When the chips were down in 2016 and his job was on the line, then-New York Giants general manager Jerry Reese went into self-preservation mode. In a Hail Mary effort, he spent $106.3 million in guaranteed money, more than any other team in the NFL by nearly $32 million.
It worked, albeit briefly.
The Giants returned to the playoffs that season but were one-and-done. Then, in 2017, they got off to a 2-10 start and both Reese and then-head coach Ben McAdoo were fired.
Facing the same dilemma in 2021, then-general manager Dave Gettleman repeated history. He spent $157 million during free agency, the fifth-most by any team, but didn’t get the same results Reese had. The Giants finished that season 4-13 and Gettleman was allowed to retire while then-head coach Joe Judge was handed his walking papers.
On Monday, Giants co-owner John Mara revealed that current general manager Joe Schoen and current head coach Brian Daboll would be retained but cautioned that his patience had run out. Mara wouldn’t offer a public mandate but the message was clear: Win now or go home.
It’s a recipe that’s failed the Giants twice. Desperation has resulted in two regimes crippling future regimes in the act of self-preservation. But facing those same issues, Schoen vows not to follow in the footsteps of his predecessors.
“I’ve got a tremendous amount of respect for the Mara family and the Tisch family. I would never do that,” Schoen said. “I understand we’re going to build this thing the right way. I’m not going to do a Hail Mary for self-preservation or anything like that.
“We have a plan in place that we believe in and we’re going to stick with that. Again, I’ve got a tremendous amount of respect for ownership and what they believe in. We have really good communication with them. They understand where we are and where we’re trying to go. There will be no Hail Mary’s.”
It’s easy to say those words but it’s much more difficult to follow through when the clock is ticking. However, Schoen also says that’s of no concern to him.
“No,” he said when asked if he was worried there was not enough time to fulfill his plan.
As for Mara’s seeming mandate, Schoen said he and Daboll are under no pressure to return the Giants to the playoffs in 2025.
“We’ve got to continue to build it the right way. If we have a really good roster and you get close and… I think John said it to you guys earlier, it’s about progress. We’re at three wins,” Schoen said. “We didn’t make progress in the direction we wanted to this year and it’s not good enough. It starts with me and I understand that.
“But, to have an ultimatum, ‘You make the playoffs or you don’t,’ that changes things. But, that’s not it. John believes in the people in the building and Steve (Tisch) and they’re giving us the ability to build it the right way.”
Again, Schoen is saying all the right words but will those match his actions when the pressure is on? We’ll find out beginning in March at the start of free agency.
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