There are a lot of voices weighing in on the New York Giants after their 0-3 start to the season. Much of the feedback is directed towards the coaching staff, and the organization’s upper management. However, there is another element to consider – the players themselves, and how they haven’t stepped up this season to seize a win yet.
Some might blame the coaches for holding back the team’s talents, but former Giants quarterback Phill Simms disagrees. According to Simms, it’s the Giants’ stars that need to perform better to turn things around from their current state.
Giants top players need to perform better, says Simms
“I think the Giants have a lot of good players. But it comes down to this: name me the stars on the team. Is there a guy on offense, is there a pass rusher who can win the game for you right now? The answer is no,” Simms told the New York Daily News.
“Saquon Barkley, Leonard Williams, Dexter Lawrence, Evan Engram, Kenny Golladay, the corners, all of them are potential stars. They need to turn into stars. And the coaches have to help them become stars, too,” Simms continued.
It’s indeed true that many of the ‘star’ players for the Giants have underperformed this season. The Giants have largely played like a team that lacks game changing talents, and this fact has become evident in their back to back losses by extremely thin margins. In both losses, it’s easy to argue that a team with true star players would be able to make one or two more game changing plays and come away with a win.
With that being said, Simms may be underestimating the responsibility of the coaches to help the players make those plays. Jason Garrett’s offense has been widely criticized for a number of legitimate reasons, and the Giants playing soft on defense helped backup QB Taylor Heinicke to lead Washington to victory in week 2. Both of those issues are related to scheme, not just talent.
But one large risk for the coaching staff at this point is losing the locker room. Whether the team’s struggles are primarily on the coaches or the players, too much losing in the next few weeks risks the players checking out entirely. That is an outcome where all sides would lose, as the unprecedented bad run would likely continue for the Giants and the coaching staff’s survival into next season would become unlikely.