The firing of of Jerry Reese and Ben McAdoo was the change the New York Giants needed to get on the track to success…or so we thought. The franchise seems to keep taking two steps forward and then five steps back with their free agent signings and systematic approach toward success.
New general manager Dave Gettleman, made it a priority to address the offensive line last offseason with draft capital and salary cap space. He drafted Will Hernandez in the second round and signed left tackle Nate Solder to a record breaking deal. He also signed Patrick Omameh to play right guard and retained Ereck Flowers in an attempt to extract any value from him at right tackle.
One of the most obvious trends in this list will be that it’s centralized around one specific unit – one that is easily predictable.
The top three underachieving players in 2018:
1.) QB Eli Manning
Despite an elevation in completion percentage and overall yards, Eli Manning has been a shell of his former self. He’s clearly shell-shocked from years of poor offensive line play and big hits. My major concern with Eli is that he seems to deviate from the play-calling and has missed open receivers time and time again. His mental processing seems to be shot due to a constant worry of the pass-rush.
We always knew Manning needed an offensive line to succeed, even the most basic of fan could tell you that. The issue is that Jerry Reese simply couldn’t figure out the formula to putting one together for his franchise quarterback, effectively wasting away his prime years. It’s not Eli’s fault entirely that his team is walking into the BYE week at 1-7, but it’s important to realize that he might be too banged up to continue on as a starter in the league. The Giants would save $17 million in cap-space by cutting him at the end of the season, and the reality of his departure is becoming more apparent with every passing week.
2.) LT Nate Solder
Here comes the offensive line woes.
Gettleman nailed his draft pick with Hernandez at left guard, but my oh my did he whiff in free agency. He allocated $15 million per season to Solder at left tackle, and so far, all we’ve seen is mediocrity.
Now, it’s important to know that Solder is used to Tom Brady’s six-step drop back which allows him to recover on speed rushes to the outside. He’s far better at containing his assignment on the interior than when they try to attack his weak foot (left).
Manning on the other hand drops back anywhere from 8-10 yards, forcing Solder to adjust his game and ultimately expose his weaknesses. This is a major flaw that the offensive line coaches missed on when helping Gettleman address the left tackle position. With Manning likely leaving after this season, it’s possible the new quarterback will not require such a steep drop-back.
3.) RG Patrick Omameh
The Giants dished out a three-year, $15 million deal for Omameh to play right guard. So far, he’s been benched and replaced by reserve lineman John Greco.
Omameh is a former undrafted free agent that played “average” at times with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Clearly, Gettleman thought his coaching staff could extract more value from the guard when there wasn’t any more to gain. He has the body and strength to be dominant but lacks balance and technical prowess.
The Giants managed to grab former Rams guard, Jamon Brown, of the waiver wire this week. It will be interesting to see how they manage him and if he receives a chance on the starting line sooner rather than later.