2025-26 Rangers and NHL Preview

Back in May, I wrote that there were some "interesting parallels" between Chris Drury hiring Mike Sullivan and Neil Smith hiring Mike Keenan.

In the 1991-92 season, the Rangers won the Presidents' trophy but did not win the Cup. They struggled mightily the following season, missing the playoffs. Under Keenan, the Blueshirts went on to win their first Cup in 54 years. 

In the 2023-24 season, the Rangers won the Presidents' trophy but failed to win the Cup. They struggled mightily the following season, missing the playoffs. No doubt Drury is banking on lightning striking twice.

Of course for a franchise that has won exactly one Stanley Cup championship since World War II, Drury is going to need more than lightning striking twice. He might need a category five hurricane.

That being said, I thought Sullivan was the right choice at the right time for this team. While he hasn't made the playoffs since the 2021-22 season, he is well respected and appears to have the right demeanor for a veteran roster whose window is still open, if barely.

However, there's a difference between being the right choice and being a miracle worker. Two seasons ago, the Blueshirts overachieved under Peter Laviolette. The following season, they crashed and burned and Laviolette was fired. For Sullivan to succeed, three things will have to happen.

The power play has to improve. Under assistant coach David Quinn, the Penguins power play went from 15.3 percent (24th) in 2023-24 to 25.8 percent (4th) in 2024-25. Last season, the Rangers power play finished 17.6 percent (21st). The hope is that Quinn can replicate what he did in Pittsburgh for a team that missed the playoffs by six points. 

The bottom six has to produce. The prevailing sentiment is that the top six will pull their weight. Mika Zibanejad should benefit from playing a full season with J.T. Miller, and Artemi Panarin will once again lead the team in scoring. It's the bottom six that is the concern. If Noah Laba, who made the roster after a solid preseason, is the real deal, the Rangers may finally have a legit 3C.

Cut down on the goals against. In 2023-24, the Rangers allowed a 5th best 226 goals against; in 2024-25, they allowed an 11th worst 255. Among teams that made the playoffs last season, only the Montreal Canadiens gave up more goals (265). Signing Vladislav Gavrikov to play alongside Adam Fox should give New York its best defensive pairing since Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi a decade ago. Carson Soucy, though, remains a question mark.

Prognosis: Despite a so-so preseason, I remain optimistic about this team's ability to bounce back. No, I do not think they will win the Metro, much less the Presidents' Trophy, but I do think they will make the postseason; they have too much talent not to. Based on where they finished last season, if they manage to avoid another November swoon, they could win an additional five to seven games, which should be good enough for third place.

Prediction: 45-30-7, 97 points.

Below are my predictions for the rest of the league. As per usual, I will pick the top three teams in each division, both wild cards for each conference, and the close, but no cigar contingent. 

Eastern Conference:

Metropolitan Division:

Carolina Hurricanes: Year after year, the hockey "experts" underestimate this team; and year after year, they are proven wrong. 

New Jersey Devils: Losing Jack Hughes down the stretch killed them last season. If he stays healthy, they should challenge for the division lead.

New York Rangers: Mike Sullivan and his coaching staff will fix what went wrong last season. 

Atlantic Division:

Toronto Maple Leafs: As strange as it may seem, losing Mitch Marner will help them, especially in the postseason. 

Tampa Bay Lightning: They may have been eliminated by the Panthers in the first round, but this is still very much an elite team with a Hall of Fame coach behind the bench.

Florida Panthers: Losing Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov to injuries - the latter for the season - is a helluva gut punch. But thanks to Bill Zito, this is the deepest roster in the NHL.

Wild Cards:

Washington Capitals: They overachieved last season; I doubt that happens again this season.

Ottawa Senators: This is a good, young core that has a bright future, led by Brady Tkachuk, Matthew's younger brother. 

Close, but no cigar: 

Montreal Canadiens: Someone needs to explain to me how this organization gave up two first round picks for Noah Dobson. Me thinks Jeff Gorton strikes again. 

New York Islanders: Their future looks bright with Matthew Schaefer; it's their present that is the problem.

Western Conference: 

Central Division:

Dallas Stars: They have one of the deepest forward groups in the NHL. Had it not been for Pete DeBoer, they likely would've gone to the finals last season.

Colorado Avalanche: Their top four players are arguably the best in the league; it's their depth that could prove problematic come the playoffs.

St. Louis Blues: Everyone is sleeping on this team, which makes no sense given their roster and the fact that they have one of the best goalies in the league.

Pacific Division:

Vegas Golden Knights: Kelly McCrimmon went all out during the offseason to sign Mitch Marner. This could be the most talented roster he has ever assembled.

Edmonton Oilers: Connor McDavid has basically given his GM two years to assemble a team around him capable of winning the Cup. Good luck with that. 

Los Angeles Kings: A good mix of youth and experience will get this team across the threshold. 

Wild Cards:

Minnesota Wild: Bill Guerin was smart to lock up Kirill Kaprizov. Now he has the cap space to build around him.

Utah Mammoth: Something special is brewing in Salt Lake City. 

Close, but no cigar:

Winnipeg Jets: On the bright side, we won't have to watch them choke in the postseason. 

Anaheim Ducks: Chris Kreider will re-discover his scoring touch. It won't be enough for his new team.

Playoffs:

Eastern Conference Finals: Lightning over Hurricanes 4-2

Western Conference Finals: Stars over Golden Knights 4-3

Stanley Cup Finals: Stars over Lightning 4-3

Year End Awards:

Presidents' Trophy: Vegas Golden Knights

Art Ross Trophy: Connor McDavid, Oilers

Hart Trophy: Nikita Kucherov, Lightning

Norris Trophy: Quinn Hughes, Canucks

Vezina Trophy: Igor Shestrkin, Rangers

Jack Adams Award: Glen Gulutzan, Stars

Conn Smythe Trophy: Mikko Rantanen, Stars

Self Inflicted

It all looked so promising for the Giants yesterday. Jaxson Dart drove them down the field on their first two possessions, throwing two touchdown passes to his favorite target, Theo Johnson, to put New York up 14-3 two minutes into the second quarter.

They were sailing; they were taking care of business against an 0-4 team; the New Orleans Saints literally had no answers for them. This was going to be like shooting fish in a barrel.

But instead of fish in a barrel, the Jints wound up shooting themselves in the foot; five times, in fact. Up 14-13 late in the first half, and in field goal range, Darius Slayton fumbled the ball at the Saints 32 yard line. Jonas Sanker picked it up and ran it back to the Giants 42 yard line. Eight plays later, New Orleans took the lead with a 29 yard field goal. 

Sadly, Big Blue wasn't remotely done. On their opening possession of the second half, Dart, with no one around him, fumbled the ball at midfield. The Saints would kick another filed goal. Trailing 19-14 late in the third quarter, Dart, once again, navigated his team down the field all the way to the Saints 15 yard line. A go-ahead touchdown seemed like an inevitability. 

And then on the first play of the fourth quarter, Dart handed the ball off to fellow rookie Cam Skattebo. Skattebo then had it stripped from him and Jordan Howden ran it all the way back to put the Saints up 26-14. And that, as they say, was the ballgame. Dart would throw two interceptions in the fourth to cement the loss. Five turnovers in all; a pathetic performance against a team that managed only 88 yards of total offense in the second half. In all, the Giants offense gifted the Saints with 13 points on the day, while costing itself at least six.

If this team had any sense of shame at all, they'd climb under a rock and stay there until the end of the season. How bad were the Giants? They were the first NFL team in nine years to turn the ball over five consecutive times. The last team to do that was the other New York area franchise: the Jets. Fittingly, both team are a collective 1-9 this season. Talk about embarrassing. 

But as inept as the Giants offense was on Sunday, their defense wasn't much better. The front seven was virtually a non-factor in this game. As a unit, they managed just three pressures, one hit and zero sacks against Spencer Rattler, after getting twenty pressures, twelve hits and two sacks against Justin Herbert the previous week. 

There is simply no excuse for this loss; none. This was not the Cowboys in Dallas, where the Giants held their own against a potent offense and only lost because Dallas has a kicker capable of making a field goal from Mars. This was a team that, let's be honest, when the schedule came out, you had a W next to their name. Don't lie, I read your tweets. 

And don't give me any "That's why they play the game" bullshit. I know what an upset looks like. This wasn't an upset; this was a Giants team that counted its chickens before they were hatched and wound up getting botulism. 

So instead of being 2-3, and having a modicum of hope, the Giants are now 1-4 with the Philadelphia Eagles coming to town Thursday night. The Eagles blew a 14-point lead against the Denver Broncos and lost 21-17. How much you wanna bet they will be in a foul mood when they take the field at MetLife.

To channel my inner Mr. Rogers, "Can you say 1-5? I knew you could."

At the risk of repeating myself, Bill Parcels was right: "You are what your record says you are."

Let's face it: the Giants are a bad football team.

Fait Accompli

In 2007, 2008 and 2025, the New York Mets went into the last game of the regular season needing a win to qualify for the playoffs; they lost all three times. And the team that eliminated them each year was the Florida Marlins. The baseball gods have a wicked sense of humor, don't they? 

But unlike those '07 and '08 teams, who collapsed late in the season, this year's collapse began much earlier; June 13 to be precise. Two prolonged slumps (3-14 and 2-14) did the lion's share of the damage. Despite a 45-24 start, the Mets were never able to completely regain their footing. In a year where 84 wins would've been enough to snag the third Wild Card spot in the National League, the Mets won 83. I guess $340 million doesn't go as far as it used to.

To say this team fell far short of expectations would be putting it mildly. A roster that was assembled to win the World Series didn't even make it to the first round of the postseason. This will be a very long offseason in Flushing.

But before we get to the postmortems, in the spirit of Dave Letterman, I thought I'd compile a Top Ten list of games the Mets lost this season, any one of which, had they won, would've been enough to get them into the playoffs.

June 13: 7-5 vs. Tampa Bay Rays. New York had just completed a three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals at CitiField. They were 45-24, five and a half games ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East, and had a 5-1 lead over the Rays through five when Carlos Mendoza decided to pull Clay Holmes after throwing only 79 pitches. The Rays scored six runs in the top of the 6th against Paul Blackburn and Max Kranick.

June 29: 12-1 at Pittsburgh Pirates. After gaining a spilt in their four-game series against the Atlanta Braves at home, the Amazins hit the road and got swept by the Pirates. Not one of the three games was competitive. Frankie Montas allowed six runs over four innings in this one.

July 10: 3-1 at Baltimore Orioles. David Peterson was pitching a gem at Camden Yards. Leading 1-0 in the bottom of the 8th, the Orioles got a lead-off hit. It was only the fifth hit allowed by Peterson in the game, but Mendoza pulled him anyway. The next batter, Gunnar Henderson, hit a pinch-hit two-run homer off Ryne Stanek to give the O's the lead for good.

July 28: 7-6 at San Diego Padres. After enduring their worst slump of the season, the Mets appeared to have righted the ship. They won eight in a row and had just completed a three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants when they began a three-game series against the Padres. Up 5-1 in the bottom of the 5th, San Diego scored five runs against Frankie Montas and Huascar Brazoban to take the lead. The Mets would lose the game in the bottom of the 9th.

August 28: 7-4 vs. Miami Marlins. The Mets had just completed a three-game sweep of the Phillies at home to pull to within four games of first place. Once more, it looked like they had righted the ship. But three errors by New York led to five unearned runs for the Fish.

September 7: 3-2 at Cincinnati Reds. The Mets had taken two of three against the Detroit Tigers and were looking to take the rubber game against the Reds. This was a critical loss because it gave Cincy the tie-breaker against New York.

September 8: 1-0 at Philadelphia Phillies. After getting swept in New York, the Phillies looked to exact revenge on their division rivals. The Mets stranded the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position with one out in the top of the 9th. They would finish the season 0-70 when trailing after 8.

September 11: 6-4 at Phillies. The Phillies complete a four-game sweep against the Mets who blew a four-run, first-inning lead. The loss was New York's sixth in a row.

September 26: 6-2 at Marlins. After taking two of three against the Cubs in Chicago, the Mets had a one-game lead against the Reds when they went to Miami for a season-ending, three-game series. They were in control of their own destiny. All they had to do was win out and they were in the playoffs. Instead they laid an egg.

September 28: 4-0 at Marlins. Once more, New York was presented with a chance to salvage their season; once more, they looked a gift horse in the mouth. While the Milwaukee Brewers were beating the Reds 4-2, the Mets went out with a whimper.

So what happened? How did the best team money could buy implode before our very eyes? Well for starters, despite all the hoopla that preceded the season, the fact is this was a very flawed roster. There are three components to baseball: pitching, hitting and fielding. Turns out, the Mets weren't good enough in any of them.

Pitching: Even before their first slump in June, alarm bells were going off. The starters were having a hard time going more than five innings. For the season, the Mets had 38 quality starts; the Phillies, by comparison, had 84. This failure to go deep in games put an unnecessary strain on a bullpen that wasn't exactly deep go begin with. Something had to give, and give it did. From April 13 on, the team ERA was 4.95, fourth worst in the majors. That they went 38-55 during that stretch should surprised no one.

Hitting: The addition of Juan Soto was supposed to transform the Mets into an offensive juggernaut. Instead, they scored two less runs this season than they did last season. But even with all that, this was a very top-heavy lineup that was inconsistent much of the year, and until August struggled to drive in runners in scoring position. One game, they'd score 12 runs, the next, they'd be lucky to score one. Case in point, game 162. With their season on the line, they were shutout after scoring five runs the previous game.

Fielding: Let's cut to the chase: this was a sloppy team in the field. Ground balls booted; line drives misplayed; cutoff men missed; throws off target. There were times this season when it looked like the Mets had nine Marv Throneberrys out there. Truth be told, with the exception of Francisco Lindor and Tyrone Taylor, there isn't one player in this lineup I would trust to make a defensive play with the game on the line. And that is a huge problem for a team with championship aspirations. 

So why was this roster so flawed? It comes down to money. Even an owner as wealthy as Steve Cohen has a budget. With the bulk of the payroll going to Soto, Lindor and Pete Alonso, David Stearns simply didn't have the resources to go after a top tier starter like Max Fried, who signed an eight-year, $218 million contract with the Yankees last offseason. Fried went 19-5 with a 2.86 ERA for the Bronx Bombers. So Stearns went shopping at the bargain basement store and settled for the likes of Montas ($17m x 2) and Sean Manaea ($25m x 3). Both pitchers were bitter disappointments and will still be on the books next year. 

Pitching wasn't the only position to bow to economic reality. Around the time the Mets were negotiating whether to bring back Alonso, Alex Bregman's name was floated as a possible replacement. The third baseman won a gold glove playing for the Houston Astros in 2024 and would've been a considerable improvement over Mark Vientos at the corner. But Stearns only had enough money to sign one, not both players. Once Pete re-up'd, that was it for Bregman.

Instead of acquiring a legit centerfielder, Stearns opted for a tandem of Tyrone Taylor and Jose Siri. Taylor was a vacuum cleaner in center, but barely hit his weight at the plate; while Siri was injured and missed most of the season. Things were so bad, Mendoza was forced to use Jeff McNeil, a second baseman, in place of a struggling Taylor. When your manager is playing his players out of position, that's usually a sign the front office didn't do a good enough job. 

And speaking of which, it needs to be reiterated that Stearns had a bad trade deadline. He needed to add starter; he didn't get one. He needed a centerfielder; he got Cedric Mullins. As a result, the starting rotation continued to struggle, while Mullins was no better than Taylor at the plate and worse in the field.

And last, but not least, we come to the manager. I've been pretty clear that I don't think Mendoza was the main culprit in this tragedy, but he was hardly blameless. Throughout his two-year tenure in the dugout, he has been guilty of over-managing this pitching staff, pulling starters too early, even when they weren't in trouble. Like he did when he pulled Manaea in the second inning of the season finale, even though he hadn't allowed a run.

Mendoza also failed to hold his players accountable when they screwed up. While a manager isn't responsible for strikeouts and bad pitches, he is responsible for setting the tone for his club. There was never any sense of urgency with this team; no willingness to look in the mirror and admit they were blowing it. Just the opposite, in fact. They seemed oblivious to the peril they were in. Losses that should've been wins were shrugged off with a chorus of "we'll get 'em tomorrow" excuses. Well on September 28, they ran out of tomorrows.

Obviously, changes will have to be made. Mendoza may be coming back, but some of his coaches won't Jeremy Hefner should be the first to be shown the door. It is inconceivable that this rotation could sail through the batting order twice, only to fall apart the third time around. That cannot be a coincidence. This malady even impacted the new pitchers who were brought up in September. Enough is enough. 

The next to go should be both hitting coaches; yes, you heard right, the Mets have two hitting coaches. Clearly Jeremy Barnes and Eric Chavez aren't getting through, because there's simply no excuse for a team with this much offensive talent to be this anemic with runners in scoring position.

Stearns has a lot on his plate this offseason. He needs to improve both the starting rotation and the bullpen. Both Edwin Diaz and Alonso can opt out of their contracts; Pete has already said he's doing so. Will the Mets re-sign both? If so, how much will it cost? Will they trade McNeil and / or Vientos? Will they bring back Starling Marte? If not, who will take his place? Is Brett Baty ready to take the reins at third base full time? Who will play centerfield? If Alonso returns, will it be as a DH or first baseman? If Pete doesn't want to be the DH, who will?

You wouldn't think an organization with a payroll of $340 million would have that many questions, but that's where we are. The Mets seem to have as many holes as they have talented ballplayers. 

One thing is certain: the roster that crashed and burned in 2025 will have changes to it come 2026.

A New Hope

Week one of the Jaxson Dart era is now officially in the books and the reviews couldn't be better. In his first start in the NFL, Dart showed poise, ability and good judgment, as the New York Giants beat the Los Angeles Chargers 21-18 at MetLife Stadium for their first win of the season. But more than that, Dart gave his head coach, his GM, the franchise and its fanbase something they haven't had in a long time: hope.

After last week's abysmal "effort" by Russell Wilson against the Kansas City Chiefs, the natives weren't just growing restless; they were getting downright ornery. Another phone-in performance like that and the fans would've started wearing bags over their heads. I've seen it; it ain't pretty.

Brian Daboll and Mike Kafka drew up a game plan for Dart that was deliberately simple, but still gave the rookie enough latitude to show off the skillset that made Joe Schoen trade back into the first round to pluck him in the Draft. In his first possession, Dart took his team 89 yards on 9 plays, helped by a 14-yard pass interference penalty, and capped off by a 15-yard quarterback draw to put the Giants up 7-0. It was the first time the Chargers had allowed a first quarter touchdown this season.

Dart was very effective going through his progressions, particularly on third down, where the Giants as a team were 7/15. Overall, he was 13/20 for 111 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 96.0. He also rushed for 54 yards on 10 carries. By comparison, Eli Manning's slash line in his first start was 17/37, 162, 1-2, 45.1.

Cam Skattebo, another impressive rookie drafted by Schoen in the fourth round, also had a solid game, rushing for 79 yards on 25 carries. In all, the Giants ran the ball 42 times for 161 yards. With Tyrone Tracy out with a dislocated shoulder the next couple of weeks, Skattebo will have to carry most of the load in the backfield.

But as good as Dart and Skattebo were, it was the defense that stole the show, especially the front seven. Led by Brian Burns, Abdul Carter (the third pick in the '25 Draft), Dexter Lawrence and Kayvon Thibodeaux, they had 20 pressures, 12 hits and two sacks against Justin Herbert. They also forced two interceptions, which led to 11 points for the Jints. It was the first time this season that the Giants held an opponent to under 20 points, and the first time since week 16 last season against the Indianapolis Colts at MetLife that they led in all four quarters of a game. In case you're wondering, the Giants don't have many of these games.

But the news was not all good for Big Blue. Malik Nabers, whose 1204 yards was good enough to finish fifth in the voting for rookie of the year last season, suffered a torn ACL in his right leg in the second quarter and is out for the rest of the season. The star wideout had 18 receptions for 271 yards when he went down. Against the Cowboys two weeks ago, he led all New York receivers with 167 yards on 9 receptions and two touchdowns. His presence will be sorely missed.

All things considered, though, the Giants did what they had to do Sunday: win the game. They are now 1-3. If they beat the Saints in New Orleans next week - which they should - they will be 2-3. Before the start of the season, I said the Giants had a chance of going 3-6 in their first nine games. With the Philadelphia Eagles (twice), the Denver Broncos and the San Francisco 49ers all upcoming, they could still do it.

But we're getting ahead of ourselves. The headline here is that the Giants have found their quarterback. 

And his name is Jaxson Dart.

It's Dart's Time

 

A week ago, the Giants offense looked like Air Coryell; last Sunday, it looked more like the Hindenburg at Lakehurst, New Jersey. And Russell Wilson, who last week had regained his Super Bowl form against the Dallas Cowboys, reverted back to the player Sean Payton couldn't wait to ship out of Denver against the Kansas City Chiefs.

So much for making progress. I thought this team was moving in the right direction. Clearly I was wrong. 

You can make all the excuses you want: Steve Spagnuolo double-teamed Malik Nabers; the Chiefs needed the win more; Patrick Mahomes is a magician who alluded the Giants pass rush all night; Graham Gano got injured during warmups, rendering New York's kicking game practically useless. 

It's time to face facts. Despite all the offseason maneuvers, this is still a bad team. Bill Parcells was right: You are what your record says you are; and right now, the Giants are 0-3. From what we've seen, so far, and based on the strength of schedule, if this team goes more than 2-7 in its first nine games, I would be very surprised.

Contrary to what I wrote before the season, waiting until week ten to make a change at quarterback is too late. Apparently, Brian Daboll agrees. The head coach announced this afternoon that Jaxson Dart will start this Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers. 

It was the right decision, and for the following reasons.

Going into the 2025 season, the assumption was that Wilson would be competent enough to give Daboll the time he needed to bring Dart along, so that when he finally took over the reigns, he would be able to handle the pressure.

But in two of his three starts, Wilson has been underwhelming to say the least. Against Kansas City, he looked completely lost; indeed, he looked more like a rookie than the guy who was being groomed to take his job. His two interceptions on Sunday were forced passes that never should've been thrown. 

Look, we all gave Wilson kudos for throwing for 450 yards and three touchdowns against the Cowboys in week two. But when Caleb Williams threw for 298 yards and four touchdowns against them the following week, it was fairly obvious that Wilson's performance was an anomaly. Hell, the way that secondary is playing, Peyton Manning could come out of retirement and throw for 200 yards and a touchdown against it.

But here's the biggest reason for making the switch. This team is 0-3. After this Sunday, they will likely be 0-4. Justin Herbert, the player Dave Gettleman really wanted, might be the best quarterback in the NFL. If the Giants can't move the football and put up some points, this game will be over at halftime. Dart at least has an element of speed to his game that Wilson lacks. When he came in last Sunday, you could feel the electricity resonate within the stadium. If he was good enough to be the backup, he's obviously ready to be the starter.

There's losing and then there's losing without a fight. Right now, the Giants are losing without much of a fight. Daboll had no choice but to pull the plug on Wilson. Even if it turns out that Dart isn't the second coming of Eli Manning, he will at least breathe some life into a locker room that desperately needs something to believe in.

The fans are disgusted. The players frustrated. The season is hanging in the balance.

It's Dart's time, ready or not. 

Deja Blue

Two years ago, the Giants were playing the Bills in Buffalo. Despite their 1-4 record, they outplayed the Bills. But because of several mistakes - one near the end of the first half - they lost the game when Josh Allen connected on a 15-yard pass to Quinton Morris in the end zone with 3:48 left in the fourth quarter. That was basically it for Big Blue. They never fully recovered from that loss.

I'm not prepared to throw in the towel on the Giants just yet. For one thing, this was only the second game of the season; for another, unlike that game in 2023, and so many others over the last ten years, this time around the offense wasn't the problem. Indeed, after sleepwalking through a 21-6 loss to the Commanders in Washington the previous week, the Jints looked like Air Coryell against the Cowboys in Dallas. Russell Wilson resembled the quarterback who took the Seattle Seahawks to consecutive Super Bowls a decade ago. If you're a Giants fan, you haven't seen anything like this since Eli Manning was under center. 

The Giants put up 37 points on the day, with Wilson completing 30 of 41 passes for 450 yards and three touchdowns, the last one coming with 25 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to put New York up by three. And if Shane Bowen had been more aggressive with his defensive play calling on the Cowboys last possession in regulation, this team would be 1-1 instead of 0-2.

Then again, if James Hudson hadn't committed four penalties on the opening drive - one of which cost his team a first and goal at the two yard line - the Giants probably would've had a seven-point lead against the Cowboys with 25 seconds to go instead of three, thus rendering the soft defensive play calling by Bowen moot. 

But then that's been the pattern for this franchise for years, hasn't it? When they score, their defense fails them; when they play good defense, they can't find the end zone to save their lives. And sometimes, it's just good old-fashioned poor play calling or untimely mistakes. The Giants are a veritable smorgasbord of bad luck, if ever there was one. 

And in a season in which their first nine games are the toughest of any team in the NFL, they can ill afford to squander any opportunity to get a win. That's what makes Sunday's loss in Dallas so brutal. They outplayed the Cowboys for the majority of the game; they were the better team on the field; they deserved a better fate than they got. Stop me if you've heard this before.

And with the Kansas City Chiefs coming to town, things aren't going to get any easier for the men in blue. The Chiefs are 0-2. The last tine they started the season 0-3 was 2011 - 14 years ago! The Giants, on the other hand, have started the season 0-3 four times over that span. If we know anything about Patrick Mahomes, he hates losing about as much as a vampire hates a sunrise. He knows he hasn't played up to his standard, and neither have his teammates. With the sting of last year's Super Bowl flop still sticking in their craw, they will be in a foul mood when they take the field at MetLife this Sunday, you can be sure of that.

Look, we all knew the Giants had a brutal schedule before the season started. They should be 1-1; they aren't. As an old boss of mine used to say, "Pete, it is what it is." What's important now is that this team continue to play as hard as it can. They have talent on both sides of the ball; more talent than they had three years ago when they went 9-7-1 and secured a Wild Card spot. They have a quarterback who can throw deep and on target; Malik Nabers is a star in the making; and as a team they've recorded six sacks so far.

In August, I predicted a record of 7-10. I saw nothing in Dallas to make me regret that prediction. Just the opposite, in fact. If they play like they did against the Cowboys - sans the penalties and soft defense - they are going to surprise a number of teams before this season is over; perhaps even the Chiefs. 

Just don't quote me on that, okay?

Read It and Sweep

"I'm responsible. I'm the manager. It's my job to get these guys going and I will." 

- New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza

Immediately after the "unsinkable" Titanic sank, many people were quick to put the blame on Captain Edward J. Smith. He was the obvious choice. He had received no less than six ice warnings, yet decided not to reduce speed, change course, or post additional lookouts.

But over the course of the next few months, three inquiries - one in the United States and two in England - shed additional light on the disaster and spread the blame more equally around. The insufficient number of lifeboats to accommodate everyone on board and the decision not to include a double skin in the construction of the ship played a major factor in the huge loss of life that night. There was also a mystery ship ten miles away that, had it responded, could've arrived in time to pick up hundreds of passengers that later froze to death in the North Atlantic.

We still don't know how the 2025 Mets season will end. But as of right now, it's fair to say that this once invincible ship is taking on water and seriously listing. It's hard to believe it but on June 12, their record was 45-24. They were five and a half games up on the Philadelphia Phillies and looking to run away with the National League East. After getting swept by those same Phillies last night, the Mets record now stands at 76-71, and they are only one and a half games up on the San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds for the last Wild Card spot. For the benefit of those who didn't bring their calculators with them, the Mets are 31-47 since June 13. Only the Colorado Rockies, Minnesota Twins and Washington Nationals have a worse record over that span. 

While I admire Mendoza's courage and willingness to throw himself under the bus, by no means is he the main culprit in this disaster. The chief architect of this shit show that currently resides at CitiField is none other than G.M. David Stearns. It was his decision not to re-sign Jose Quintana and instead sign Frankie Montas. Quintana wound up signing with the Milwaukee Brewers - the first place Milwaukee Brewers - for $4 million and is currently 11-6 with a 3.88 ERA, while Montas is making $17 million and was 3-2 with a 6.28 ERA before going on the IR. He then, for some strange reason, convinced Clay Holmes that he could be a starter, despite the fact he hadn't made a start since 2018. Not unexpectedly, the former Yankees closer is running out of gas over the last few weeks.

At the trade deadline, Stearns opted for Cedric Mullins form the Baltimore Orioles instead of Harrison Bader from the Twins, believing that Bader, like he did in Queens last year, would not be a productive second half hitter. But Bader is batting .339 since being acquired by the Phillies, while Mullins is batting an anemic .174 for the Mets. Stearns also elected not to pursue a starter at the deadline, despite the fact that the starting rotation was crying out for someone who could go more than 5 innings. The strain on the beleaguered bullpen was bound to take its toll. Overall, the team ERA is an abysmal 4.02, 10th worst in the majors. On June 12th, it was a major-league best 2.80.

And speaking of the bullpen, while no one could've foreseen that Ryan Helsley would implode the way he has, it's worth noting that Stearns could've gotten Jhoan Duran from the Twins for a little bit more than what he paid for Helsley, and Duran would've been under team control for another two years, unlike Helsley, who's a free agent after this season. Imagine Bader in center and Duran setting up Edwin Diaz. How many more wins do you think this team would have right now with just those two players on the roster? Four, five, six? Even three more wins would mean a four and a half game lead on the Giants and Reds with a nine-game home stand starting tonight.

This is what happens when your owner spends $765 million on one player and your GM shops at the bargain basement store for a pitching staff. The sad fact is that the Mets are wasting a spectacular second half by Juan Soto, who since August 1, is first in the majors in OPS, on-base percentage and stole bases, second in home runs, and third in slugging percentage. Indeed, he's one home run and five runs batted in away from being only the fifth player in major league history to have at least 40 HRs, 100 RBIs and 30 SBs in a single season. The other four are Jose Conseco (1988), Barry Bonds (1996), Alex Rodriguez (1998), and Shohei Ohtani (2024).

Imagine having a lineup with Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor AND still missing the playoffs. That is unacceptable, and yet that is the likely fate which awaits this team over the next couple of weeks unless something dramatic happens. And let's be honest: even if they were to clinch that last Wild Card, do you have any faith that this team can win two games in Philadelphia, where Phillies fans will be frothing at the mouth looking to exact revenge for last year? Me neither.

But before I make Stearns out to be a modern day J. Bruce Ismay - look it up - the players deserve some of the blame here. Including last night's fiasco, the Mets are now 0-63 when trailing after 8 innings. Last season, they had nine comeback wins in the 9th inning, 45 overall to lead the majors. You can have the greatest front office in the history of the sport but if your players don't perform up to ecxpectations you're not going anywhere. 

So there you have it: a season with high expectations, that got off to such a great start, has now spiraled into a tailspin that knows no end.

I hope you brought your lifejackets. That ocean's pretty nasty.