The Brian Daboll Giants won’t infiltrate the NFL this season…but there are growing reasons to believe them as a rookie team that no fake one-hit wonder would be.
As smart, tough, and dependable starters Daboll and GM Joe Schoen have engineered the creep for a franchise that’s been stuck in place for far too long and has become a stroll on the wild card side, it’s not unreasonable or unrealistic to expect the Giants to start running now in a league where There are only a dozen or so teams that could dare dream of a Super Bowl — and they have to be one of them, more contender than pretender, like the Aaron Rodgers Jets.
Are they there yet? no. Is regression possible? naturally. Can they get there? it may. If you can’t dream up a “why can’t we?” Now when can you
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The Eagles became the 2022 NFC Champion in large part because Jalen Hurts made an astronomical leap, and now that Daniel Jones is the $40 million man, he’ll have high expectations to make the leap big enough to honor his quarterback mandate and elevate his team.
Finally, Jones was groomed for success in his sophomore year under Daboll and offensive coordinator/playing caller Mike Kafka.
He now has:
- elite TE and big target in Darren Waller;
- Speed Devils rookie receivers Jalin Hyatt and Parris Campbell to complement the pleasantly upset Isiah Hodgins, running backs Wan’Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton;
- The best offensive line had to keep him upright and open up holes for Saquon Barkley once his ‘Golden Jacket Man’ contract had been mired in. Rookie C John Michael Schmitz is plug-and-play and elite LT Andrew Thomas is confident jumping into year two from RT Evan Neal.
As much as his legs are an invaluable weapon, Jones has no excuse for not surpassing his career high of 24 touchdown passes in his rookie season. Hurts threw 22 TD passes last season to go along with his 13 rushing TDs (part of his 760 yards on 165 carries) though he missed two games after a sprained shoulder in Week 15 and even got compromised in the Giants’ playoff elimination.
Defensive coordinator Wink Martindale is convinced he’ll have a better defense alongside Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams with the addition of LB Bobby Okereke, DTs Rakeem Nunez-Roches and A’Shawn Robinson, and if he’s right, the Giants are ready to stop running and have some fun, as the manager liked. Former year jerry ris to say. Disgusted Martindale allowed 5.2 yards per rush and averaged 144.2 yards in 2022.
If CB Deonte Banks’ first draft is as good as the Giants think it is, it will help make Kayvon Thibodeaux a double-digit threat in his sophomore season, especially if Aziz Ogullari can stay in the field like his backup.
And in a league where so many games are ultimately decided by a field goal, Graham Gano doesn’t know that.
And that cover kickoff return? Oh yeah, never mind.
This is the case of bull for giants. Of course there is a bear case: there is a rampant equivalence that always provides surprises; The schedule makers didn’t do them any favors. The Eagles remain the team to beat in the division as well as in the conference; trusted safety Julian Love pulled to Seattle; The gentle, innocent climb of a year ago is over and over.
The argument that the Giants closed the gap to the Eagles is mitigated by the nature of that gap, and Super Bowl runners-up DT Jalen Carter and OLB Nolan Smith have added to their impressive collection of Georgia Bulldogs and Predators. The loyal Giants can console themselves on this reality: They were lucky to keep Martindale and Kafka while the Eagles lost both their offensive and defensive coordinators to head coaching jobs with the Colts and Cardinals, respectively.
The Giants aren’t as elite as the Chiefs, Eagles, 49ers, Bengals, and Bills. Right now, they look like they belong in the second tier with the Cowboys, Ravens, Chargers, Jets, Seahawks, and many others.
It helps if the Coach of the Year is the coach of the New York Football Giants. Daboll knows his football. He knows his team. Quarterback knows. Ask the $40 million man. He has created an environment conducive to success. He injected energy and courage into a culture that was desperate for both. Same guy every day. Same guy every week. Coach believes in it.
Giants co-owner John Mara tried at the end of every season, forever, to convince himself the stock was headed up, until the Giants hit rock bottom and realized it was time to blow everything up and fire GM Dave Gittleman and HC Joe to rule over. Mara knew he had to win back his fans’ trust, and he did.
It’s too early to conclude that the sky is the limit, but the blue sky over 1925 Giants Drive.
