Big Blue Huddle

Quote from: MightyGiants on Today at 12:09:48 PMHow did John and his father manage to go to 5 Super Bowls and bring home four trophies? 

Thank you, Pete Rozelle. He bestowed upon the Giants, whether they liked it or not, George Young. Appointed by Rozelle to save the floundering franchise. Given autonomy, Young put in process a plan. It delivered. And from Young and his doings the Giants got Accorsi. Now John Mara is left to his own devices. So far, not so good. But I'm happy that I experienced those Super Bowl wins.

There's no conspiracy. Mara hires the GMs and has a voice in the hiring of the coach and also the major money moves, including top draft picks. So in hiring the GMs he is finding someone who aligns with his sensibilities. That's not bad or uncommon. The problem is, Mara's sensibilities when it comes to football and team development, and player personnel are usually very conservative, predictable, and behind the times. His father was the same way. As a result, the GM, because he has similar ideas and thoughts on team building as the owner, won't waver too much from that conservative, safe, sensibility. The result is mediocrity...at best. Could you ever see a maverick or radical (in terms of how he looks at the game) working for Mara? So that is where his influence comes into play.

Things happen. I never thought they would trade up for Maye or that the Pats would trade that pick. McCarthy I'm not sure. Time will tell if it was a mistake or not. My issue is that getting a young, new QB is inevitable. The longer they wait to find a franchise QB that can possibly get them deep into the playoffs and/or Super Bowl, the longer we fans have to watch mediocrity. So now that is put off at least another couple of seasons even if they get a rookie QB next year.

Quote from: Ed Vette on May 02, 2024, 08:50:57 PMUnlike the 2022 Giants and the 2023 Giants.

Right, the Giants rode that momentum of a winning season right into 2023, didn't they? Too much happens in the off season to ever think there will be a carry over. Not to mention what happens to the teams they end up playing and the schedule they get. When the Giants beat the Eagles at the end of the year in a meaningless game for both teams, pretty much, the Eagles were playing maybe the worst football of anyone in the NFL. I hope it carries over to this season. Doubtful though.

Quote from: MightyGiants on May 02, 2024, 10:36:50 AMCarl Banks thinks it will.   Banks feels that late-season victory over a team (who needed a win) that had been bullying you for years was big for NYG's confidence

I've never seen a correlation between the play at the end of one year and what happens the following year. Means nothing.

Quote from: T200 on May 01, 2024, 10:00:49 AMI think that's the difference between being a franchise QB and not.

I wouldn't use those two examples either. Arizona was pitiful and as it turned out, picked a few spots before the Giants. He played well in the win against Minnesota. At the time I had no doubt the Giants would win that game; they were the better team. Minnesota's defense was abysmal. No mention of the stinker the following week?

This topic/thread was put up as click bait. Nothing more. And it succeeded in that.

Quote from: MightyGiants on April 30, 2024, 09:45:19 AMThe Giants have been run the same way for decades.  The GM is the ultimate decider, but the owner shares his views and opinions.  Frankly, considering that Mara grew up on Giants football, that doesn't seem like the worst thing.   The man learned football from greats like George Young, Bill Parcells, and Tom Coughlin.  It's not like he is some wealthy stockbroker who thinks his financial savvy easily translates to the football world.

I have heard people in the know fault Mara's loyalty, and I don't disagree.  Ronnie Barnes is the poster boy for people the team has kept past their sell-by-data.   Still, I hear far more unfair and unfounded criticism, in terms of conspiracy theories (I am not a fan of conspiracy theories), than he deserves.

I didn't like the Yankees owner as a person. But I liked the results. I'm a fan. All I want from the owner of the team I root for is results. Im not nor never will be his friend.

Quote from: MightyGiants on April 30, 2024, 09:14:01 AMIt's amazing how, in some fans' eyes, John Mara has become this cartoon villain.  It's sort of like what we see league-wide with Rodger Goodell.   The reality is that Goodell suffers the wrath of much of the NFL fanbase, but in reality, he is just the face of the decision made by the owners.

If you want to hold Mara accountable for Gettleman and Joe Judge, that's reasonable.  However, the amount of wild conspiracy theories that are created around Mara and what he does as co-owner of the Giants is truly remarkable.

It's not a wild conspiracy to think that Mara was very much aware and in consultation with the GM on the first pick in the draft. And that the QB search was always a smokescreen. And that contract for Jones? Not done without consulting Mara? Please. He's not a cartoon villain. Just not a very good team owner in terms of success based on his own hirings to start with.

I would have been much more optimistic going forward if a QB was there for the future. As it is now, Giant fans are in limbo on that very important aspect of team building. I've repeatedly said that 2024 should not be looked at as anything but a bridge to the future. But without the QB of the future, we have to bump that down the road a year or two.

Quote from: Ed Vette on April 30, 2024, 07:20:48 AMThe ones in the best situations would be Williams but the Bears have been following finding ways to hurt themselves. Let's see how his projection will perform.

Daniels but Washington is a hapless organization who also kill themselves and their QBs. They had RG3 and Cousins. Somehow they will find a way to wind up with Sam Hartman as their starting QB.

Nix is in a good place with one of the all time best Head Coaches who will build a program around Nix. This might be the best opportunity.

McCarthy is also surrounded by outstanding talent. But another team that has never quite put it together.

Maye and Penix? I feel sad for them.

Penix got royally screwed. It's too bad. I think he would have done very well with the Vikings or Denver. I have no idea what the Pats are putting together in terms of coaching staffs. I do know the team is as bad as Carolina, so the situation will be similar for Maye as it was for Young. 

Quote from: Ed Vette on April 30, 2024, 06:24:55 AM"Linked to both North Carolina's Drake Maye and Michigan's J.J. McCarthy in the weeks leading up to the 2024 NFL Draft, many wondered if the New York Giants would make a move up for a quarterback in Round 1.

Despite the weeks of speculation that the front office was looking to find Daniel Jones' successor, ESPN's Adam Schefter said on Monday's "Pat McAfee Show" that the Giants were never really interested in a signal-caller at all but were actually trying to orchestrate their own perfect storm.

"I believe the Giants wanted Joe Alt to slide to them," Schefter said. "... I think some of this quarterback talk for the Giants might have been a little camouflage to try to get somebody like Minnesota to trade up because if they traded up to the Chargers spot at 5 and got J.J. McCarthy, Joe Alt would've slid right to the Giants' slot at No. 6 and that would have been ideal for a team that last year allowed its quarterbacks to be sacked 85 times."

https://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/articles/insider_says_giants_interest_in_drafting_a_qb_was_a_smokescreen/s1_13132_40301605?

I don't know about Joe Alt, but I'm pretty sure, picking 6, they never were serious about a QB despite the blather of Mara and Schoen. If they were picking number 1 they would haven't had a choice and would have had to take Williams. Anything other than that, I think they would have traded out. It's all about saving face over the contract for Jones.

The schedule folks. Don't forget the schedule. In 2022 the schedule was easy. They played the AFC South. Last year they had to play the NFC West. Lost 3 out of four. This year they play the AFC North and NFC South. NFC South can go either way. Carolina is the only team as of now they would be favored against. In their division, they need to prove finally that they can beat Dallas, until they do, they are underdogs. Philly...we shall see which team shows up. Washington will be better. Don't count on the two easy wins. So go through the schedule. Of course there are injuries to other teams that change the dynamic. But right now, on paper, I don't see more than 7 wins. That's being generous.

Of course it is. It's still April. And we all are so objective after the draft.

Schoen is on the line with the QB as well. They are tied together (even though he never drafted him). If it goes bad for Jones, it reflects poorly on Schoen. While if it goes very good for him, Schoen shines.