Giants Country

New York Giants Mailbag: Daniel Jones, Kenny Golladay, Saquon Barkley, and More

Let's open up the Giants mailbag and see what's on people's minds this week.

Patricia Traina

New York Giants Mailbag: Daniel Jones, Kenny Golladay, Saquon Barkley, and More
New York Giants Mailbag: Daniel Jones, Kenny Golladay, Saquon Barkley, and More /
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If you'd like to submit a question for the mailbag, please send it to nygiantsmaven@gmail.com. We reserve the right to edit letters for clarity and conciseness. While we try to answer all questions received, we reserve to consolidate if several people ask the same question.

(from Raymond S.): It is admirable that Julian love takes ownership of the botched defensive play in the Eagles game. However, do you think he realizes that if he played situational football, the play would have been to knock the ball down on fourth down? Field position would have been significantly better.

Hi Raymond. Hindsight is 20/20, as they say, but I think Julian Love is intelligent enough to realize that he errored in judgment on that play. He said after the game, "I read it perfectly I thought. The ball was in the air. I thought it was slightly overthrown, so I thought I had an easy ‘catch it’ opportunity. I didn’t realize his positioning. I just misjudged. So, in that situation, I’ve got to make contact and go up and get it."

(from Steve C.) What is the Kenny Golladay story? Is he ever going to be activated again?

Hi Steve. Golladay has been a disappointment since signing his four-year, $72 million contract. There has been some speculation that he's still not completely healthy after the hip surgery he had in his final year with Detroit. There is also some thought that he's not a fit for what the Giants do on offense.

Regardless, the most telling thing is that Golladay (who has been active when healthy) has become an afterthought in the offense, and that could be a result of how he's practicing. Head coach Brian Daboll has always said that the guys who bust their tails in practice will get rewarded with playing time.

So it's probably not a stretch to say that some of the receivers that have been getting playing time ahead of Golladay have been busting their tails a little more than he has.

(From Tom M.) Why doesn’t pass protection become a higher priority? Neal needed help last week. Why not put a TE or OL in the backfield for more protection/blocking?

Hi Tom. I think pass protection is a priority for them. The problem could be they don't want to limit how many guys they send out in pass patterns. But yeah, I think if a guy is struggling, he should get some help.

(From Bobby A): For three years, there has been an ongoing evaluation of Daniel Jones in the most difficult environment imaginable for a team to evaluate his performance (and for fans to understand his performance). As fans, we hang on the words of the Giant coaches, like “he’s doing everything we ask,” which doesn’t say a lot and can be interpreted by fans and some media as a lukewarm endorsement.

Do you believe, as I do, that coaches HAVE to be vague with the media, which can indirectly lead to misinterpretations of their evaluation? Even if he believes it, Dabol will not say, “he (Jones) is doing very well because our offensive line is pretty awful, and none of our wide receivers would start for Ohio State.”

Yet, there is no doubt that the constant in-season drumbeat in some media outlets (not yours) for a new QB next year based in part on “coach speak” has to weigh on Jones heavily.

Do you agree, and do you think that Schoen/Dabol factor this into their evaluation?

Bobby, I think you answered the first part of your question. No coach will come right out and say that a player isn't good enough to be on the roster, let alone the field, at least not on the record.

As for what's said behind closed doors, again, I don't see any coach doing a 180-degree turn and telling a player he's no good as he would not only lose that player, that would go against what the coaches are there for, which is to teach and develop.

Lastly, if people in that locker room are letting what the media and fans have to say affect them, then shame on them. So no, I don't think "coach speak" is a distraction for Daniel Jones or any of the players on that roster, nor do I think that factors into the final evaluation.

And if what's said publicly affects the parties in question, they should consider a new profession as soon as possible.

Hi Michael. It's way too early, I think, to discuss potential off-season signings from other teams. For all we know, those guys will re-sign with their current teams. Also, someone else might shake loose as part of a salary cap cut. 

As for Barkley, I have mixed feelings, but I would say it comes down to money. There is NO WAY I would make him the highest-paid APY at his position. But if they could maybe do something equivalent to what the franchise tag will be for running backs (about $12 million per year) and maybe guarantee more than half of the contract, that I could probably live with.

Again, it's early, but the free-agent running back market looks like it will be loaded in the off-season--assuming some of these projected free agents don't re-sign with their current teams. 

I haven't started any work on the draft class, given that the Giants are still playing meaningful football games this late for the first time in years. But if Barkley is looking for a ridiculous contract, then I think this team needs to move on, as much as that pains me to say. 

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Jeff, I appreciate the question, but I haven't done much work on the draft class to where I am ready to start doing mock drafts. The Giants have a chance at the playoffs; I'm focused on that right now. 

The same goes for free agency. I'm happy to circle back to these questions once the season ends and I've had a chance to study who's in the draft and who will hit free agency. So let's file this question away and bring it out again once we hit the off-season and I've had a chance to do some homework on that.  

I think the Giants should be doing many things differently, but I also recognize that the personnel issues they've had are a factor. If you want to call screen plays, you need to be able to block them, and I don't recall that being a strength of this offensive line unit as currently configured.  

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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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