Quote from: DaveBrown74 on March 28, 2024, 06:01:04 PMHaving a macro vision about where you're trying to go as an organization you call "silly", but I call it responsible stewardship of an NFL franchise. Simply put, if you're not going to sign a player (or make a serious effort to) in the upcoming offseason, it behooves you to try to get what you can for the player prior to the trade deadline, rather than let him walk away for nothing.
The Giants were 2-6 at the deadline. They probably weren't going to sign Barkley. They definitely weren't going to tag him, and they probably weren't going to sign him. Their $40mm a year starting QB was done for the season. The season was clearly over, insofar as them having any chance of contending or even realistically squeaking into the playoffs as a bottom seed and getting destroyed in the first round. That was the situation they were in.
Nobody said anything about "quitting" other than you. You still field a roster and expect the players you put on the field to give their absolute best and try to win. But you don't sit on impending UFAs you don't seriously intend to sign or tag, when you can get a quality asset for them. You can call that "quitting" if you want to, but I call it being responsible. The team was 2-6 and playing with a backup QB. Did you seriously regard them as having a chance of making a run in the NFC playoffs in January?
This is a loaded draft. Are you telling me you wouldn't have rather had an extra second or third round type pick in this draft for Barkley, considering we didn't make any real effort to sign him (and didn't tag him)? Why was that smart? What exactly did that do for the franchise?
I believe they wanted to sign Barkley, but at their price. That is responsible stewardship. I think they were surprised that they couldn't.
I don't believe at 2-6 we were done. I don't know what would have gotten us into the playoffs, but you keep playing and trying until you can't. You owe it to your players and to all the other teams.
If you are not trying to win then the only thing you're doing is QUITTING.
Look, you have your opinion and I have mine. Better to say that we agree to disagree on this point. No harm no foul.