams.
This is a stark contrast to the free-agent spending bonanza former general manager Jerry Reese went on back in 2016 when he overspent on potential production from some free agents who had shown glimpses of production but weren't consistent.
2. An argument I see a lot is that Gettleman dismantled a 2016 playoff team. But let's look at the timeline.
Gettleman didn't arrive in East Rutherford until December 2018. In between the Giants qualifying for a Wild Card berth in 2016 and Gettleman's arrival on December 28, 2018, the team regressed, going 3-13 in 2017 and 5-10 in 2018 with one week to go before Gettleman started his duties with one week remaining in the regular season.
When a team regresses the way the Giants did after that 2016 season and the weight of those massive free-agent contracts increases, that's not the way to build a sustainable franchise over the long term.
3. People want to bash Gettleman for signing Nate Solder to a lucrative contract. To me, that anger should be more directed to Jerry Reese, who, if you recall, famously stood before the media, who questioned him about his decision to pass on free agent left tackle Andrew Whitworth and stick with first-round bust Ereck Flowers.
“All young players do have to develop. I do think he’s developed," Reese said of Flowers at the midway point of the 2017 season. "Is he going to be our long term left tackle? We don’t know that, but if you look at him compared to a lot of left tackles around the National Football League, there’s a bunch of comparables around."
Whitworth went on to sign with the Rams. When it became so obvious that Flowers, over-drafted at No. 9 overall to begin with, wasn't going to pan out, Gettleman, now the general manager at this point, found himself in a seller's market when it came to the left tackle spot, left with no choice but to overspend on the position.
4. Gettleman has made it clear since Day 1 that his role is to ensure the coaching staff has the talent it needs to be competitive. So while it's easy to go back and look at some of his "busts" in free agency, ask yourself how many of those were tied to what the coaching staff wanted?
Does anyone think for a moment that former James Bettcher wasn't behind the signing of all those former Cardinals players he had in Arizona?
If you need proof, look no further than at the Giants' decision to sign aging safety Antoine Bethea over Tre Boston, the letter a player Gettleman scouted and drafted in Carolina.
Gettleman did have some whiffs in free agency. The overspent on Jonathan Stewart, a player brought in to potentially serve as a mentor for Saquon Barkley, who would be drafted a little over a month later (and for those who still don't think Barkley needed a mentor, go back and look at how much Barkley praise Stewart for showing him how to be a pro).
Gettleman also whiffed on guard Patrick Omameh, a character signing, though again, to be fair, he admitted his mistake and didn't hang on to Omameh out of pride.
He also ended up whiffing on his trade for linebacker Alec Ogletree, though again, in retrospect, the move was made to put some veteran leadership in a locker room that desperately needed it.
5. For the most part, his drafts have been solid--just look at the 2020 crop, which easily beat the 2007 draft class for the best Giants draft class of this century.
But there were a few hiccups, the biggest one being DeAndre Baker. Some will argue that Gettleman should have seen Baker as being a problem given some questions about his work ethic out of college. But Baker wasn't the first player the Giants drafted who came with a questionable work ethic --others before him came in and turned their ship around.
Compounding matters was the fact the Giants traded up to get Baker, but at the time, the decision was widely applauded since Jenkins's cap figure was rushing while his production was decreasing.
Some Final Thoughts
Gettleman hasn't been perfect. There is some validity in questioning why he didn't approach building up the offensive line before bringing in Daniel Jones as the new franchise quarterback.
People can also look at the trades of Odell "We didn't sign him to trade him" Beckham Jr and defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul and how the Giants still haven't replaced either in their lineup.
Beckham, despite his recent attempt to show he isn't a horrible person (he's not, but he remains a bit misguided and reluctant to take his share of the blame for his relationship with the Giants going sour), brought his trade on himself. Simply put, his "look at me" actions, as capped with that explosive ESPN interview that was the final straw for a coaching staff that initially wanted him, made him too much of a distraction in a locker room that was trying to establish the team concept.
And there is certainly no dispute that Gettleman misjudged the team's talent, believing it could rebuild and compete (he would later admit he was wrong rather than get defensive).
But if we're going to use three years to assess whether a draft class is the real deal, that's probably a good measure to use with a general manager.
And although the Giants record doesn't show it, the progress and growth this team has shown combined with the fact that Gettleman seems to work well with head coach Joe Judge bodes well for Gettleman's return.
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