Big Blue Huddle

Here is another part of the interview.  I would suggest what Gettleman witnessed is how little the NFL thought of him.  If Gettleman's experience, knowledge, and opinions were good, I think he would still have NFL people seeking him out.  If he had made true friends in the NFL I suspect this wouldn't have happened as well.


"You know, really and truly, I miss the people. It's kind of fascinating," he said. "People told me it would take me at least a year to get settled, and they were absolutely right on the money. It's amazing how the emails, texts, and calls stop. It's like you died."


https://giantswire.usatoday.com/2024/05/05/ex-new-york-giants-gm-dave-gettleman-goes-off-on-media-clowns/?taid=66375e97e0be9300019dd73f&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=trueanthem&utm_source=twitter

After transferring from Iowa to Purdue, you transitioned from wide receiver to running back. It was a swift, successful transition, with you rushing for 716 yards and eight touchdowns this season. What allowed you to make such a smooth transition?

Tyrone Tracy Jr.: I would say coaching and natural God-given ability. To start with the coaching aspect of it, head coach Ryan Walters, the offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, and running backs coach Lamar Conard–all placed their faith and trust in me.

They allowed me to be myself on the field. They didn't place any restrictions on me. They allowed me to go full throttle. Most importantly, they allowed me to make mistakes along the way. They gave me a chance to correct those mistakes. They didn't place me on a short leash. They allowed me to play through it and be my authentic self.

Regarding my God-given ability, I've had experience with the running back position my entire life. When I got out there on the field, going from receiver to running back wasn't totally foreign to me. It was no different from what I did in high school, just a little more detailed. I had to focus more on the fundamentals.

I also had to jump into the film room a little more. My film study of the running back position had to grow. I had to step up my knowledge of the position to play at a higher level.

How do you think that background as a wide receiver has helped you play the running back position at a higher level?

Tyrone Tracy Jr.: It was huge. It helped me get comfortable faster. I've only been playing the position full-time for a little over a year now. I started making the change in April of last year. It's literally been one year and one month.

I feel great because I've had some experience with the position my entire life, as I said earlier. It allowed me to get comfortable in the backfield. Once you're making that change from a new position, it's natural to have some worry and doubt in your mind at the very beginning of the change.

It took a while, but I would estimate I got the hang of it around mid-spring last year. I got my confidence. I noticed I was starting to make plays with more consistency. I was generating explosive plays. I started doing everything I wanted to do at the position.

The background of playing football from a young age, both the wide receiver and running back positions, that helped me tremendously.

You run the football with terrific contact balance. You forced 46 missed tackles on just 113 carries and finished fourth in the country in yards after contact per rush. How did you develop that area of your game?

Tyrone Tracy Jr.: Wow, that's a great question! I would credit my training. I do a lot of balanced-based stuff. When I'm in the weight room during the offseason, I'm still doing balance stuff. I use different exercise balls and foam mats to challenge my body. I know it's going to benefit me on the field.

I try to stay on my feet--that's the truth. Sometimes it's that simple. I don't want to let one person tackle me. I try to gain as many yards as I can. I try to counterbalance the types of hits I'm getting. I don't want to get tackled. Who wants to get tackled? (laughs).

You can read the rest of the interview here

https://www.si.com/nfl/giants/giants-tyrone-tracy-position-switch-bowling

Conspiracy theories have shown to be dangerous and even deadly

How to Immunize Yourself From Conspiracy Theories
We can all do our part to tamp down the frenzy of conspiracy theories with a few simple steps:

1)Don't assume that "secret" information is more accurate than public information. The information we get from newspapers and news magazines often requires fact checks and editorial reviews before publishing. Such reports may prove more accurate because of its need to withstand public scrutiny.

2)Examine the emotional payoff you get from going down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories. Do you find it an exciting way to bond with friends? Is it engrossing and entertaining, like an exciting game? Ask yourself if the payoff is worth the agitation and feelings of fear that follow (Wilbur, D. et al., 2021).

3)Think like a scientist by looking for evidence against the conspiracy. Examine evidence from credible sources: peer-reviewed journal articles and books, for example, or mainstream news outlets with a professional, bylined editorial staff. Non-credible sources may include social-media posts without named authors or cited sources of information. The more extreme and outrageous the claim, the more evidence should be required.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/frazzlebrain/202309/why-conspiracy-theories-are-fun-but-dangerous-0

Quote from: TONKA56 on Today at 09:42:10 AMVictor Cruz
Jake Ballard

Thanks, I added them to the list

While bad decisions have certainly been made, I think the Giants have been arguably one of the unluckiest teams in the league.

Consider:

2010-  In the third round, the Giants draft a promising safety and special teamer, Chad Jones.  He has an off-season auto accident and never fully recovers.  Plays some snaps but as a shadow of his former self.

2015-  Giants star edge rusher JPP mangles hand in fireworks accident.  Eventually returns, but isn't quite the player he had been

2020-  Giants first-round cornerback Deandre Baker arrested for armed robbery.   He is eventually found innocent, but not before the Giants cut him.

2014-  Promising first-round running back David Wilson found to have stenosis in his neck and has to retire from football before his rookie contract is even finished

2016-  a last-minute video pushes Laramy Tunsil off many draft boards.  This left the Giants scrambling and they ended up drafting Eli Apple

2015- Legal questions kept La'el Collins (solid O-line prospect) from being drafted in round one.  This pushes the Giants to take Ereck Flowers instead.  Worse, Collins ends up signing as a free agent with Dallas essentially giving the Cowboys a free extra first-round pick.

Consider some of the drafted players with healthy college careers but became injury messes in the NFL

Saquon Barkley
Evan Neal
Daniel Jones
Joshua Ezeudu
Azeez Ojulari
Evan Engram
Weston Richburg
Justin Pugh
Shane Lemieux
Aaron Robinson

Guys whose careers were cut short by injury

Hakeem Nicks
Terrell Thomas
Jay Bromley
Owamagbe Odighizuwa (mental illness)
Sterling Shepard
Victor Cruz
Jake Ballard

Even OBJ suffered a major injury.

Have I missed any other bad luck issues the Giants have had the last decade or so?

EDIT TO ADD:  McKinney's fluke hand injury in 2022

How Daniel Jones Won The NFL Draft
NFL DRAFT VIDEOS 4/30/24

Chase Daniel and Trey Wingo discuss the New York Giants' 2024 NFL Draft class and explain why QB Daniel Jones is the player who 'won' the weekend.

https://www.the33rdteam.com/how-daniel-jones-won-the-nfl-draft/

https://x.com/The33rdTeamFB/status/1786542697039478949

Quote from: Stringer Bell on May 04, 2024, 11:41:00 AMI did. What does that have to do with a team's willingness to give up draft picks AND pay him?

The Giants got a 2nd round pick for Leonard Williams.  Do you honestly believe they couldn't get a 3rd or 4th for Barkley?

Quote from: Uncle Mickey on May 04, 2024, 11:59:19 AMTo Mighty's point some think finding a special talent at a position like QB is harder than finding a 'good enough' coach to coach him.

So I think there is some truth in what everyone is asserting here.

From what I have seen, the Giants have struggled just as much to find a proper replacement for Tom Coughlin as they have trying to replace Eli Manning (perhaps even more so)

Quote from: Stringer Bell on May 04, 2024, 11:42:59 AMThis is one of the biggest blind spots for arm chair GMs. There being a market for someone jn getting a contract and there being a market for someone willing to trade draft picks and pay a guy are 2 completely different things.

Are you suggesting you are coming from the perspective of an actual or former NFL GM? 


A player like Barkley had value for a team in the playoff hunt looking to get an edge by boosting their running game down the home stretch

Quote from: DaveBrown74 on May 04, 2024, 11:38:19 AMThe best players get paid a lot more than the best coaches, and, unlike coaches, players are bound by a salary cap so it's even harder to pay them than it is coaches.

Could this discrepancy between player and coach pay be because players are more valuable, or is it because the people who run NFL teams and have spent their whole careers and almost their whole lives deeply involved in this sport are all lost and just don't get it?

I was taught price was determined by supply and demand, not by the perceived "value" of the goods or service

Quote from: DaveBrown74 on May 04, 2024, 11:18:54 AMThere is nothing to resolve if you agree that players are more important than coaches overall. That's all I am saying. If you think coaches are more important than players, or even that the two are equal, then
we can mutually respectfully agree to disagree.

I am afraid I can't agree with your assertion. If I were to put it in simple terms of who is more important, coaches or talent, I would put it at about even. Still, I think to appreciate the situation fully, it's important to appreciate the interaction between coaching and talent. Great coaching will make their talent look better than it is through superior player development and putting players in a position to thrive (as well as optimal motivation), and vice versa for poor coaching.

https://x.com/DanSchneierNFL/status/1786773298220556667

Quote from: DaveBrown74 on May 04, 2024, 11:10:47 AMOBJ is a bit of a journeyman these days.

Every season, there seems to be a new bumper crop of WR prospects. That steady stream of young and cheap talent suppresses the market for aging veterans who have lost a step.