After a disastrous loss to the lowly Jets, the New York Giants were forced to evaluate the state of the team going into the BYE week. If owner John Mara wasn’t already concerned about his team, falling to a 1-7 opponent marked as one of the worst teams in the NFL might get the point across.
Big Blue was destined for a life of rebuilding after general manager Dave Gettleman stripped the team clean of any Jerry Reese talent, enforcing a turnover at nearly every position. Gettleman was always going to live and die by the team he constructed, and there’s plenty of reason to believe that they can still be competitive.
The number of rookies featuring on one of the league’s worst defenses should tell the entire story. Dexter Lawrence, Oshane Ximines, DeAndre Baker, Corey Ballentine, Ryan Connelly. Most of these players are current starters, which is the most concerning part. Year two is what they call the “evaluation year,” which helps determine the weak spots and where cap-space needs to be allocated.
New York Giants’ Gettleman can come to several conclusions:
-His secondary is a mess
-The free safety position needs a significant upgrade
-The linebackers are in disarrayÂ
-His offensive line is made os Swiss Cheese
-He needs a true No. 1 WR if Sterling Shepard cannot return
-In need of a pure pass-rusher if Markus Golden leaves in free agency
There are a lot more holes that need to be filled than previously assumed. However, at the trade deadline, when everyone thought the Giants would be sellers, ended up buying.
Cornerback Janoris Jenkins was expected to be traded, but his retention tells us one thing — Gettleman is trying to save face. Jenkins has shown a lack of effort in weeks, failing to justify the Giants not trading him. If Gettleman would have left the secondary in a situation where they didn’t have a real No. 1 corner, his team might fall apart at the seams.
Jenkins is a voice in the locker room and a veteran with respect, and putting DeAndre Baker in a disadvantageous spot as the top corner would be ludicrous. If Baker was performing well, I imagine “Jackrabbit” would have been shipped off. In other words, Gettleman’s decisions are telling.