Neal to start at RT

[AZGiantFan]

Thomas is not going anywhere and was playing at a high level before his injury.

But he might end up as damaged goods, we just don't know.  And it is indisputable that he will have missed 21 out of 84 games, 25%. 

Worse case is they find out that Neal can't play LT and is truly a bust. 

Middle case he can play LT so so and he becomes the swing tackle. 

Better case is he plays well and they are not bereft if Thomas comes back and he is not the man he was. 

Best case is he does well and Thomas comes back full strength and we have true depth.  But in a lost season there's no reason to not find out.

[AZGiantFan]

That's never stopped Neal from looking like absolute garbage before!  This was a nice step.

Well to be fair, the Giants were kind of stupid to use a high draft pick on a guy, with the intent to change his position. They have a positive genius for this kind of foolishness.  Some guys can switch from left to right, no problem.  Some can't.  My concern is that their little experiment has so screwed up his development that it is too late to salvage him.

[AZGiantFan]

I don't see that Daboll has time to micromanage the defense when he has his hands full with the offense.

And that's why he needs to decide if he is the HC or the OC.  Right now the Giants look to me like a team that has a STC, a DC, an OC and an assistant OC, and no HC.

[AZGiantFan]

This is yet another lost season. The only things they should be focusing on are securing the #1 pick and developing the young players like Neal and Hyatt. But I'm not sure that's what we're going to get.

There is a natural tension between a coach focusing on winning now, even when it is meaningless, and the long term good of the team.  In a sensible world, at some point the priorities should flip and the long term development of the team should become the top priority.

[T200]

And that's why he needs to decide if he is the HC or the OC.  Right now the Giants look to me like a team that has a STC, a DC, an OC and an assistant OC, and no HC.

This is a placeholder for my response later. Don't feel like typing it all out on my phone. I'll revisit it on my computer.

OK, here's my thoughts on his taking over play-calling.

I don't think he was happy with Kafka's style. He (Daboll) gradually took over the calls in 2022 as the season wore on. Last season, he gave Kafka another opportunity and it didn't go well again.

Daboll felt the heat and pressure to deliver but if he was going to be fired, it was going to be on his own terms and doing everything he could to keep his job. He took over OC duties so there would be no one else to blame offensively.

Despite Mara's decree that he won't make GM and/HC changes, Daboll is sabotaging both of his jobs because he isn't doing either of them well. It's a shame because he's the best coach we've had since TC and I think offensively, he can orchestrate an aggressive, deep-strike offense similar to Gilbride. Unfortunately we don't have the field general to execute that kind of game plan and Daboll may be running out of time.

[uconnjack8]

All of Neal's snaps

https://x.com/nickfalato/status/1855935503704773113/mediaviewer


https://x.com/nickfalato/status/1855935503704773113

[MightyGiants]

I was listening to a podcast this morning, I don't remember which one, that was questioning why Daboll waited so long to put Neal into the lineup.   AT went down. You had one game with Ezeudu at LT and then two with Hubbard before finally putting Neal in.

[uconnjack8]

I was listening to a podcast this morning, I don't remember which one, that was questioning why Daboll waited so long to put Neal into the lineup.   AT went down. You had one game with Ezeudu at LT and then two with Hubbard before finally putting Neal in.

When was Neal healthy enough to play?

[MightyGiants]

When was Neal healthy enough to play?

It's hard to say for certain (he took one snap in week 8).  The best I can find is that he wasn't on the injury report in week one, so presumably, he was available all season.  However, Neal hurt his ankle in the last PS game. 

[Gmo11]

I was listening to a podcast this morning, I don't remember which one, that was questioning why Daboll waited so long to put Neal into the lineup.   AT went down. You had one game with Ezeudu at LT and then two with Hubbard before finally putting Neal in.

The Daboll doghouse is a tough place to escape from.  Ask Hyatt.  But Neal had a legitimately good game and will hopefully get the chance to build off that the rest of the season.

[Trench]

I was listening to a podcast this morning, I don't remember which one, that was questioning why Daboll waited so long to put Neal into the lineup.   AT went down. You had one game with Ezeudu at LT and then two with Hubbard before finally putting Neal in.

Because Dabs is a strange bird when it comes to rookies. Very very strange. He didn't even let Devito basically throw a pass in his 1st game from what I remember!...strange coach sometimes