What a Difference a Year Makes

The most abused word in the English language is the word if. This is especially true when it comes to sports teams. After watching the New York Giants lose to the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium Sunday, the word if was thrown around so much, had it been a small animal, the ASPCA would've been called in.

If either Tyrod Taylor or Tommy Devito didn't have a collective minus 9 yards passing on the day; if Graham Gano had converted on just one of his two missed field goals; if Brian Daboll had gone for it on 4th and 1 from the Jets 17 with 28 seconds left in regulation up 10-7; if Kayvon Thibodeaux had not stopped the clock with 17 seconds left by jumping offsides; if Wink Martindale had elected to drop eight defenders into coverage instead of trying to rush Zach Wilson, then maybe, just maybe, the Giants might've snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, instead of the other way around. 

But, alas, they couldn't. Against a Jets team that went 2 for 15 on third down, the Jints found a way to one up them, going 2 for 19. And one of those first downs came courtesy of a roughing penalty. Indeed, it was only because of penalties like that, the running of Saquon Barkley and the defensive play of Thibodeaux, who had three sacks on the day - 8.5 on the season - that the Giants managed to get the ball across the 50 yard line at all. Barkley rushed for 128 yards, including a 34-yard run on the opening drive of the second half; and Thibodeaux stripped the ball from Wilson on the Jets opening drive of the game, giving the Giants the ball at the Jets 26 yard line.

And yet all they could muster was a lousy 10 points. That they were seconds away from pulling off an improbable win just goes to show you how snake bit this team truly is. They are nothing if consistent. 

For the third week in a row, Martindale's defense put the Giants in a position to win. They held the Buffalo Bills to 14 points; the Washington Commanders to 7; and the Jets to 13. Last season, they would've gone 3-0; this season, they went 1-2.

After the game, Daboll took responsibility for his decision to go for the field goal rather than the first down. Fans may question the call, but it was the correct one. Considering how bad the Giants were on 3rd down, converting a 4th and 1 would hardly have been a slam dunk. Besides, if your field goal kicker can't make a 35 yard field goal then what's he doing on the team? The fact is had Gano simply done his job, the Jets would've needed to go the length of the field to score the winning touchdown with less than 20 seconds left in regulation.

What a difference a year makes. The 2022 Giants were a resilient football team that found ways to win the close games. The 2023 Giants are the polar opposite; they invent new ways to lose the close games. It's hard to fathom just how fundamentally flawed they are, especially on offense. It doesn't matter who's quarterbacking them, with the exception of that second half against the Cardinals, they have been one of the worst red-zone teams in the NFL. Ironically, the only team worse than Big Blue in the red zone is the Jets, the team that beat them on Sunday.

Oh, death, where is thy sting?

So now that what little hope the Giants had of salvaging this train wreck of a season is gone, the only question that remains is how big of a selloff will they have? The first domino to fall is Leonard Williams. The underperforming defensive end was dealt to the Seattle Seahawks for a 2024 second rounder and a 2025 fifth rounder. Joe Schoen was able to get the return he got because the Giants picked up the bulk of Williams remaining contract. I would not be at all surprised if Adoree Jackson is the next one out the door. It was his pass interference penalty in OT that set up the Jets winning field goal. Both players are in the final year of their respective contracts and neither is expected to return next season. As for Barkley, I seriously doubt he gets traded. John Mara loves him, and let's be honest: without him, this team would probably be 0-8.

If there is a silver lining here, it's that the Giants, as of now, have the 4th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Not quite how the fanbase envisioned things going when the season started. But then I'm sure the passengers on the Titanic didn't envision a collision with an iceberg ruining their voyage across the Atlantic either.

Shit happens, you know.

This One Hurt

The Giants were humiliated by the Cowboys.

They came from behind against the Cardinals.
They were outclassed by the 49ers.
They were out-coached by the Seahawks.
They were overmatched by the Dolphins.

They deserved better against the Bills.

For the first time this season, Big Blue lost a game they should've won.

The much maligned Giants defense held the third best offense in the NFL scoreless through three quarters. Bobby Okereke had his best game as a Giant, forcing a fumble and an interception. It was the second game in a row the Giants won the turnover battle. And had Tyrod Taylor not had the brain fart of the century on the last play of the first half, New York would now most likely be 2-4 instead of 1-5.

It was a play that, like so many this season, has come to define the Giants. With 14 seconds left in the 2nd quarter and no timeouts, Taylor, for some strange reason, called an option audible at the one yard line and handed the ball off to Saquon Barkly, who was stuffed at the goal line. The clock ran out before Taylor could spike the football.

A visibly upset Brian Daboll let Taylor have it on the sidelines. But the damage was done. Instead of being up 9-0, or perhaps 13-0, going in at halftime, the Giants were forced to settle for a 6-0 lead. We all know what happened. The Bills eventually broke through and scored two 4th quarter touchdowns en route to a 14-9 victory. The final play of the game for the G-Men was a pass attempt by Taylor to Darren Waller in the end zone that was incomplete thanks to a no-call on what should've been a holding penalty on Bills cornerback Taron Johnson. It was a fitting end to another bittersweet loss.

Their outstanding defensive effort notwithstanding, the Giants, once again, failed to score an offensive touchdown. That's three games in a row now. Take away the four they had against the lowly Cardinals, and the Jints have scored exactly one offensive touchdown all year.

Pitiful doesn't begin to describe their level of play. Even in Ben McAdoo's second season as head coach - the one where he went 2-10 and was fired - they were more competitive with the football. I'm not suggesting that Daboll should lose his job; just pointing out that what's happening here doesn't bode well for him or his staff.

How can a team that was so disciplined and creative offensively one year be so inept the next? The acquisitions Joe Schoen made during the offseason were supposed to make this team more explosive. If this is explosive, I'd hate to see what comatose looks like.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, there's plenty of blame to go around here. A porous O-line; bad decision making by the QB; bewildering coaching decisions. It's like watching a comedy that isn't funny. And when I look ahead at the remaining schedule, I don't see much hope. Unless something fundamentally changes, this team could well go 3-14, or worse.

You tell me: Washington (twice), the Jets, the Raiders, the Cowboys, the Patriots, the Packers, the Saints, the Rams and the Eagles (twice). Ok, maybe 4-13. MAYBE.

Rebuilding a football team takes time and patience, I realize. But after a playoff appearance last season, there was a reasonable expectation by the fanbase that this team had turned a corner. 

About the only thing the Giants are turning this season are stomachs.