BIG BLUE OPTIMISM FOR 2025

It doesn’t take someone with the football acumen of Tony Romo or Adam Schefter to tell you that the New York Football Giants had a really bad year.

Was it the worst season in their 100 seasons in the NFL? No, that odious distinction belongs to either the 1973 or 1974 squads who each logged two wins each. But let’s face it, 2024 was a “B-A-Double-D” badd year.

 

As fans we all know the reasons, we all know the stories. Daniel Jones. Saquon Barkley. The offensive line. The secondary. The injuries. The thin roster. And let’s not forget how the team looked like a bunch of dopes on Hard Knocks. Everything that could go wrong this season, absolutely and unequivocally did go wrong.

 

Then came the decision from on high (aka owner John Mara’s office) to retain the services of General Manager Joe Schoen and Head Coach Brian Daboll. How in the name of Phil Simms and everything holy could the Coach and General Manager for a team that registered two straight losing seasons, and let a star running back go down the turnpike to rush for 2,000 yards, be kept?

 

Well, that’s why this column is here -- because there is hope. This writer does not put himself on the same level as the cavalcade of talented writers who covered the team on a regional or national level, nor could this writer ever be confused with former Giant linebacker Carl Banks - who has some of the most levelheaded and practical takes on the team in the industry.

 

No, this column is here to give a glimmer of hope, no matter how small it may be, to Giants fans for the 2025 season. Remember, at the end of the day this is the same franchise that took two dogs of a season and turned them into historic Super Bowl wins -- so anything is legit possible.

 

The 2024 Draft Class: The Athletic pointed out that the 2024 draft class was the first year Schoen really had his own, full team in place to make selections. And look at the results. This week every single draft pick plus FA signing Elijah Chatman were part of The Athletic’s All-Rookie Team.

 

Malik Nabers (WR) and Tyrone Tracy (RB) both had over 1,000 from scrimmage -- something nearly unfathomable to think about from a Giants perspective -- especially given the banged up line and QB carousel. Nabers has shown he can be the absolute guy as a WR, and having him on the team will only benefit our next starting QB. Meanwhile, Tracy supplanted Devin Singletary and gave the team a much needed hard running RB who could catch passes … kinda like that one dude we had, but just younger and in need of a better line.

 

Theo Johnson (TE) and Tyler Nubin (S) had their seasons cut short by injuries but both were big contributors. Johnson was just starting to prove his sure hands when injury hit him while he was averaging 11.4 yards per catch. Nubin was a tackling machine with 98 tackles which even for an incomplete season was the highest amongst defensive rookies.

 

His secondary counterpart Dru Phillips logged 71 tackles, a sack, an INT and two forced fumbles. Darius Muasau (LB), a 6th round pick out of UCLA, worked his way into the starting lineup quickly and racked up 55 tackles and an INT.

 

This is the best draft class the team has had in forever, and are exactly the type of players you rebuild a franchise around. 

 

Don’t Forget Joe Schoen’s 2022 Draft: Many would deride Schoen’s 2022 and 2023 draft classes. And let’s face it, 2023 is not looking good, at all. However, 2022 is showing more promise than you think. 

 

• Kayvon Thibodeaux is not Lawrence Taylor, but no one ever will be. We tend to forget he had 11.5 sacks in 2023, and while missing half this season still recorded 5.5 sacks with a fumble recovery. So no, he’s not the flop he’s painted to be. 

• Wan’dale Robinson, who went in the third round, had his best year playing every game (for the first time ever) and getting 700 yards and 3 TD’s. Imagine him with a better QB?

• Micah McFadden, a 5th rounder in 2022, is averaging over 100 tackles the past two seasons. 

 

There Are Good Players on This Team: There have been plenty of marquee names that have left this team since Schoen and Daboll came into town: Leonard Williams (via trade), Xavier McKinney, Julian Love, and yes, Saquon Barkley.

 

However, there’s been plenty of strong additions to this team. We mentioned the 2024 draft class plus the strength from the 2022 draft. Joe Schoen, unlike his predecessors, made more positive big-name signings than his predecessors with the likes of trading for Brian Burns and signing Bobby Okereke, Jermaine Eleumenor, Jon Runyan Jr., Jason Pinnock and others. (Don’t believe me? Well, then the ghosts of Nate Solder and Kenny Golladay must not haunt your dreams like they do mine!)

 

Combine that with Andrew Thomas, Graham Gano, Daniel Bellinger, and others from previous regimes and signings and there are plenty of pieces to build upon.

 

Salary Cap: And what better way to build upon than have $54 million in cap space? Would it be better if they didn’t have that deadcap from Daniel Jones? Of course! However, this amount is still good money to spend.

 

In regards to returning free agents, it’d be nice for the Giants to re-sign the oft-injured Azeez Ojulari on a team-friendly deal because when he’s healthy he gets sacks. Darius Slayton would be a key re-sign, but one has to think he goes elsewhere. Same is to be said about Swiss Army Knife Isaiah Simmons. Punter Jamie Gillam should be retained as well, but punters are punters, so he could be replaced if needs be.

 

If you got to Spotrac, one of the best sites when it comes to salary caps, you can see there’s a ton of talent out there that the Giants could get. Bleacher/Report shows a number of great talents out there too. The Giants need to make at least one or two big splash signings and a number of value signings to bolster this thin roster.

 

Good Drafting Positioning: According to Pro Football focus this draft is rich in the following positions -- secondary, interior d-line, and offensive tackle. These are all needs for this team. 

 

The Giants have a solid secondary when it comes to safeties with Dru Phillips, Tyler Nubin and Dane Belton, however it’s virtual Swiss Cheese at corner. Adoree Jackson is likely not coming back and Deontae Banks had a rough sophomore campaign. Adding a blue chip corner would be a huge asset. 

 

The run defense, according to FOX Sports, was ranked 18th, but with the naked eye you could see this team was hurting to stop the run.  Dexter Lawrence being injured definitely hurt, and the departure of A’Shawn Robinson was a massive loss. Young cats like Elijah Chatman, Jordon Riley and Elijah Garcia have promise, but adding a stud D-Lineman next to Sexy Dexy will definitely take the pressure off of the linebacking core and secondary who had to step up big in terms of run stoppage. 

 

And what more can we say about the tackle position with the Giants? Andrew Thomas is great, but often hurt. Jermaine Eleumunor did admirable work. Evan Neal still isn’t it and the motley crue who filled in for Thomas during the year could not cut it. Adding a tackle, even if they start the season with the second unit is vital.

 

The Giants have good draft positioning to make moves both in terms of trades and making good, long-term picks. If the 2024 draft shows us anything, it shows we can draft.

 

The Bottom Line: The Giants were bad this year. At times it was painful to watch them. Let’s put that behind us, we’ve suffered enough. It’s time to look at 2025. A year without any sort of Daniel Jones or Saquon Barkley controversy. A time when the coach and GM can work together without constraints of previous regimes to really fulfill their 2022 promise of rebuilding this franchise.

 

There are young, key players on this team. A stud WR. A very good RB. An elite LT. A potential Hall of Fame DT. A secondary filling up with high end talent. A stout linebacking corps. The right moves in 2025 could lead this franchise onwards and upwards. Hopefully this time next year this writer will not be banging the drum for 2026 hoping for the best … yet again.