New York Giants Mailbag: Holiday Weekend Edition

It's a special holiday edition of our weekly mailbag.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

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From Arthur K - Some of the Giants' injuries this year were bad luck (Gates, Barkley), but it seems that many have been hamstrings and quads. Are those the fault of the stretching regimen, the trainers, the field? Seems too many to be a coincidence.

Arthur, that's the zillion-dollar question (yes, I know there's no such number as a "zillion, but there might as well be in this case). My theory--and I am not a trainer or a medical professional--is that athletes overtrain their bodies which doesn't allow for proper rest. I also believe many guys work with trainers who are more generic in what they teach rather than football-specific.

Years ago, I came across a myofascial trainer who explained (and demonstrated) the differences in stretching from basic athletic training/stretching to deeper myofascial stretching techniques. She explained that in football, the body can be twisted and moved in many ways, whereas basic stretching usually sticks with the body's natural movements.

Long story short, I had a couple of sessions done--and I'm not an athlete, mind you. I felt a million times better and more flexible after a myofascial stretching session that I did after a deep tissue massage. I was also able to do something I wasn't able to do ever before in my life: I could do a high kick (think Radio City Music Hall Rockets type of kick).

Okay, so in bringing this back to the Giants, I wonder if they have a myofascial therapist they use. I know as of 2019, they didn't--and I know that because in talking to guys, whenever I mentioned it to them, they didn't know what I was talking about.

Broken bones and noncontact injuries are part of the sport--they just are. But the soft tissue strains and tweaks, those I believe, can be addressed through not overtraining (I often use the rubber band analogy to explain this) and by training the entire ligament's range of motion, not just a selection of it.

Giants to Reportedly Start Jake Fromm vs. Eagles / Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

The Giants have reportedly made up their mind as to who will start at quarterback for them Sunday against the Eagles.

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Jaylon Smith Feeling at Home with Giants / Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports

Smith has hit the ground running for the Giants in what was a whirlwind indoctrination last weekend. As he moves forward, he's hoping to make an even bigger impact.

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Giants Receivers Coach Tyke Tolbert Shares the Advice He Game to Darius Slayton / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

After showing some promise as a receiver, Darius Slayton has become something of an afterthought in the Giants offense.

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How the Giants Can Slow Down the Eagles Rushing Attack / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Eagles ran the ball for 208 yards against the Giants, a season-high allowed by the Giants defense. Coach Gene Clemons takes a look at how the Giants can prevent a repeat from that kind of performance this weekend.

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New York Giants Week 16 Opponent First Look: Eagles Defense / Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Let's check in on the Eagles defensive personnel.

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New York Giants - Week 16 Storylines to Watch / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Giants head down to Philadelphia this weekend to face an Eagles team that has won its last seven home games against the Giants.

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Giants Dilemma: What to Do With Daniel Jones's Fifth-year Option / Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Daniel Jones's career durability issues raises a question about whether the Giants would be better off declining his fifth-year option. Some thoughts.

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From Vince N. - Joe Judge was not and still is not ready to be a head coach for one of the top franchises in the NFL. He can talk a good game but has not shown the ability to prepare, motivate and coach a good game. We have not seen any evidence that year three will be any different than the previous two. What makes ownership believe he "deserves" another year?

The fact that the previous two coaches only lasted two years is irrelevant when grading Judge. When you make a mistake, you should correct it asap. Let's hire a top, up-and-coming GM and give him the ability to hire the next head coach, who can then hire the next offensive coordinator. If we don't do that, then how can we judge our GM's ability to turn this below-average team into a winner?

What's up, Vince? My best guess here is that ownership sees the internal improvement Judge has spoken about, and they've bought into Judge's overall philosophy that "Rome wasn't built in a day."

I'm going to have more on this story and the reports about Kevin Abrams being a top contender for the general manager spot if Dave Gettleman retires--I have a theory there that I'll be sharing.

But back to Joe, I know this isn't an excuse, but I also believe that ownership is looking at the gross amount of injuries this team has had as a reason to give Joe another year. (Sure would be nice if they'd do something bout it--see my previous response.)

All that being said, I think the coaching operation regressed. Plays were taking too long to get sent in, time-outs were being wasted, and I don't think Joe and company showed a really good "feel" for the game's flow when it came to critical decision making. Maybe in time, all that works itself out, but with that said, I think it's unfair for ownership to expect a fan base that has suffered through a decade of non-playoff football to keep waiting.

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From Joe G. - Thought Garrett was the worst OC in the NFL. Wrong it's Kitchen by far. Giants offense is slow developing, uses the same tendencies, is predictable, and has a lousy backup in Glennon. OC, RB, WR coaches MUST be let go. If not, Judge must go, although I would give him another year with some better offensive coaches. We need some fresh thinkers, yes, no?

Yes, yes, and yes. I've said this before, Joe, and will say it again. I do not think this coaching staff fully puts players in the best situations to succeed. I've mentioned asking Evan Engram to block bigger players--how is that putting him into a position to succeed? Or what about leaving Nate Solder alone with no help against a speed rusher? How is that helping him?

I would like to see a new offensive coordinator come in here and combine the best of the system Pat Shurmur ran (one in which Daniel Jones was successful) and what Garrett ran (there were some positives in that system).

I'd also like for them to streamline the coaching on the offensive line and go back to just the two voices (if Rob Sale leaves, as is being rumored, give the job to Pat Flaherty and see what he can do with the unit).

I'm 99.9 percent certain some changes will be made to the offensive coaching staff this off-season, so we'll see how it rolls.

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From Charlie H. - Please clarify Jaylon Smith’s level of play and why he was so available. I keep reading that his play has decreased because of his college injury, but he made the Pro Bowl in 2019? I don’t understand. I thought he was mainly a cap cut by Dallas because of their depth at LB. I would love to see him in that off-ball role next to Crowder/Martinez and save a top draft need.

Hi Charlie. I can't speak for what happened in Green Bay. I remember reading that Smith fell down the depth chart in Dallas after Micah Parsons arrived. I think right now it's too soon to offer a deep dive into Smith's level of play based on the one-game sample size, but that's something we will be doing at the end of the year.

Here is what we wrote at Inside Football. Again, it's a small sample size, but this is what jumped out at us.

Jaylon Smith: Providing an immediate upgrade to the inside linebacker position the moment he stepped on the field, Smith showed better speed and instincts than any other Giants inside linebacker out there. We’re surprised he didn’t play more snaps since he was so markedly better than either of the three guys ahead of him on the depth chart. Smith finished with four tackles, three of them coming in space, all of them employing correct discipline, preparation, and athleticism to finish the play—this despite getting picked up just this week and inserted into a defense he hardly knew. This is a testament to this young man’s smarts, at the very least. He also showed more anticipation than we’re accustomed to seeing from this position. He always seemed to be in the right place in his limited snaps.

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From Matt L. - Looking back on what has gone on with the Giants these past many years, why does the organization not realize what was the start of their success in the ’80s? It was when they stopped looking in-house for leadership. George Young had no connection with the Giants. Yet, he led them to their highest points in the past 50 years. So, what would hold them back from once again looking out of house for new leadership?

Hi Matt. You're asking me a question that only the Mara/Tisch families can answer, but here's my theory.

As I recall, before George Young's hiring, the Giants were headed down the same path, with one side of ownership wanting someone he was familiar with and the other side wanting someone new. Then Commissioner Pete Rozelle got involved when the two sides couldn't reach a consensus, thus began the George Young era, which gave us Ernie Accorsi (who was already an established football executive in his own right), Jerry Reese, and Dave Gettleman.

There is always something to be said for sticking with what you know. It offers a degree of comfort and security, and trust. But sometimes, what makes us comfortable isn't always the best move, and that's where a leap of faith comes in.

Think of it this way. If you were to hire someone to come into your home or business to run it based on their qualifications, are you willingly going to step back and give that person free rein, or are you going to remain involved to a degree until you feel you can 100 percent, without a doubt, for sure trust that person? That's what I think is at play here with the Giants.

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From Charlie H. - Please share your thinking on Lo Carter. Was his great game vs. Dallas just a fluke, or has his Achilles injury been the reason for his poor play, and we can be hopeful that he is back and ready to be the player we initially thought he could be?

Hi Charlie. I think it's fair to wonder if Carter's injuries slowed him down this year--in addition to the Achilles, he also dealt with an ankle issue earlier in the year. That said, again, I'll cite what we at Inside Football wrote about his showing last week--the good and the bad.

Lorenzo Carter: Playing his best game of the season—and after his recovery from last year’s Achilles tendon surgery—Carter recorded his first two sacks of the season. Both were legit. The first one came off a smart crash down after having knocked his man off balance, and the second one came after a weakside pressure that was initially avoided. Still, Carter never gave up and ran down the quarterback from behind to record the sack, force the fumble, and produce the turnover.

These weren’t Carter’s only noticeable plays. He produced a really good run contain early on for no gain and created several decent pass pressures in the second quarter. He also came up empty when an inside rush was pushed easily inside, opening up his edge and losing contain that was exploited. The Cowboys successfully ran 3-4 runs at his edge, but he responded with a nice deflection in coverage, and then came the sacks.

I know some think Carter's one-game showing against Dallas made the Giants' off-season decision regarding whether to bring him back more difficult, but I disagree. You have to look at the entire body of work, and it's been underwhelming.

And you have to look at the cap situation--I think the Giants can get compatible if not better pass-rushing production from Quincy Roche and Azeez Ojulari, and in time Elerson Smith, three guys on rookie deals which will help a cap-strapped team. 

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