The last episode of this season of Hard Knocks cast an interesting and very different light on two different NFL general managers.
From the Chicago Bears’ perspective, it allowed us to see a more human side of Ryan Poles. In a delicate moment, Poles cried while regrettably cutting Adrian Colbert. It showed us that NFL executives aren’t as heartless as some might assume.
From the New York Giants’ perspective, Joe Schoen inadvertently revealed how Big Blue feels about sixth-year quarterback Daniel Jones. How? He congratulated Poles for not having to scout quarterbacks — because Caleb Williams is in Chicago — while both hung out on the Georgia-Clemson sideline last weekend.
That means Schoen and his scouting team have clearly already laid out a foundation of work to find New York’s next signal-caller. Mind you, this is before the 2024 Giants and Jones have even played a single game.
When the writing’s on the wall, you probably shouldn’t ignore it:
https://twitter.com/montecri5to/status/1831180763909296384
It’s not surprising to learn Schoen and the Giants are already scouting quarterbacks. Heck, if the Giants had a better first-round pick in this past April’s draft, they probably would’ve tried to jump up and get someone rather than hang around and draft receiver Malik Nabers at No. 6 overall. With multiple high-profile quarterback prospects available, it was an awful year to be outside the top three if you needed a new signal-caller.
Plus, nothing about Jones’ career to this point suggests he is a guy you can win with in the long term. He’s had half a decade to prove otherwise and has failed at nearly every turn. The ride on this carousel only isn’t over because the Giants don’t have any other options. It’s that simple.
Still, if you’re Jones, it can’t be great to see your GM on national television indirectly note that he’s looking at quarterbacks before your new season has begun. It’s a sign of the times ahead of what might be a brutal year in New York.