Big Blue Huddle

Giants made a move securing Nathan Rourke after the patriots released him Monday.

Rourke was the CFL mvp in 2022 and spent the 2023 season on the Jaguars.

He threw for 3,349 yards 25 tds and 10 int in 2022 for the Canadian team. He's only 25 years old and played college football at Ohio.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.yardbarker.com/nfl/articles/amp/giants_add_former_cfl_star_quarterback_to_roster/s1_15032_40336894

Who Starts? As the roster stands today before we have any camp cuts or additional signings there are several spots up for grabs. I'm going to list the open positions as I see them and tell you who I project to start, could be a dark horse candidate, or maybe the answer is not on the roster currently.

Who do you have currently?

1. CB2- I actually have Flott starting here over McCloud, Robinson, Hawkins, and Phillips.

2. Slot- Currently I have Phillips as my starter in the slot with Belton as the heavy nickel and Mills as the 4th corner in dime packages.

3. Safety- I have Pinnock locked into the FS spot and Nubin penciled in as the SS with Belton being the 3rd while backing up Nubin and Owens backing up Pinnock. I think Mills floats which is why I don't have him listed here.

4. MLB2- Isaiah Simmons, I think our DC finally places Simmons in a starting role with Muassu technically being behind him and McFadden behind Bobby OK

5. LDE- I have Dex and RNR starting, I have Riley taking snaps at LDE until we sign someone to compete with Davidson and Phillips rotating with the 3. I expect 2 signings here.

6. WR lineup- To start the season I don't have Nabers in the starting lineup. I have Slayton X, Wandale slot, Hyatt Z, and McKenzie as the top 4. Daboll has brought every Wr he's drafted in slow and made them earn time. I think that us your top 4 with Nabers taking reps at every position slowly getting sprinkled in.

RB2- We have Singletary, he's the defacto but number 2 is wide open. One of the backs is going to show out in preseason and be that guy and my guess is Miller with Tracy as number 3. I think Gray got in the dog house last season and until he gets out I have to choose someone else.

TE- I am acting like Waller isn't coming back so I am taking Theo Johnson over Bellinger. My reasoning for that is them drafting Bellinger and then after his solid rookie year the trade for Waller, then the next year sign 2 TEs and draft another one. Obviously they don't like what they got with Bellinger and so if Theo shows a spark I look for him to get the nod over Bellinger.

Who do you have? Any darkhorses? Any players you see taking the next step?

For reference I didn't touch the Oline as I see it as Thomas, Runyan, JMS, Elemeunor, Neal until I see otherwise so there's not much to discuss.

9 spots to fill, who you got?

https://youtu.be/dMMLisoAMJA?si=KF_UBHw7GCtc7AQJ

Had to post this because BBI was referenced as the source for a message thread from an insider for ChatSports Giants and thought it was funny.

https://www.bigblueview.com/2024/3/20/24106961/nfl-free-agency-giants-retain-cb-darnay-holmes-on-one-year-deal

I have no idea why, as he graded out as one of the worst corners in football in 2022.

https://youtube.com/shorts/zsLcp6KlIu0?si=5guzgtFE0rRQIT3Q

Pff Grade By Year
2023 68
2022 61.9
2021 65.7
2020 74.3
2019 76.4
2018 61

https://www.bigblueview.com/2024/3/18/24103885/does-the-very-buffalo-ish-approach-work-ny-giants-joe-schoen-bills-brandon-beane

Really great conversation about the Buffalo model.

https://www.bigblueview.com/2024/3/15/24102299/nfl-free-agency-news-giants-agree-to-terms-with-guard-aaron-stinnie-news

Aaron Stinnie spent the past 3 years with the bucs with "716 snaps at left guard per Pro Football Focus. He gave up 29 total pressure in pass protection last year (2 sacks, 2 hits, 25 hurries), as well as committing four penalties, on 442 pass blocking reps."

Austin Schlottmann depth guy having played "449 snaps at right guard, 512 at center, and 90 at left guard for Denver and Minnesota."

Per BBV

Following the combine multiple sources have come out and said the Giants were done with Jones.

https://youtu.be/8I3Y62CMNzU?si=y731UvMnWG0TIS9A

I know everyone wants the Giants to fix the offensive line, but be prepared for some restructures and cuts in order to do so.

Andrew Thomas and Dexter Lawrence restructures get us an additional 25 million.

Darren Waller PreJune(6.5) post(11 millon)

Glowinski 5 million

That gets us 65 or 71 million in cap space, coupled with our draft picks we could really fix this team if done correctly

We've done a lot on JJ Mccarthy but there are 4 top Qbs in the draft and the other Qb to most likely make it to us is Jayden Daniels.

The 6'4 210lb Gunslinger had a legendary season that won him the Heisman Trophy, Daniels completed 236 of 327 attempts (72.2%) for 3,812 yards, 40 touchdowns, and just four interceptions. Meanwhile, on the ground, he rushed for 1,134 yards.

He Led the nation in total offense (412.2), points responsible for per game (25.2), passer rating (208.0), yards per pass attempt (11.7), rushing yards by a quarterback (1,134), and yards per play (10.71) His 208.0 passer rating is the highest in FBS history.

Per LSU Athletics

Thoughts on him as a prospect? Any advanced metrics you might find or see as we go through the process and any strengths or weaknesses.

https://www.giants.com/news/nfl-draft-order-2024-mock-draft-free-agency-combine-malik-nabers-rome-odunze-joe-alt-jared-verse

By far the top 3 mocked to the Giants are Odunze, Nabers, and Daniels

Bowers gets 3-4
Joe Alt gets 2
Fuaga gets 1
Harrison Jr gets 1
Verse gets 1

https://www.giants.com/news/nfl-mock-draft-2024-tracker-draft-order-giants-bears-commanders-patriots-cardinals

It is all over the place currently. Multiple people selected Jayden Daniels, Joe Alt, and Brock Bowers. A couple of people were also chosen once in Rome Odunze, and Malik Nabers.

I would be happy with any of those guys, but one Joe Alt, he played LT his whole career and I really don't want another high oline prospect. Especially when this class is so deep at oline prospects, we could get a day 1 starting guard or tackle in the 2nd round if need be but I would prefer FA.

The top guy I prefer right now Daniels and getting our QB of the future to jump start our offense. He checks off all the initial rules when drafting a qb.

1. Be a three year starter. ✔️

2. Be a senior & graduate from college. ✔️ He graduated and is getting his masters

3. start at least 30 games and win at least 23 ✔️ He's 37-18 in college, 19-7 at LSU

4. 2-1 td/int ratio ✔️ including rushing he has a 5-1 TD ratio accounted for 89 passing Tds, 34 rushing Tds, and 1 receiving Td

5. at least 60% completion percentage ✔️ his cmp% has grown every year culminating in 72.38% this season.

That Missouri v Ohio St game was hard to watch.

Here hoping my team pulls it out on Penn St here in a second.

Then get ready for Georgia to slaughter FSU.

Anyone else pumped for college football?

So just watched the holiday bowl, USC vs a really good Louisville team. Caleb Williams sat out declaring for the Draft and redshirt Sophmore Miller Moss started for the first time in his place.

He proceeded to go 23 of 33 for 372 yards 6, YES, 6 tds, with a 69.7 cmp% and a 218 Qb rating.

Floored that a kid making his first start broke Caleb Williams tds in a game record. Then I thought about it even more, yes Moss is talented but he wasn't some highly decorated 5 star, he was a 4 star recruit who seemed decent.

So that got me thinking of Lincoln Riley as a coach, if Williams goes number 1 that will be 3 number 1 overall picks at Qb that he's coached with 4 total in the NFL right now or about to be. (Mayfield, Murray, Hurts, and Williams once drafted)

Murray and Mayfield havent lived up to their billing, and Hurts was Hurts before Riley got him. So is it Lincoln Rileys system or the players? Because now that bowl game makes me almost want to put Maye 1 Daniels 2 and Williams 3. All those Qbs and even now a sophomore with no experience playing phenomenal in Rileys system kind of scares me away from Williams.

Not to say it's the end all be all but that kid never starting and lighting it up, added with Murray and Mayfield lighting it up in college but not really in the NFL makes me want to throw a wet blanket on the Caleb Williams hype train and reasses him as a prospect. At the very least to have a discussion on whether or not Riley produces phenomenal System Qbs, rather than phenomenal pro QB prospects.

https://youtu.be/DXwWCcp2WIM?si=MCIKmQ1abvdv-GH8

At least the entire fan base is slowly coming to the realization that we need both a new Qb and a better Oline. That one by itself wont solve the other.

The Tennessee Titans are trading All-Pro defensive back Kevin Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles will be sending the Titans a 2024 5th and 6th rounder and safety Terrell Edmunds.

So basically they get one of the best safeties in the league for absolutely nothing. Byard was a guy I hoped the Giants would have gone after in the offseason. Just wild that the Titans keep allowing the Eagles to fleece them.

Bears trade Chase Claypool for a hamburger

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/bears-trade-chase-claypool-to-dolphins

Johnathan Taylor gets a new 3 year 42 Million dollar deal from the Colts.

https://www.nfl.com/news/colts-rb-jonathan-taylor-agrees-to-terms-on-three-year-42-million-contract-exten

Any thoughts? If Claypool can get his head right then that's a scary trio with Hill, Waddle, and Claypool.

Also I guess the Rb market isn't dead after all. I actually like the move by the Colts as a Taylor/Richardson duo is something you can build with.

Wow what a loaded week!

No. 6 Ohio State at No. 9 Notre Dame

No. 15 Ole Miss at No. 13 Alabama Tense CBS afternoon game

No. 22 UCLA at No. 11 Utah

No. 19 Colorado at No. 10 Oregon

No. 14 Oregon State at No. 21 Washington State

No. 24 Iowa at No. 7 Penn State

Crazy good slate of games this week:

Tenn 1 v Georgia 2

Alabama 6 vs LSU 10

Clemson 4 vs Notre dame

Texas 24 vs KSU 13

Ohio st 3 vs Nwestern

Ok st 18 vs Kansas

Baylor vs Oklahoma


What are you watching?