It sucks losing, I know; it particularly sucks when the opponent you lose to resides 90 miles down the Jersey Turnpike. And, trust me, Eagles fans will be insufferable if their team goes on to win the Super Bowl next month. When they won their first title in 2017, you'd have thought Vince Lombardi and Bart Starr had been resurrected from the dead. Philadelphia may be the city of brotherly love, but its sports fans can be pompous assholes.
But while the final score on Saturday may have been lopsided, in no way, shape or form did it detract from what the Giants accomplished this season. Despite what Mike Francesa said, this team exceeded all expectations. Coming off a 4-13 record - their fifth losing campaign in a row - the so-called football "experts" scoffed at the notion that Brian Daboll and Co. could turn this ship around. Indeed, yours truly had them going 6-11. That they finished 9-7-1, and made it all the way to the Divisional round of the playoffs, should qualify as the "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" story of the decade.
So now what? With the season over, what comes next? Yes, the glass is half full instead of half empty, but at the end of the day it doesn't matter. You still have half a glass of water. They may have been the most resilient team in the NFL but spit and polish doesn't get you a Super Bowl ring. As painful as it was to watch the Eagles humiliate the Giants on national TV, they were the better team in every measurable way.
Joe Schoen has his work cut out for him. Thanks to his predecessor's incompetence, he was saddled with roughly $53 million in dead cap this past season. He also had another $21.1 million of useless salary on the books in the person of Kenny Golladay, whose lone touchdown came in week 18 at Philly. Next season, Golladay's cap hit will be $21.4 million. If the Giants buy him out after June 1, the dead cap hit would be $7.9 million in 2023 and $6.8 million in 2024. When you factor in the $3.6 million in dead cap from Kadarius Toney, the Giants will have about $58 million in available cap space to go shipping with during the off season.
That may seem like a lot of money, but it really isn't. That's because the lion's share of it will go to Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley, assuming Schoen elects to re-sign them. And based on what they did in 2022, it's hard to imagine them not coming back.
Jones threw for 3205 yards with 15 touchdowns and only 5 interceptions. He also rushed for a club record 708 yards. His quarterback rating of 60.8 was 7th best in the NFL. To say he had a career year would be an understatement. Barkley had his best season as a Giant since his rookie year with 1312 rushing yards, good for 4th best in the league. More than that, he proved he could stay healthy, which was a major concern going into the season. Both players have expressed a desire to return in 2023.
But at what cost? Jones and Barkley made $8.3 and $7.2 million respectively this season. A three-year deal for Jones would likely come in around $35 million per season. Barkley supposedly turned down a three-year, $36 million offer and is reportedly looking for a contract similar to the $16 million Christian McCaffrey is making. Let's say both sides meet in the middle. $14 million plus $35 million comes out to $49 million. For those with an adding machine, that comes to $49 million, which leaves Schoen with just $9 million to plug the many holes on this team. If you were paying close attention throughout the season, you know that isn't nearly enough.
For the Giants to become genuine contenders, two areas in particular must be beefed up: wide receiver and linebacker. Regarding the former, the Giants were the only playoff team not to have a 1,000 yard receiver. Darius Slayton led them with 724 yards; Richie James, who dropped a sure touchdown on Saturday, was next with 569; and Jones's favorite target, Isaiah Hodgins - a pick up from Buffalo after being waived - had 392. It's obvious that Schoen will have to go through the draft to land an elite receiver.
Regarding the latter, the way the Eagles ran roughshod all over the Giants both on Saturday and at MetLife in December should tell you everything you need to know about their lack of depth at this position. Clearly, Jihad Ward and Jaylon Smith weren't the answers here. Again, with limited cap space, Schoen may have to address this need through the draft as well.
One tool available to him that could help is the franchise tag. Each team is permitted to franchise tag one player per season. Considering how expensive both Jones and Barkley might be to retain, Schoen could go that route with one of them to save some cap space. And if he can get a couple of players to renegotiate their contracts, that will help as well. One thing is certain: the talent gap that exists between the Giants and the top teams in the league isn't going to be bridged anytime soon.
Bottom line: this is still a rebuild. A rebuild that may be ahead of schedule, but a rebuild nonetheless. As Schoen emphasized in his press conference yesterday, patience is important. "Teams are never one player away," he said.
It's reassuring having adults run the show, isn't it?
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