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New York Giants Mailbag | The "Let's Fire Someone--Anyone!" Edition

Atlanta and Houston have already seen enough to make a move regarding their head coaches and general managers. So this week, many of the readers who wrote to the mailbag want to know if and when the Giants are going to do the same.
Patricia Traina|

Atlanta and Houston have already seen enough to make a move regarding their head coaches and general managers. So this week, many of the readers who wrote to the mailbag want to know if and when the Giants are going to do the same.

What’s up, Joseph? I’d personally like to see the Giants add a legitimate No. 1 receiver. I don’t think they replaced Odell Beckham Jr when they traded him, and I can’t help but wonder if having such a receiver might help some of the other guys. 

With that said, we’re five games into the season as I write this, and I’m still not sure I have a full handle on what this team is. I think by mid-year, I can make a better assessment.

John, I realize what I’m about to say isn’t the popular opinion, but this is a new coaching staff with many new players. The organization had to start all over again when Joe Judge was hired. 

I know the results don’t look very promising, and the record is what it is, but if you were to compare the state of the Giants with the Jets and the Falcons, the other winless teams, the Giants seem to be in much better shape and appear to be headed in the right direction. 

By that, I mean a bounce here, a call there, and maybe this Giants team is 3-2 by now. 

Again, I get it: Woulda, coulda, shoulda, didn’t. But my point is this team doesn’t look like the hapless bunch they turned into toward the end of the previous two coaching regimes, so I think team ownership is likely going to let this season play out before pulling any plugs on the general manager.

As of right now? Dave Gettleman. Again, I know that’s not what people want to read, and I assure you I receive no extra cookies for saying that. I’m looking at the big picture. 

Remember, John Mara refused to define what “progress” he was looking for by the end of the year. 

Most people took that to mean a certain number of wins, but it could also mean a team that becomes more and more competitive and takes baby steps toward winning, which is what the Giants have done since the embarrassment against the 49ers’ B-team.

Hey Scott. Judge is a brand new head coach running a program he put together from scratch in a COVID-19 world. He is going to get a second year here regardless unless he does something stupid.

At the end of the day, coaches are graded on whether they win, but again, Judge had to rebuild this team from scratch. 

He’s also doing it without his best player on offense, without a critical rookie on defense, and the one receiver on offense who can find soft spots in zone coverage better than some people can find a needle in a haystack.

So based on that small sample size shown so far, I like Judge’s approach. But again, at some point, it has to translate into wins.

Oscar, that’s a very interesting point. Hernandez did excel next to a healthy Nate Solder. 

Last year when Solder played hurt, we saw a drop-off, and this year, you have Hernandez playing next to a rookie to his left and a new center on his right. So yes, all of that could very well be part of the problem.

With that said, Hernandez isn’t blameless. He needs to pick up his game as well, and I think he’ll be the first person to admit that if you ask him. I’m not sure why he seems to have trouble with stunts as it’s all about communication, but hopefully, that improves.

I will say this, though. I like that the coaches are having him pull more. I always thought that was an underrated part of his game, so I’m glad the coaches are taking advantage of that.

And replace with who? An interim general manager from the front office? Sorry, but I don’t see that happening. 

If the team plans to move on from Gettleman at the end of the year—and right now, I’m not 100% convinced that will happen—the owners can easily tell him not to make any more trades or do any more deals.

Anything is possible, Rosendo. But I don’t see it happening. Why would you want to fire someone from the coaching staff now? And on what grounds? 

Again, this team is still coming together. Do you want to start all over again at a position when they are taking baby steps toward progress?

This isn’t like Houston or Atlanta, where they had the same head coach in place for many years. You give this staff time to work together and continue getting this group on the right track.

Xavier, let’s say the Giants were to fire Gettleman now. Who is out there right now that you see them bringing in right away? Let’s be real here. 

Do you honestly think the Giants are going to limit their choices? Right now, any good general manager candidate is probably not going to be available to interview because he’s with another club.

And as I have said throughout this column, the Giants have been making baby steps toward progress ever since that 49ers game. I’m not sure if ownership agrees—as I said above, John Mara never defined what he considered “progress,” so this is just my educated guess. 

But hey, stranger things have happened, and I think if this team gets a win Sunday against Washington, that will take a huge load off everyone’s shoulders. 

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Patricia Traina
PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for 30+ seasons, and her work has appeared in multiple media outlets, including The Athletic, Forbes, Bleacher Report, and the Sports Illustrated media group. As a credentialed New York Giants press corps member, Patricia has also covered five Super Bowls (three featuring the Giants), the annual NFL draft, and the NFL Scouting Combine. She is the author of The Big 50: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants. In addition to her work with New York Giants On SI, Patricia hosts the Locked On Giants podcast. Patricia is also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and the Football Writers Association of America.

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