The complications Giants face in finding next franchise quarterback

[MightyGiants]

For someone who loves to hear commentary from the men and women who have done it in the NFL, this long article is a gold mine of quality quotes.

https://nypost.com/2024/11/19/sports/the-complications-giants-face-in-finding-next-franchise-quarterback/

[Gmo11]

Finding a great QB is extremely difficult to do. Even finding a good QB isn't easy.  The Giants are likely going to end up in a position to take a QB in the first round this year provided Devito doesn't have a repeat performance of screwing the team over with wins.  They could pick a CJ Stroud or they could pick a Bryce Young. 

But the fact that it's hard is not a reason to not try. They will do their research and grade the prospects and if they decide that Cam Ward or Sanders are worth their pick they will take them.  If both are gone, or they determine that one of those two that is available isn't worth the pick then they should pass.  Personally I think both of those guys would have fallen right into the JJ/Nix/Penix range of last year's draft.  If the Giants agree they will take one and they will be right to do so.  But there is no guarantee.  On the other hand, if the guy they do roll with next year stinks, they will only be exactly where they are right now. 

[katkavage]

Tell us something we don't know. The issue with the Giants (and Schoen and Daboll) is that because they played footsie with Jones since they were hired, they are in a rock and a hard place now. They passed on three QBs last draft that might be better than what they will find in the draft. And now they really have no choice. They don't really have the luxury of waiting until the 2026 draft. They will both be gone unless they find a Mayfield or Darnold type veteran. Not likely.

[President Rick]

with the slim pickings in the 25 draft, I'd opt for the best journeyman or cheap FA with some tire tread left we can find for a year and then shop the larger and stronger qb class of 26.  EXCEPT.....

If he comes out, and he's a red-shirt senior so he could stay in school or enter the draft, Will Howard of ohio state, 6'4", 235 lbs, leader, good character, hard player - including some running, accurate, pro-style offence under coach Ryan Day.  May be there mid-1st round where we likely will be.

[katkavage]

with the slim pickings in the 25 draft, I'd opt for the best journeyman or cheap FA with some tire tread left we can find for a year and then shop the larger and stronger qb class of 26.  EXCEPT.....

If he comes out, and he's a red-shirt senior so he could stay in school or enter the draft, Will Howard of ohio state, 6'4", 235 lbs, leader, good character, hard player - including some running, accurate, pro-style offence under coach Ryan Day.  May be there mid-1st round where we likely will be.

It's not gonna happen. They have to take a QB. Mara expects it and if they don't, take a journeyman, lose again, they will be out of their jobs.

[kartanoman]

It's not gonna happen. They have to take a QB. Mara expects it and if they don't, take a journeyman, lose again, they will be out of their jobs.

Or, everyone comes to the realization that Andrew Thomas is damaged goods, the Left Tackle is a position of need (NOTE: degree of need can be debated, but nobody here has touched that point with a 39 1/2 foot pole, not even the Grinch himself), and the rookie QB you "have to have or else" is beaten to a pulp and on injured reserve shortly into what was a promising career for him. Now, you're down a QB AND the LT all of a sudden becomes the priority need.

I'd take my chances with a one-year free agent, get the best Left Tackle in the nation IF I'm drafting later than pick #3, and deal with a rookie QB in 2026. There's no moving a mountain next year anyway, so build the fortress and hire the knight in shining armor after.

If Thomas can come back 80% of his former self, he will be an excellent depth for the line. But he's a salvage title now and the sooner folks understand what that means, the sooner everyone understands the Left Tackle now becomes, albeit arguably, the most important position on the Giants' team.

Take care of business, GM!

Peace!

[MrGap92]

Or, everyone comes to the realization that Andrew Thomas is damaged goods, the Left Tackle is a position of need (NOTE: degree of need can be debated, but nobody here has touched that point with a 39 1/2 foot pole, not even the Grinch himself), and the rookie QB you "have to have or else" is beaten to a pulp and on injured reserve shortly into what was a promising career for him. Now, you're down a QB AND the LT all of a sudden becomes the priority need.

I'd take my chances with a one-year free agent, get the best Left Tackle in the nation IF I'm drafting later than pick #3, and deal with a rookie QB in 2026. There's no moving a mountain next year anyway, so build the fortress and hire the knight in shining armor after.

If Thomas can come back 80% of his former self, he will be an excellent depth for the line. But he's a salvage title now and the sooner folks understand what that means, the sooner everyone understands the Left Tackle now becomes, albeit arguably, the most important position on the Giants' team.

Take care of business, GM!

Peace!

AT is top 5 at his position. What they need is a solid swing behind the starters, though I would not be opposed to a longer term RT depending hoe the rest of the season plays out.

Eleumenor also looked solid at LT, and Neal was their highest graded OL in his Bricillo coached debut. How he plays the rest of the year is very important.

[LennG]

The problem with some of this reasoning is that we don't want to stretch for a QB who may, or may not, be 'the guy'. We could end up with another Daniel Jones type and we'd be screwed for another 5 years. If we pass on a QB and opt for BPA, say a CB, and we go with a journeyman as a bridge, who says we come anywhere near being able to draft a top guy come 2026? People say go after Darnold, well Darnold might win 8-10 games here and where would that put us for looking ahead?

And, we had absolutely no chance at the top 3 guys the past year. None of the top 3 teams that drafted QBs were going to opt out and bypass their chance at the franchise guy. Just because we wanted in, doesn't mean we were able to. Personally, when I knew those top 3 would be gone, I really wanted Nix. They said he was pro-ready and he could have waited until Jones screwed up and then it would have been his team.

We, as fans, wish for a lot of things, but, in reality, we probably won't have a shot at them.

[katkavage]

You guys are missing the point. You are not incorrect in saying the Giants should not reach for a QB and kick the can down the road. The problem is, the road ends for both Schoen and Daboll if they do that. They have one year to either turn it around totally or show that with a young promising QB they have hope for the future. As much as we like Nabors, they blew it by not picking McCarthy, Penix or Nix. All might be better than what's out there in 2025.

[DaveBrown74]

It's very difficult to find a very good or great QB in the draft.

What's much less difficult is avoiding ever handing a so-so or totally unproven QB a huge contract beyond his rookie deal.

[MightyGiants]

The problem with some of this reasoning is that we don't want to stretch for a QB who may, or may not, be 'the guy'. We could end up with another Daniel Jones type and we'd be screwed for another 5 years. If we pass on a QB and opt for BPA, say a CB, and we go with a journeyman as a bridge, who says we come anywhere near being able to draft a top guy come 2026? People say go after Darnold, well Darnold might win 8-10 games here and where would that put us for looking ahead?

And, we had absolutely no chance at the top 3 guys the past year. None of the top 3 teams that drafted QBs were going to opt out and bypass their chance at the franchise guy. Just because we wanted in, doesn't mean we were able to. Personally, when I knew those top 3 would be gone, I really wanted Nix. They said he was pro-ready and he could have waited until Jones screwed up and then it would have been his team.

We, as fans, wish for a lot of things, but, in reality, we probably won't have a shot at them.

I guess after 20 years, it was bound to happen.   I completely agree with you, Len. 

[kartanoman]

You guys are missing the point. You are not incorrect in saying the Giants should not reach for a QB and kick the can down the road. The problem is, the road ends for both Schoen and Daboll if they do that. They have one year to either turn it around totally or show that with a young promising QB they have hope for the future. As much as we like Nabors, they blew it by not picking McCarthy, Penix or Nix. All might be better than what's out there in 2025.

I want to jump on your bandwagon, kat, I really do. I also get what a QB vs. other position for pick #1 does for Daboll and possibly/likely Schoen. Both are going to have to carefully evaluate the risk vs. opportunity at where they will pick as well as whom they will pick. I also agree it is way too early to assess that risk right now.

But I want to throw caution to the wind and make sure our "informed" board of Giants' fans here understand that a Lisfranc injury on an often-injured Left Tackle, despite what articles were written about Thomas' injury, IN GENERAL, which claimed he should have no problem resuming his career and, oh, by the way, his arthritic condition is "gonna suck" when he gets to our age so "don't worry about it." I have a first-hand, up-close and personal experience with someone who recently had a broken tibia & fibula PLUS a Lisfranc fracture AND came out of it running better now than ever before. I'm talking about my wife, who turned 55 last month, and had plates and screws put in for the Lisfranc, base of the tibia and fibula which, initially, did NOT heal properly. They had to refracture the Lisfranc and repair it again. Her four to six month recovery turned into nearly a whole year. She made it work by losing weight, hitting the gym hard to build strength around her injury and slowly took up running again. She has her days where it hurts but, by and large, she feels wonderful and she doesn't look a day over 30 right now (lucky me!).

But that's the story of a petite woman when we're talking about a 340+ pound Left Tackle with a history of lower leg injuries and this being perhaps the most devastating of all. I have little doubt he is going to give his all to come back and be ready for opening day 2025. But we have to see it as it is in terms of the cumulative effect of these injuries slowly, but surely, impacting his overall performance and durability.

I would be willing to back off his replacement if you can convince me the Giants draft or sign a projected starting tackle who is versatile at either tackle position or, along the line of what you are thinking, a Left Tackle/Guard who could jump into either position and contribute immediately.

In the end, it logically obvious the QB is the most pressing need right now. But it is also obvious that the Giants need to help out Andrew Thomas with a suitable yet capable backup who can either hold the fort down in his absence or, worst case scenario, be his eventual replacement if he can't go all 17 games. The best predictor of future history is looking at recent past which is a lot of missed games due to injury. The bottom line is the Giants' overall performance on offense tanked the moment Thomas left the field after he fractured his Lisfranc and they haven't been the same since. That simply cannot happen and exposing a rookie to NFL defenses without a suitable Left Tackle should also be punishable by losing your job,, in my humble opinion.

Peace!

[katkavage]

I want to jump on your bandwagon, kat, I really do. I also get what a QB vs. other position for pick #1 does for Daboll and possibly/likely Schoen. Both are going to have to carefully evaluate the risk vs. opportunity at where they will pick as well as whom they will pick. I also agree it is way too early to assess that risk right now.

But I want to throw caution to the wind and make sure our "informed" board of Giants' fans here understand that a Lisfranc injury on an often-injured Left Tackle, despite what articles were written about Thomas' injury, IN GENERAL, which claimed he should have no problem resuming his career and, oh, by the way, his arthritic condition is "gonna suck" when he gets to our age so "don't worry about it." I have a first-hand, up-close and personal experience with someone who recently had a broken tibia & fibula PLUS a Lisfranc fracture AND came out of it running better now than ever before. I'm talking about my wife, who turned 55 last month, and had plates and screws put in for the Lisfranc, base of the tibia and fibula which, initially, did NOT heal properly. They had to refracture the Lisfranc and repair it again. Her four to six month recovery turned into nearly a whole year. She made it work by losing weight, hitting the gym hard to build strength around her injury and slowly took up running again. She has her days where it hurts but, by and large, she feels wonderful and she doesn't look a day over 30 right now (lucky me!).

But that's the story of a petite woman when we're talking about a 340+ pound Left Tackle with a history of lower leg injuries and this being perhaps the most devastating of all. I have little doubt he is going to give his all to come back and be ready for opening day 2025. But we have to see it as it is in terms of the cumulative effect of these injuries slowly, but surely, impacting his overall performance and durability.

I would be willing to back off his replacement if you can convince me the Giants draft or sign a projected starting tackle who is versatile at either tackle position or, along the line of what you are thinking, a Left Tackle/Guard who could jump into either position and contribute immediately.

In the end, it logically obvious the QB is the most pressing need right now. But it is also obvious that the Giants need to help out Andrew Thomas with a suitable yet capable backup who can either hold the fort down in his absence or, worst case scenario, be his eventual replacement if he can't go all 17 games. The best predictor of future history is looking at recent past which is a lot of missed games due to injury. The bottom line is the Giants' overall performance on offense tanked the moment Thomas left the field after he fractured his Lisfranc and they haven't been the same since. That simply cannot happen and exposing a rookie to NFL defenses without a suitable Left Tackle should also be punishable by losing your job,, in my humble opinion.

Peace!

All correct, Kart. But Mara wants to win now.To stop the bleeding. The whole Jones era set the franchise back a decade. It never should have lasted this long. That's not on Jones but the fools that should have known better.

[kartanoman]

All correct, Kart. But Mara wants to win now.To stop the bleeding. The whole Jones era set the franchise back a decade. It never should have lasted this long. That's not on Jones but the fools that should have known better.

We're going to find out how much he wants to win now versus maintain his status quo as #4 in the NFL's richest teams list. The question remains does he know how to win himself out of a wet paper bag with fans throwing medium Pepsi's at him. Let's see him soft-shoe his way through that escapade and see the winning ways of a "Whole New Generation of Giants' Winning Ways!"

It should be quite interesting to say the very least!

Peace!

[President Rick]

again...If he comes out, and he's a red-shirt senior so he could stay in school or enter the draft, Will Howard of ohio state, 6'4", 235 lbs, leader, good character, hard player - including some running, accurate, pro-style offence under coach Ryan Day.  May be there mid-1st round where we likely will be.

 thoughts???