Tag: New York Giants

What are the Giants doing to help DeAndre Baker?

New York Giants CB DeAndre Baker is among the worst in football and his hole is only getting deeper, so what is the team doing to help?

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New York Giants rookie cornerback DeAndre Baker is out on an island right now and not the kind of island Darrelle Revis was on, either.

Baker’s island is a deserted one. He’s more like Tom Hanks in the movie “Castaway,” left for dead with no help in sight.

The Giants’ defense is devoid of leadership at the moment as their lineup is stocked with rookies and younger players and the veterans on their team are struggling themselves, so their ability to lead has been compromised.

Baker is being asked to do things that go against the grain of his talent. When the Giants traded up to select Baker with the 30th overall selection, they were getting a quality press corner who used his stickiness and cover skills to shut down receivers.

The Giants’ defensive scheme under coordinator James Bettcher has Baker playing in zones and in soft coverage models where he’s 8-to-10 yards off the line of scrimmage instead of confronting wideouts within five yards.

If they are going to get the most out of this promising youngster, they must meet him halfway and get him some help. Former Giant great and current radio analyst Carl Banks agrees.

Baker has admitted he is having issues grasping Bettcher’s defense and it is showing in his performance. He is ranked at the very bottom of the league at his position after giving up a slew of huge plays this season.

Then, there is the surrender factor. Baker is so screwed up, he appears to give up on some plays as if he’s given up trying to figure things out, which is what Lawrence Tynes was addressing in his tweet prior to Banks’ reply.

The Giants were hoping that veteran Janoris Jenkins would assist in grooming Baker, Sam Beal, Corey Ballentine and Julian Love, but he’s been dealing with his own issues. He was rumored to be on the trading block last month, so his mind was not on developing talent here.

Will the Giants reach back and hire that “tutor” for Baker and the others that Banks suggests or just continue on to shrug their shoulders each time the defense gets torched?

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Giants select Chase Young in latest Sports Illustrated mock draft

In their latest 2020 mock draft, Sports Illustrated has the New York Giants selecting Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young.

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The New York Giants would select No. 3 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft if the regular season were end today. They also have roughly a 10% chance to land the No. 1 overall pick, but the highest odds have them remaining at No. 3.

Based on the current draft order, Sports Illustrated released their latest mock draft on Wednesday and had Big Blue making a substantial improvement with the selection of Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young.

3. New York Giants: Chase Young, EDGE, Ohio State

Despite serving a two-game suspension for accepting a loan, Young remains the top prospect on my big board as well as the vast majority of draft analyst big boards. Dave Gettleman passed on Kentucky’s Josh Allen in the 2019 draft due to his “full-blown love” for Daniel Jones, but he gets a do-over this year as Chase Young falls into his lap.

Building upon his productivity down the stretch last season with Nick Bosa sidelined, Young has been absolutely dominant this season with 13.5 sacks in just eight games. The Giants rank just 26 in team pass rush win rate and their most productive pass-rusher (Markus Golden, 6.5 sacks) is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

The Giants land a much-needed defensive playmaker in this scenario with the Cincinnati Bengals selecting LSU quarterback Joe Burrow and the Washington Redskins selecting Georgia offensive tackle Andrew Thomas, who could be another top target for Big Blue.

The top five rounds out with Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa going to the Miami Dolphins at No. 4 overall and Alabama wide receiver Jerry Jeudy going to the New York Jets at No. 5 overall.

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Was Giants locker room demoralized when Eli Manning returned in 2019?

The New York Giants locker room was reportedly “demoralized” when learning that QB Eli Manning would return in 2019.

A commonly held belief in recent years is that New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning had essentially fallen off a cliff, seen his skills rapidly deteriorate and become a liability that co-owner John Mara was forcing on general manager Dave Gettleman and head coach Pat Shurmur.

Of course, both Gettleman and Shurmur had raved about Manning and were keen on sticking with him until they realized following Week 2 that they couldn’t really compete during a rebuild. As a result, they ushered in the Daniel Jones era.

But was there more to it than that? Did Manning’s teammates essentially fold when realizing the two-time Super Bowl MVP would again be under center in 2019? ESPN’s Jordan Ranaan certainly thinks so.

“There was just no reason to bring [Eli] back, especially once you drafted Daniel Jones. You’re much better off having Ryan Fitzpatrick — or whatever other quarterback — that you know you’re bringing in, you’re not paying a lot of money, you’re putting him as a starter if you wanna wait on Daniel Jones, which they did, and then whenever you want to make that move, it’s a move you can make easily and save money,” Ranaan said on the Breaking Big Blue podcast.

“It also dragged along a situation that was hanging over the team. The whole Eli situation was hanging over the team. He was in decline, the offense wasn’t playing well for the last two-three years and they keep bringing him back. It’s sort of demoralizing to the guys on the team. Trust me, they sit there and tell you, ‘We back Eli, we back Eli.’ I know behind the scenes there were a lot of guys who were like, ‘Man, I can’t believe we’re going back with Eli again.'”

If what Ranaan suggests is true, Manning’s teammates went to great lengths to cover up their alleged disdain over his return, voting him a team captain for the 13th consecutive season, which is extremely sketchy and somewhat disrespectful for a franchise great and future Hall of Famer.

Ironically, if the Giants players were concerned that Manning was holding them back, 2019 has served as a brutal dose of reality because the offense is actually performing at a lower clip than it had under Manning in 2018 while the same problems that have plagued the team for years continue to persist.

It becomes easy to find and continue to point at a scapegoat — even if they are doing it quietly behind the scenes instead of like men face-to-face — but if we’ve learned any one thing this season, it’s that Manning was absolutely not the root cause of Big Blue’s problems and made the team no worse (or better) than it is now.

Manning certainly deserves better than he’s gotten from both the team and media, and apparently he also deserves better than he’s gotten from his teammates who talk trash about him from the shadows.

The Giants organization has fallen hard and it’s fallen fast, and based on Ranaan’s reporting, the culture has completely deteriorated.

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Christopher Johnson using whatever goodwill he has left on Adam Gase

Chairman and CEO Christopher Johnson publically endorsed Adam Gase despite his 2-7 record, much to the chagrin of fans.

For better or worse, Christopher Johnson is hitching his wagon to Adam Gase.

The chairman and CEO stated Gase will remain the head coach in 2020 despite from fans and pundits alike calling for his firing.

“I want to assure you there will be no changes in coaches here,” Johnson told reporters Wednesday. “Adam has the trust of this team. He has the trust of Sam. He has the trust of (general manager) Joe (Douglas). He has my trust. He’s a good man. He’s a good coach.”

Johnson explained part of the reason for keeping Gase is continuity with Sam Darnold’s development. Johnson added that Gase’s first year can’t properly be evaluated due to a ridiculous amount of injuries to the team.

“Sam hasn’t been given the best opportunity to thrive,” Johnson said. “We’ve had so many moving parts on the offensive line that I think it has affected his ability to play as he would like. There’s a great deal of work to do. Everyone understands that. And we’re just getting started. But I feel really good about this team moving forward.”

It’s not surprising that Johnson isn’t planning on firing Gase after one season. While it would send a positive message to an angry and win-deprived fanbase, it could cripple the morale of a team that has yet to turn on Gase. 

What is surprising, though, is how Johnson effectively gave a ringing endorsement of Gase despite the Jets’ 2-7 record and terrible statistical rankings. Even after a seven-point win over the equally-lowly Giants, the Jets rank 30th in points scored and 32nd in total yards. Even with a bevy of injuries, those numbers are atrocious; they’re nothing Johnson should be publicly praising.

It also sends a bad sign to Jets fans when you basically tell them you’re happy with the job Gase has done in 10 months. Objectively speaking, he’s been a terrible coach in the games he’s lost, and lucky in the games he’s won. He was pitched to fans as an offensive genius, but the Jets have only scored more than 20 points and put up more than 300 yards of offense twice all season. Darnold looks to have regressed and no player looks to have developed under Gase’s guidance. He even cost the Jets their starting inside linebacker by leaving Avery Williamson in a meaningless preseason game in which he tore his ACL. 

It would have been easier for Johnson to take Le’Veon Bell’s approach and just continue preaching patience for the future of the team. Instead, Johnson is telling fans he believes Gase is that future, despite every indication that this won’t be the case. 

“I understand it. I’m frustrated, too,” Johnson said when asked about fans’ frustrations. “Every player on this team hates to lose. … Losing is a whole new thing and it’s terrible and I want it to stay terrible. Who wants to get used to that? But I can assure you that this entire building is about getting this team to a better place.”

Almost three weeks ago Johnson was caught on camera criticizing the team before a loss to the Jaguars. The next week the Jets lost to the previously winless Dolphins. If Johnson wasn’t happy with the team before, what changed over the past few weeks for him to suddenly support his coach? The Giants win, though great for morale, wasn’t particularly impressive considering the defense blew a two-score lead and were a Jamal Adams fumble recovery for a touchdown away from losing.

This is less about Gase and more about a vote of confidence for the team moving forward. Though the Jets roster is bad and their season awful, there are still solid pieces surrounding Darnold. If players were also calling for Gase’s head, maybe Johnson would change his tune. But with players like Jamal Adams and center Jonotthan Harrison praising Johnson’s decision, firing Gase would decimate the morale of the team for the rest of the year and send the Jets into a bigger tailspin before moving back to square one this offseason. 

“It shows [Johnson] has faith in coach Gase, like the rest of us do,” Harrison said. “It shows he sees the potential and he sees where this team is going. Instead of listening to the outside noise — Gase this, Gase that — he said, ‘I have total faith in coach Gase.'”

Adams, who at one point refused to talk to Gase and Douglas after trade rumors, also backed Gase: “That’s our head coach and that’s who we ride with.”

Johnson doesn’t have the best track record as an owner. His hands-on approach and seemingly genuine interest in player causes — a drastic contrast from his brother, Woody — made a strong first impression, but he’s 11-30 since taking over in 2017. He let Mike Maccagnan build the roster through the 2019 offseason and played a role in overpaying for free agents. Gase could be yet another mistake in the Christopher Johnson era, and that’s probably not something he’d like to admit after only 10 months.

“It’s said that you are what your record says you are, and that’s not very impressive,” Johnson said. “But looking forward, I think it’s going to be a good team. I have so much faith in Adam and Joe to put together a great future for us.”

We’ll see about that.

Report: Giants will attend Colin Kaepernick’s workout on Saturday

The New York Giants will attend the Pro Day-style workout of QB Colin Kaepernick on Saturday in Atlanta.

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The New York Giants will be one of the teams in attendance to witness free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s pro day-style workout in Atlanta this coming Saturday, according to NJ Advance Media.

Kaepernick is seeking a comeback and he is using this forum for all 32 NFL teams to scout him all at once.

Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since the end of the 2016 with the San Francisco 49ers, the team that drafted him in the 2011 NFL Draft out of the University of Nevada.

The extent of the Giants’ interest in Kaepernick is unclear, but it appears they are simply doing their due diligence here. With Daniel Jones the future at quarterback for the near — and possibly long-term — future of the team, the Giants are seeking a veteran backup as Eli Manning’s contract ends at the end of the season.

Are the Giants’ genuinely interested in singing Kaepernick? Probably not, unless he’s willing to be a backup.

“I think he still has some good football left in him,” Giants CEO John Mara said earlier this year. “I agree with that. But obviously there are other issues that go along with him. Is he willing to sit as a backup behind a starter? What’s that going to do with your locker room, with your quarterback room, your offensive room? I believe he’ll be back in the league at some point this year with a team.”

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Dexter Lawrence is the highest-graded Giant per Pro Football Focus

Going into Week 11, rookie Dexter Lawrence is the highest-graded members of the New York Giants courtesy of Pro Football Focus.

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Pro Football Focus released a list on Tuesday ranking the highest graded player on every NFL team. According to this list, rookie defensive linemen Dexter Lawrence is the highest-graded New York Giant (82.8) through the first nine games of the season.

After acquiring the 17th overall pick from the Cleveland Browns last March in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade, Giants general manager selected Clemson defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence in the first round.

Selected in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, Lawrence is already one of the NFL’s best run defenders. In addition to his 82.8 overall grade, Lawrence has earned an 88.0 run-defense grade that ranks sixth at his position so far this season.

Since the start of the regular season, Lawrence has made his presence felt in the middle of the Giants’ defensive line recording 26 tackles and two for a loss in nine starts. This helped earn his 88.0 run-defense grade, good for sixth-best in the league at his position, as previously mentioned.

Coming out of college, scouts labeled Lawrence exclusively as a nose tackle. Despite being considered a one-dimensional player, the Clemson Tigers product has proven these critics wrong with his play on the field as he has seen time lined up in a one, three and five technique.

One of the most impressive plays of his young NFL career came last Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys. When lined up in the three-technique, Lawrence blew up Cowboys right tackle La’el Collins driving him into the backfield to drop running back Zeke Elliot for a loss (see below).

Not only has Lawrence excelled as a run stopper, but he has showcased his pass rushing ability with 2.5 sacks, three hurries, five hits and 10 pressures, as well.

In a disappointing 2-8 start to Big Blue’s season, Lawrence has been one of the few bright spots. There is little doubt this kid has a positive future ahead of him and his rookie season provides a glimmer of hope in the Giants long term blueprint.

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Jets S Jamal Adams named AFC Defensive Player of the Week

Following a lackluster performance, Jamal Adams silenced critics and played well enough to be named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

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Jamal Adams was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week following his impressive performance against the New York Giants on Sunday.

After struggling against the Dolphins amid frustrations with the Jets’ consistent losing and trade rumors, Adams silenced critics with arguably the best game of his career.

Adams finished with a team-high nine tackles and two sacks in the 34-27 win over the Giants, including a strip-sack in which he pick-pocketed the ball out of Daniel Jones’ hands and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown. It was his second touchdown of the season.

“Before the game, he told us, ‘Match my intensity today,'” linebacker Brandon Copeland said. “And he delivered. Not too many players you see can say something like that and deliver.”

Adams’ intensity on Sunday helped lead the Jets out of a three-game losing streak.

In nine games played this season, Adams has 43 solo tackles, five for a loss, five quarterback hits, three sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception.

Giants’ Julian Love suddenly receiving first-team reps

New York Giants rookie defensive back Julian Love is suddenly getting some first-team reps — could a change at safety be coming?

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Through 10 weeks of the season, New York Giants rookie defensive back Julian Love has been on the field for a grand total of three defensive snaps, but that could be poised to change when the team returns from the bye week.

Although the Giants will be off from Thursday through Sunday, they did have a practice closed to the media on Tuesday and will have another on Wednesday. And one of the interesting notes from that dark practice is Love suddenly seeing first-team reps.

When the Giants selected Love in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, many viewed the pick as a legitimate steal and heaped praise upon general manager Dave Gettleman.

However, Love experienced some growing pains during the spring and summer, seeing his reps moved from cornerback to free safety, essentially slowing down his learning curve.

However, as veteran safety Antoine Bethea continues to struggle save for one game against the Dallas Cowboys in which he played exceptionally well, the calls for Love (or basically anyone else) have begun to mount.

The Giants already lead the league in rookie snaps by leaps and bounds, so it’s not as if thrusting Love into the fray would change much. The team is losing consistently and many of their problems come on the defensive side of the ball, so getting Love some live game experience ahead of the 2020 season makes sense.

We’ll know for sure if Love is getting a push when the Giants return to East Rutherford ahead of Week 12, but at this point, it should be encouraged. Throw everything against the wall at 2-8 and see what sticks.

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Breaking down Ezekiel Elliott, Saquon Barkley’s miserable Week 10s

Jason Garrett and Kellen Moore fail to adjust their offense to suit the strengths of their personnel, setting Dallas back to a 5-4 record.

Half of the NFC East sat out this week on a bye, while the other half lost to teams they were favored against.  The New York Giants fell to the Jets in what’s closer to a race for draft position than the playoffs.  At the other end of the standings, the Dallas Cowboys hurt their own playoff bid with a loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

Both the Cowboys and the Giants were sunk by abysmal days on the ground for star running backs Ezekiel Elliott and Saquon Barkley.

The effectiveness (or lack thereof) of those running backs in Week 10 is easily seen with advanced box scores based on expected points.

Expected Points, the foundation of many analytical arguments, uses data from previous NFL seasons to determine how many points a team is likely to come away with on a given play based on down, distance, time remaining, and field position. The difference in expected points at the start of a play and expected points at the end is referred to as expected points added, or EPA.

A play with a positive EPA means it put the offense in a better position to score, while negative EPA implies the offense is in a worse position.

Barkley and Elliott finished with the worst and sixth-worst EPA/carry, respectively, among rushers with at least 10 carries this week.

For backs with at least 20 carries in a game without a fumble, Elliott finished with the fifth worst EPA/carry this season.

Both Elliott and Barkley even saw a below average rate of loaded box counts, per NFL’s Next Gen Stats.  That being said, there is still evidence that Elliott isn’t entirely to blame for the lack of a run game in Dallas this week.

Of Elliott’s 20 carries, 15 of them came with 10 yards to go.  He averaged 2.9 yards per carry in these situations and never gained more than six yards on a given run.  It was an ineffective ground game that the Cowboys simply refused to get away from throughout the game.  Despite a 57% success rate in the air on 14 first down throws, Dallas elected to run the ball 16 times with a 12.5% success rate.

The point at which Dallas’ commitment to the run game proved to be a fatal flaw came in the Cowboys’ final drive (excluding the hail mary drive in the final 24 seconds).  Dak Prescott threw for eight yards on first down, only to watch Ezekiel Elliott, in his first short yardage carries of the day, run for 0 and -3 yards on the next two plays.  That was enough to drop Dallas’ win probability nearly 25%.

Meanwhile, in the passing game:

After Lamar Jackson, who had another ridiculous game this week, Dak Prescott was the most effective passer in the NFL on Sunday.  He finished with the 10th highest completion percentage over expected (CPOE) in the NFL this week as well, completing nearly 4% more passes than expected based on target depth.  Daniel Jones wasn’t quite the same level, but he was above average in both EPA/pass and CPOE.  A significantly better day for him than Barkley’s 13 carries for one yard.

Top Offensive Play

Daniel Jones’ quick strike that turned into a 61-yard touchdown to Golden Tate earned the top EPA play this week in the division. (6.5 EPA)

Top Defensive Play

A big third-down sack from Robert Quinn was the biggest EPA play among the defenses in the division this week. (-2.3 EPA)

Looking Ahead

Washington comes back from their bye week with what is likely to be their weakest remaining opponent.  They’ll take on a Jets team that has been below average in the air and on the ground.  It should be noted, however, that Sam Darnold has been throwing for -0.09 EPA/pass since returning from illness.  Dwayne Haskins, Washington’s new starter, has an EPA/pass of -0.53.  Even so, Washington is still currently favored by one in their home game coming back from a bye.

Philadelphia gets the league’s top defense this week, but at least they get them at home.  New England proved that they were at least partially a product of the poor offenses they faced in the first eight weeks when Baltimore ran all over them, but Philadelphia is no Baltimore.  The Eagles will need to hold down New England’s fairly average passing attack to keep this one close.

Dallas faces what could potentially be a Matt Stafford-less Detroit Lions.  Stafford is having one of his best seasons yet and leading the NFL in average depth of target.  If he can’t go for the second week in a row, Jeff Driskel looks to take the reigns.  Driskel’s EPA/pass is in the negative, a far cry from Stafford’s 0.27.  Prescott remains in the top-3 in the NFL by EPA/pass.  Should Jason Garrett allow Prescott to throw just a bit more, and should Stafford sit out again, this should be a perfect get-right game for Dallas.

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