Season Ending Thoughts and Muses, FWIW

[Jolly Blue Giant]

1) The Giants played their finest first half of a game of football yesterday in the last decade. We looked like men playing against boys. The only thing sweeter than it coming against the Filthadelphia Eagles, would have been hanging that throttling on the Cowboys. Especially nice that the first half was against Hurts and we made him look like an average QB

2) We MUST re-sign Xavier McKinney and extend Pinnock. The combo of McKinney/Pinnock/Belton is an elite NFL safety tandem. Give Xavier what he wants and don't let him go

3) The front office made two great decisions at the beginning of the season: signing Okereke and locking up Dexter. Okereke is the stud LB we've been missing for one long time. And it's nice to see that McFadden is looking very good. Simmons was a good get, and it seems Wink has found a way to use him to get the most out of him...knock on wood (as a side note, I think it was a stellar move by the Giants late in the season to sign Gunner Olszewski, a legitimate returner - thumbs up to the front office for that move...long overdue)

4) I was a little disappointed to see Hawkins drop off from his early games when he looked like a steal. I suspect defenses studied him and found the flaws in his game and exploited it. I haven't given up on him at all, I just think he needs to take the next step...which is fixing the flaws

5) I think it would behoove us to re-sign Adoree...he's proven his worth. He's only 28 and has a couple of good years left in him, IMO. He stays healthy and is steady and goes wherever the coaches ask him to go...without complaints. With him and Banks, and our safety tandem, and the Okereke-led LBs...we have a damn good defensive backfield. We should keep it together

6) I think we should sign/extend Ojulari. It sucks that he's had to deal with injuries, but when he's healthy, he's a top-notch ER. His presence this year has helped Thibs take the next step. When he's not in the game, Thibs is the focus of the other team's offense and they stack the side to keep him at bay. Can't do it when Ojulari is terrorizing the other side

7) I love Saquon, but if I was a betting man (and I'm not), I think he is gone. He's a great football player and an even better person, but I can see the writing on the wall and I think he has too. He might close out his career on another team, but I will always think of him as a Giant

8) For all the DJ haters, you're probably not going to love the draft...because a new QB is NOT likely to be the priority of Schoen and Daboll. I could be wrong, but I believe in my heart that they really like DJ and believe in him far more than some of the fan base and the talking heads

9) Biggest disappointment this season? Where do I begin? Waller did NOT live up to the hype. Evan Neal did not "take the next step" and JMS will be good, but he wasn't great this year. He had moments, but he also looked like a rookie at times. He will come around. But the biggest disappointment was in the coaching and the team, seemingly unprepared to start the season. The team had no rhythm, seemed lost, and was out coached. This...and the o-line MUST change!!!

10) I don't care that we dropped to picking 6th in the draft...we humiliated the smug Eagles..."Dive Eagles, Dive" should be the new chant. I just wish we could humiliate the Cowboys the same way.

The draft: I hope we spend 3 of our 7 picks on offensive lineman - a top shelf OT, and two OGs. Probably won't, but that's what I'd like. Of course, it will have a lot to do with who we pick up as free agents. I have a few players in mind, who are flying under the radar that I'd like to see us take:

- WR Ainias Smith (5-10/200+ lbs Texas A&M), listed as a WR, but he's a jack of all trades with a "can do" attitude and puts it all on the field. He's one of the toughest guys in the draft for his size and is a great blocker, a special teams ace, a returner, a gunner, a RB, and plays with a chip on his shoulder. Last year I touted a player who had the same attitude, Puka Nucua and I was right about him. Some players just have that "it" factor and it's all in their attitude


- TE Brevyn Spann-Ford (6-7/270 lbs Minnesota) flying way under the radar because his forté is BLOCKING and PFF has him as the highest rated blocker along with Cade Stover (who is smaller than Spann-Ford). What is missing from all the pre-draft ratings is that he also has soft hands, makes great catches, and is far more athletic than most people believe because they only see him as a blocker. To me though, he's like having and extra offensive tackle to keep the QB clean. He will be a late round steal for some team


- DL Maason Smith (6-6/301 lbs LSU) not really "under the radar", but falls to about 10th in the ranking order of defensive linemen. He's on Bruce Feldman's "Freak List" as he's abnormally quick, athletic, and strong. He could be an ER, but is listed as a DE because of his size. He would be a great replacement for Leo and it would be nice to have another DE/ER on the right side to pair up with Ojulari (if he's still with us). Feldman's writeup: "A Freshman All-American in 2021 after making five TFLs and four sacks in 2021, Smith injured his knee in the first quarter of the 2022 season opener against Florida State and was out for the season. Smith hit a high score in momentum as LSU gauges speed in relation to a player's body weight of 1,124 kg.m/s. At 6-6, 315, Smith clocked 19.2 MPH. Now he's 15 lbs lighter and is clocked at 19.5 MPH.


- RB/FB Carson Steele (6-1/233 lbs UCLA) flying way under the radar and might go undrafted. However, he's on Feldman's "Freaks List". Here's his write-up: "He made the Freaks List last year even before having a monster season for Ball State, rushing for 1,556 yards. Not bad for a guy who only had one FBS scholarship offer. The Bruins were elated to get him in the transfer portal. Steele, at 6-1, 233, has wowed his new teammates with his strength. He bench-pressed 450 pounds and squatted 685. His wheels have been impressive too, clocking 20.96 MPH and vertical-jumping 35 inches.

Steele, with his long flowing locks, looks like a fit in Hollywood. He also owns a pet alligator named Crocky-J.

"He's a dawg," says Bruins center Clemens. "He's huge. He's like a bowling ball. I always see him in the weight room doing extra work after we're done with our workouts. You know why he is the way he is. I'm excited for him this year. He definitely can plow some people..."

Last year averaged over 5 yds per carry and racked up 847 yds and 6 TDs rushing, and 163 yds and 2 TDs receiving. And he can block like a Mack truck. As a running back, he simply pushes the line like a bulldozer. We haven't had a Csonka-type RB since Brandon Jacobs


- OG Zak Zinter (6-6/322 Michigan) Broke his leg in his last regular season game. One of only a handful of players to be named "Unanimous All American" this year in a list that includes WR Marvin Harrison, OT Joe Alt, TE Brock Browers, OG Cooper Beebe, and one of my favorite under the radar players, S Xavier Watts who for some reason, gets no love from writers. He will fall on draft day ONLY because of his broken leg, that should be healed by next season. Cooper Beebe is another to keep an eye on. Beebe is rated higher right now ONLY because Zinter broke his leg. Zak reminds me of another Zach..."Martin"

[MightyGiants]

I think Barkley's deep passing play showed how he is just a shadow of his former self.  Barkley's Prime would have made that catch, outran the defenders, and not stopped until he scored.  The current Barkley was not hard to catch from behind.

[Ed Vette]

1) The Giants played their finest first half of a game of football yesterday in the last decade. We looked like men playing against boys. The only thing sweeter than it coming against the Filthadelphia Eagles, would have been hanging that throttling on the Cowboys. Especially nice that the first half was against Hurts and we made him look like an average QB
I think the strategy was to play Tampa instead of GB or the Rams, once Dallas dominated their game. But for me, beating the Eagles over Dallas always.

2) We MUST re-sign Xavier McKinney and extend Pinnock. The combo of McKinney/Pinnock/Belton is an elite NFL safety tandem. Give Xavier what he wants and don't let him go
Where was McKinney all year? He stepped it up for FA. I'd like to have Pinnock back and Belton is a ball magnet.

3) The front office made two great decisions at the beginning of the season: signing Okereke and locking up Dexter. Okereke is the stud LB we've been missing for one long time. And it's nice to see that McFadden is looking very good. Simmons was a good get, and it seems Wink has found a way to use him to get the most out of him...knock on wood (as a side note, I think it was a stellar move by the Giants late in the season to sign Gunner Olszewski, a legitimate returner - thumbs up to the front office for that move...long overdue)
I think Bobby O. had the best season of any Giants MLB since Harry Carson and no disrespect to Pierce. I'd like to see how Simmons does with another year under Wink. He was a mixed bag but he did have his moments.

4) I was a little disappointed to see Hawkins drop off from his early games when he looked like a steal. I suspect defenses studied him and found the flaws in his game and exploited it. I haven't given up on him at all, I just think he needs to take the next step...which is fixing the flaws
He has the talent. He needs coaching as you said.

5) I think it would behoove us to re-sign Adoree...he's proven his worth. He's only 28 and has a couple of good years left in him, IMO. He stays healthy and is steady and goes wherever the coaches ask him to go...without complaints. With him and Banks, and our safety tandem, and the Okereke-led LBs...we have a damn good defensive backfield. We should keep it together
He's going to be looking for his last contract and that will take him into his 30's. I think they sign another Vet and Hawk is his replacement.

6) I think we should sign/extend Ojulari. It sucks that he's had to deal with injuries, but when he's healthy, he's a top-notch ER. His presence this year has helped Thibs take the next step. When he's not in the game, Thibs is the focus of the other team's offense and they stack the side to keep him at bay. Can't do it when Ojulari is terrorizing the other side
I disagree. He's gotta go unless they can get a good deal on him.

7) I love Saquon, but if I was a betting man (and I'm not), I think he is gone. He's a great football player and an even better person, but I can see the writing on the wall and I think he has too. He might close out his career on another team, but I will always think of him as a Giant
They may bite the bullet because he's the face of the franchise and a fan favorite, a great teammate and locker room leader.

8) For all the DJ haters, you're probably not going to love the draft...because a new QB is NOT likely to be the priority of Schoen and Daboll. I could be wrong, but I believe in my heart that they really like DJ and believe in him far more than some of the fan base and the talking heads
Nobody hates DJ here except for a couple of dudes. We just called it before the rest of you woke up. They can still draft a QB and play Jones and trade either one at the end of the season or keep the rookie under him for another year.

9) Biggest disappointment this season? Where do I begin? Waller did NOT live up to the hype. Evan Neal did not "take the next step" and JMS will be good, but he wasn't great this year. He had moments, but he also looked like a rookie at times. He will come around. But the biggest disappointment was in the coaching and the team, seemingly unprepared to start the season. The team had no rhythm, seemed lost, and was out coached. This...and the o-line MUST change!!!
Do you think Daboll is on notice? I do. I think if he has another bad season, he's gone.

10) I don't care that we dropped to picking 6th in the draft...we humiliated the smug Eagles..."Dive Eagles, Dive" should be the new chant. I just wish we could humiliate the Cowboys the same way.

The draft: I hope we spend 3 of our 7 picks on offensive lineman - a top shelf OT, and two OGs. Probably won't, but that's what I'd like. Of course, it will have a lot to do with who we pick up as free agents. I have a few players in mind, who are flying under the radar that I'd like to see us take:
With all the crapped out picks, I'd like at least one proven Veteran brought in, even if they have to pay him. 

- WR Ainias Smith (5-10/200+ lbs Texas A&M), listed as a WR, but he's a jack of all trades with a "can do" attitude and puts it all on the field. He's one of the toughest guys in the draft for his size and is a great blocker, a special teams ace, a returner, a gunner, a RB, and plays with a chip on his shoulder. Last year I touted a player who had the same attitude, Puka Nucua and I was right about him. Some players just have that "it" factor and it's all in their attitude


- TE Brevyn Spann-Ford (6-7/270 lbs Minnesota) flying way under the radar because his forté is BLOCKING and PFF has him as the highest rated blocker along with Cade Stover (who is smaller than Spann-Ford). What is missing from all the pre-draft ratings is that he also has soft hands, makes great catches, and is far more athletic than most people believe because they only see him as a blocker. To me though, he's like having and extra offensive tackle to keep the QB clean. He will be a late round steal for some team


- DL Maason Smith (6-6/301 lbs LSU) not really "under the radar", but falls to about 10th in the ranking order of defensive linemen. He's on Bruce Feldman's "Freak List" as he's abnormally quick, athletic, and strong. He could be an ER, but is listed as a DE because of his size. He would be a great replacement for Leo and it would be nice to have another DE/ER on the right side to pair up with Ojulari (if he's still with us). Feldman's writeup: "A Freshman All-American in 2021 after making five TFLs and four sacks in 2021, Smith injured his knee in the first quarter of the 2022 season opener against Florida State and was out for the season. Smith hit a high score in momentum as LSU gauges speed in relation to a player's body weight of 1,124 kg.m/s. At 6-6, 315, Smith clocked 19.2 MPH. Now he's 15 lbs lighter and is clocked at 19.5 MPH.


- RB/FB Carson Steele (6-1/233 lbs UCLA) flying way under the radar and might go undrafted. However, he's on Feldman's "Freaks List". Here's his write-up: "He made the Freaks List last year even before having a monster season for Ball State, rushing for 1,556 yards. Not bad for a guy who only had one FBS scholarship offer. The Bruins were elated to get him in the transfer portal. Steele, at 6-1, 233, has wowed his new teammates with his strength. He bench-pressed 450 pounds and squatted 685. His wheels have been impressive too, clocking 20.96 MPH and vertical-jumping 35 inches.

Steele, with his long flowing locks, looks like a fit in Hollywood. He also owns a pet alligator named Crocky-J.

"He's a dawg," says Bruins center Clemens. "He's huge. He's like a bowling ball. I always see him in the weight room doing extra work after we're done with our workouts. You know why he is the way he is. I'm excited for him this year. He definitely can plow some people..."

Last year averaged over 5 yds per carry and racked up 847 yds and 6 TDs rushing, and 163 yds and 2 TDs receiving. And he can block like a Mack truck. As a running back, he simply pushes the line like a bulldozer. We haven't had a Csonka-type RB since Brandon Jacobs


- OG Zak Zinter (6-6/322 Michigan) Broke his leg in his last regular season game. One of only a handful of players to be named "Unanimous All American" this year in a list that includes WR Marvin Harrison, OT Joe Alt, TE Brock Browers, OG Cooper Beebe, and one of my favorite under the radar players, S Xavier Watts who for some reason, gets no love from writers. He will fall on draft day ONLY because of his broken leg, that should be healed by next season. Cooper Beebe is another to keep an eye on. Beebe is rated higher right now ONLY because Zinter broke his leg. Zak reminds me of another Zach..."Martin"

[Fast Eddie Felson]

Ojulari is slow, lazy, and takes bad angles.
The Giants would do well to make Bryce Huff an offer.

[TDToomer]

Pinnock isn't a free agent. According to Overthecap he is signed through next season. 

[Jolly Blue Giant]

Pinnock isn't a free agent. According to Overthecap he is signed through next season. 

I think I said he should be extended, but I didn't go back and read my post so I might have said "re-sign" 

[Stringer Bell]

6) I think we should sign/extend Ojulari. It sucks that he's had to deal with injuries, but when he's healthy, he's a top-notch ER. His presence this year has helped Thibs take the next step. When he's not in the game, Thibs is the focus of the other team's offense and they stack the side to keep him at bay. Can't do it when Ojulari is terrorizing the other side

Absolutely not. Ojulari is Glass Joe and a waste of a roster spot. The only "terrorizing" Ojulari does is on our tape and medication supply as he sits and watches the games from the sidelines.

[SUPERSEE]

Ojulari is slow, lazy, and takes bad angles.
The Giants would do well to make Bryce Huff an offer.

he's fragile .. move on


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[Fast Eddie Felson]

he's fragile .. move on


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Not happening with that level of effort!