Biggest Improvement Giants GM Joe Schoen Must Make if He's Retained

When New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen spoke to the media during the bye week, he was asked about his job security despite the team’s failing record. While Schoen didn’t come right out and say he had been assured by team ownership that he was safe, he certainly implied it.

“I communicate with ownership all the time,’’ Schoen said. “We [himself and head coach Brian Daboll] have a really good relationship with ownership, and we communicate constantly with them, and there’s confidence in the plan and where we’re headed.’’

When asked more directly if he expected to be back in his role after this season, he bluntly stated, “Yes.”

That was two losses ago—virtually an eternity for what's been a long season full of frustration. The Giants, who have since moved on from quarterback Daniel Jones and have lost defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence II for the season, continue to see their season spiral out of control with seemingly no answers to stop the slider.

And Schoen? Despite apparently being given a vote of confidence by ownership, if one thing could doom his tenure as general manager, it would be his draft classes.

Remember, the draft is the foundation of any football team. The goal is to find solid impact players who can be viewed as mainstays for the long term.

But while most critics will urge a three-year wait before judging a draft class’s impact, some things, such as All-Pro and Pro Bowl postseason honors, can indicate whether a class is trending upward.

Schoen’s draft classes, thus far, haven’t exactly qualified for “steals of the year,” nor have they produced All-Pros or Pro Bowlers, particularly within the first three picks of each class.

In SChoen’s first class, you have outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux and tackle Evan Neal as the first-rounders, receiver Wan’Dale Robinson as the second, and guard Josh Ezeudu and cornerback Cor’Dale Flott as the third-rounders.

Thibodeaux is the most promising of that group, followed by Robinson, though the receiver is somewhat limited in what he brings to the offense. Neal and Ezeudu, meanwhile have failed to truly develop while Flott, despite having won a starting job, by no means has a hold on it for the long term.

In 2023, the top three Giants picks included cornerback Deonte Banks, center John Michael Schmitz, and receiver Jalin Hyatt. Banks has regressed in his second season, though it’s fair to wonder if that’s because the new defensive system’s emphasis on zone coverage doesn’t quite fit what Banks does well (press-man).

Schmitz has been okay, but his development into a top-flight center has been slow.

And Hyatt, for whatever reason, can’t seem to grab a bigger piece of the pie at receiver, having failed to beat out veteran Darius Slayton during the summer and into the regular season.

This year’s class, however, has the most promise of bearing a future All-Pro and/or Pro Bowler within the top three picks. Receiver Malik Nabers (first round), safety Tyler Nubin (second round), and cornerback Dru Phillips (third round) have all been playmakers so far and have yet to hit their respective ceilings.

The lack of impact among the draft classes, combined with letting solid players still in their prime walk out the door with nothing in return–safeties Julian Love and Xavier McKinney, running back Saquon Barkley, and defensive lineman Leonard Williams, just to name a few–has all contributed to the Giants’ regression.

Schoen and Daboll have preached patience with the process. But when the results are going backward with no end in sight, that’s asking an awful lot of the paying customers who have been witness to over a decade of subpar football, with few exceptions.

Biggest Improvement Giants GM Joe Schoen Must Make if He's Retained

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