After picking up their first playoff victory since 2011 a year ago, expectations were understandably high for the New York Giants entering the 2023 regular season.
Brian Daboll was the reigning AP Coach of the Year, quarterback Daniel Jones was coming back after a breakout campaign, and running back Saquon Barkley backed down on a holdout to return to the team.
By all accounts and measures, the Giants should have taken another big step forward.
But that’s not what happened.
Instead, the Giants have regressed to an astonishing degree and following a 30-6 beatdown at the hands of the makeshift Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, are now 2-7 on the season and headed for a top pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
The black cloud that has plagued the Giants for more than a decade has returned in force and things are only going to get worse before they get better.
Following Sunday’s loss, safety and team captain, Xavier McKinney, revealed that cracks are forming in the foundation and there’s an ongoing disconnect between the players and coaches.
“Honestly, it sucks. But, I don’t know, man. I don’t really have many words. I think that from a leadership standpoint, I don’t think they’ve done a great job of letting the leaders lead, and listening to the leaders and the captains,” McKinney said, via ESPN. “But obviously it sucks losing.”
McKinney didn’t clarify who “they” are but it doesn’t take a genius to read between those lines.
“It’s just been tough,” he said. “I don’t want to speak on it too much, but that has been my frustration.”
This isn’t the first time McKinney has griped about the situation in New York. However, this does represent the first time he’s felt emboldened enough to reveal a rift between those in charge and the players on the field.
“It was little things,” McKinney said. “It was one of those things where you have some of your leaders, captains from a defensive standpoint, trying to switch things up. And just not really being heard.
“I don’t know. There are other things too that we could’ve done. Like I said, the execution stuff could’ve been better. But when you got guys out there that are playing and seeing different things and are being vocal and communicating that with the coaches and whoever and are not being heard, it’s hard to go out there and be able to make plays and do things of that nature.”
The Giants also traded team captain Leonard Williams to the Seattle Seahawks ahead of the NFL’s trade deadline and that wasn’t well-received in the locker room.
With things beginning to fracture, Daboll must find a way to rally the troops. If relationships continue to sour, the Giants will be faced with a tough choice — replace the players or replace those in charge. Again.
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