Giants Country

New York Giants Mailbag: The "Season Gone Astray" Edition

We've got a loaded mailbag this week, so let's get to it.

Patricia Traina

New York Giants Mailbag: The "Season Gone Astray" Edition
New York Giants Mailbag: The "Season Gone Astray" Edition /
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If you'd like to submit a question for the mailbag, please use this link to avoid having your question land in spam. You may also post your questions on X (formerly known as Twitter) to @Patricia_Traina, hashtag #askPTrain. Please note that letters may be edited for clarity/length.

Melo, unlike most other positions on a football team, quarterback isn't exactly one you want to be swapping out every two or three years. That said, Jones is not blameless in the team's woes. The offensive line is not blameless, nor is the play-calling. Something's gotta give. The problem is I don't see them moving on from Jones after this year unless certain dominoes fall into place come draft time that allows them to trade his contract. 

I think he is allowed to change plays. I'm not sure to what degree or in what circumstances, but I recall either Mike Kafka or Brian Daboll saying Jones could change the play if the defense showed a look that might thwart what was originally called.

Once we have something, we'll let you know. 

I would think so. Again, this team has six draft picks for 2023 (they're missing a seventh, which they traded for Isaiah Simmons). They're not projected to get any comp picks, and they're potentially facing a massive personnel overhaul if they don't renew the contracts of Leonard Williams, Adoree' Jackson, Xavier McKinney, and Saquon Barkley, to name a few. 

So if they can move a few of those guys and get some draft picks in return--even if they're Day 3 picks that can be used to bundle up if they want to move up the board, then it makes too much sense not to.

I don't recall exactly what Jones said, so I'm reluctant to comment. But I will say this: Name one NFL quarterback, modern-day or legacy, who enjoyed being hit. Why shouldn't Jones be concerned about getting hit?

Colleague Jason Leach posted a damning stat this week about the alarming number of sacks Jones has absorbed in his career. In 59 career games, Jones has been sacked 177 times. Retired Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, playing in 86 career games, was sacked 174 times.

Like him or hate him, Jones is human, and I never understood why this team was in such a hurry to turn to him before settling the offensive line. Yes, he's been part of the problem, and it's unfortunate, but I wonder if this team has reached a point of no return with him.

Clyde, I can only speak for myself. I get what Daboll is trying to do with his refusal to confirm anything about injured players' statuses. The problem is that when it comes to injured players, anyone with intelligence can usually read between the lines and correctly guess what will happen.  

I think it's a possibility. Before the Dallas game, I think the confidence was high. Then came the blowout, and I questioned whether the team fully recovered from that mentally. 

(From Tommy C.) Do you know why the Giants brought Sterling Shepard back only to bury him on the depth chart?

The coaching staff and organization like Sterling Shepard, who has been a model teammate, whether he's healthy or not. But to your point, they could have brought him back without devoting a roster spot to his presence, as right now, it seems like they have so many receivers and no apparent plan for getting these guys involved (see Jalin Hyatt and Isaiah Hodgins).

That said, the only reason I can come up with is they want to allow Shepard to leave the game on his terms, which, while a noble gesture, doesn't make sense when you have depth deficiencies at other spots.

(From Dave S.) It's so easy to talk about the offensive line playing terribly and listen to Xavier McKinney say it's not the defense. But our defense has ranked in the bottom five for the last two years. When do we ask whether Wink Martindale's approach to defense used to work, but new offenses are rendering it obsolete? Are we getting a bad defense, bad defensive coaching, or bad defensive talent? Please don't say all three, which is also too easy.

Dave, it's certainly a valid question. We've seen Wink Martindale live and die by the blitz throughout his career as a defensive coordinator. But if you don't fully have the personnel to do it--and I question if the Giants do--and you're also not adapting to the opponent, then what are we doing here other than setting the team up for failure?

(From Jerry W.) Neal’s recent fan-bashing outburst, Kayvon’s constant testiness about his performance, and DJ’s 1-12 record in Primetime have me wondering if the new regime knows how to gauge players who can handle the NY spotlight.

Many players who have succeeded elsewhere have crashed and burned in NY, unable to handle the criticism and attention their play will get here, such as Carl Pavano, Sonny Gray, and Kevin Brown. The list is long. The problem with this team may be deeper than just skills on the field.

Jerry, there's no question that it takes a certain demeanor to make it in the New York market. You can't be picking fights with the fans. The answer is acknowledging you're not perfect and working on your flaws.

The problem, as I see it, is that you have some guys who come to New York as a "brand." I've had this discussion with legacy players, and they all agree that today's NFL players are all about their brand more than football. That's not a knock on Neal or Thibodeaux, but it's just a philosophical shift in how today's athletes think.

I make no secret of how I miss the days of the 2007 team, one of the most professional groups I've covered in my years on the beat. That team was about ball, and you couldn't help but respect that. Again, I'm not saying the 2023 team isn't about ball, but when you have guys who have done nothing of note as NFL players having their own media shows on radio stations, what are we doing here?

(From Joe D.) I cannot help but wonder if the Giants' management is letting their egos get in the way of good decisions. Not only the athletes but coaches are prone to egotism and cannot help but believe that they stick with some of their decisions, despite how bad they have turned out because they do not want to be "proved wrong."

I wish they would put their ego in their pockets, listen to some of the suggestions by other professionals, and open their minds a bit because, so far, their decision-making has been very questionable at best. Your thoughts?

Joe, I'm not sure what decisions you're referring to, so I can't give you a detailed response. The coaches and management do what they believe is in the franchise's best interest, and I tend to see both sides here. Also, I'm unsure what "other professionals" you want the team's brass to listen to. I mean, do you honestly think Coca-Cola is going to listen to suggestions made by Pepsi officials?

(From Derrick W.) Who are the conditioning coaches? Why are they having too many injuries? Barkley always hurt. What's going on?

Derrick, I'd be in another line of work if I had the answers to why this team gets hurt. Look, football is a violent game. Stuff happens. Now, what the team can hopefully look to control is the soft tissue injuries, but even that can be tricky. I don't have this year's current injury stats, but I believe they're near the top of the league for being the most injured.

(From Tom W.) Is there a way to give Dimes protection this year, or is this what we HAVE to watch? I believe it'll help them a lot when Barkley gets back, but what's the fix for that line?

Tom, right now, I suspect certain members of this offensive line might be a bit overwhelmed and are maybe letting doubt seep into their game. The cavalry isn't about to come riding in soon, but they've been trying to add veteran depth to the practice squad and get those guys ready as quickly as possible. Short of that, the only other answer--and I know no one wants to hear it--is for the coaches to continue working with these guys to coach them up.

(From Jeffrey M.) Why, when you get in the red zone, don't run behind Marcus Mckethan?

Nice to meet you, Jeffrey. Hope you enjoyed the article I did on Marcus a couple of weeks ago. The only logical answer I can give you is that Marcus is still a work in progress. You know he missed his entire rookie campaign and half of training camp.

He was tossed into the pool's deep end when Mark Glowinski struggled at right guard. Marcus continues to learn and refine his technique, and I think he'd be the first to admit that he is far from being the finished product he aspires to be. The good news is that Marcus is getting some valuable OTJ experience here that will only improve him in the future.

(From Mitchell C.) Please explain, Neal. I did not read even one negative review on him when he was coming in the draft. The reviews almost said he was a man playing with boys and should be a Pro Bowler at the next level. But he has been bad since Day 1. What went wrong with the analysis, and would a switch to Right Guard resolve issues?? If so, why don't the Giants do it now? Do they mention it?

Mitchell, it's very commonly known that when it comes to the draft, how the external analysts view players isn't necessarily how the NFL scouting community views them. If you go back to last year after the Giants drafted Evan Neal, general manager Joe Schoen said, "Because Ickey (Ekwonu) was gone at six.”

I don't know if a switch inside to guard would help--at this point, I suppose it can't hurt. As for why they're not doing it now, there are two reasons. Their swing tackle position is a mess, so they have no choice but to ride with Neal at right tackle.

Two, you don't make that kind of switch now. I mean, you see how Ezeudu has been struggling after working at guard all summer, only to be thrown into the tackle mix ten days before the regular season?

(From William K.) Do you think that the Giants would be better off with a fullback? He could offer protection for DJ and help open holes for Saquon.

William, I think the Giants would be better off making 12-personel their base offense, given the state of the offensive line. I talked about this on a recent Locked On Giants podcast episode, but the Giants have had much better success with 12-personnel (one running back, two tight ends) than with 11-personnel (one back, one tight end.

Here are some quick numbers for you via Sports Info Solutions: the Giants have run 11-personnel 64 percent of the time but have a 38 percent success rate, 26th in the league. They've run 12-personnel 18 percent of the time and have a 48 percent overall success rate, 7th in the league.

What I'm getting at here is instead of a fullback, have an extra tight end on the field, as that gives you a few more options regarding your personnel deployment.

(From Chet G.) I may have a possible explanation for Daniel Jones's regression. The one thing everyone is forgetting is Davis Webb has moved on. It may be surprising how much he helped coach up DJ. I would appreciate your thoughts.

Chet, that's a very interesting theory and one I haven't seen proposed before. Davis Webb didn't get enough credit, but he was very much like another coach in that meeting room.

That being said, I suspect the increase in pressure Jones has had to deal with has completely screwed up his internal clock to where he is either rushing passes or not feeling the pocket as well as he could have (a concern I've had about him, by the way). Last year, Jones was pressured on 25.1 percent of his dropbacks. This year, he has been pressured on 31.3 percent, which is a career-high.

(From Ed H.) In your estimation, does the Giants dumpster fire of a season flame out against Buffalo, or will it be down the road against Washington, the Jets, or the Raiders? What’s it going to take for the Giants to win?

Ed, they have Dallas once more and Philly twice. So, I don't see any relief in sight, even in the alleged "soft spots" of the schedule. As for what it will take to win, this isn't complex. It will take mistake-free, complementary football and a return to health by Andrew Thomas, Saquon Barkley, and others. And I just don't see that happening any time soon.

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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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