New York Giants: Are changes imminent?

For the second time in two weeks, the New York Giants blew a 10 point lead in the fourth quarter. Yet again, defensive woes and clock management issues have resulted in a 0-2 record. The team seems to be in a rebuilding mode rather than a win-now mode. Instead of sitting at the top of their extremely weak division, they’re at the bottom.

Last week, we complained that offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo (largely) and head coach Tom Coughlin were responsible for the embarrassing loss to the Cowboys. This week, both of them were again at fault, but the defense has also earned some blame. Many errors from the sideline have plagued the team so far, and this will lead many to conclude that Coughlin’s and general manager Jerry Reese‘s future with the team are in serious jeopardy.

Sep 20, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Atlanta Falcons running back Devonta Freeman (24) scores the game winning touchdown during the second half at MetLife Stadium. The Falcons defeated the Giants 24-20. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Let’s begin with this week’s 24-20 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. The Giants had many missed opportunities in this game, in which they could have broke open the game. A key illegal motion penalty by Dwayne Harris spoiled a fourth down conversion. A gift-wrapped interception was dropped by Jonathan Casillas. Odell Beckham Jr, who absolutely destroyed the Falcon’s defense in the first half, was not incorporated into the second-half gameplan. The defense failed to get key stops in the 1st and 4th quarters. Preston Parker dropped another key catch. But hey, what’s new?

Apart from the offensive struggles, there were many positives from the first half. Beckham torched the Falcons through the first two quarters, piling up 139 receiving yards and catching a 67-yard touchdown. However, it is absolutely inexcusable that he was not targeted much in the second half. Except for one catch for 7 yards, Beckham’s only utilization in the second half was when he drew the pass interference in the final seconds. Even though Shane Vereen looked strong throughout the game, the offense reached its peak performance when Beckham was the centerpiece.

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I don’t understand how McAdoo chose not to revolve the offense around Beckham in the second half, right after he put up a monster first half and was able to do whatever he wanted against that defense. He looked unguardable early on, but did not see many balls coming to him when the game could have been sealed. The OC deserves much of the blame for not drawing up more plays for Beckham, but it’s also Eli Manning‘s fault for not finding him more. While we’re on the topic of blaming Eli, we cannot forget his crucial red-zone fumble. As a veteran, he knows he has to get rid of the ball, especially with his below-average offensive line protecting him.

Drops were again present for the team, and this week Parker, Larry Donnell, and Rueben Randle watched the ball go through their hands. And finally, time management hurt the Giants too. Following a Falcons’ timeout, there was a delay of game penalty. A manageable 3rd & 7 then became a 3rd & 12, and the Falcons soon got the ball. Before they failed the conversion, there was almost another delay of game, which is unbelievable. Coughlin and Eli deserve this blame, and should have paid more attention to the game clock, especially following a timeout.

However, the defense also earned its fair share of blame this week. There was a stretch during the middle of the game where the Giants were able to make the Falcons go 3-and-out for successive possessions, but when the game was on the line, they failed to execute. From early on, pass coverage problems were evident. A dropped interception by Casillas led to points for the Falcons, and at the end of the game, the defense allowed a big play to Julio Jones which all but clinched the win for the Falcons. The 135 yards for Jones looks bad, but if you watched the game, the Giants actually contained him until the final Falcons’ final go-ahead drive. The loss of Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to a concussion hurt the coverage, but the lack of pass rush in big spots hurt badly. Cullen Jenkins and Robert Ayers had sacks, but for the most part, the Giants were unable to apply pressure.

This brings us to the main focus of the article: Will we see big changes in the offseason?

In two years, the Giants have replaced Tom Coughlin’s staff with coordinators McAdoo and Steve Spagnuolo. Through two games, fans can see how inexperienced McAdoo is, and how Spags ran the historically bad New Orleans Saints defense. The common denominator in both is the person who hired them, general manager Jerry Reese.

From the outside, it sure looks like owner John Mara has been breathing down Reese’s throat, and that Reese’s decisions have been largely questionable since then. By bringing in new pieces to Coughlin’s staff (possibly without Tom’s approval), Reese has changed the outlook of the Giants. Maybe Mara and Reese have been listening to too much of the public’s opinions. I don’t know if they were expecting Spags to return to his Super Bowl winning form without Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, and Justin Tuck on the team.

Not having reliable personnel on the defense places the blame on Reese alone. By letting Antrel Rolle walk, the Giants knew coming into 2015 that their safety position lacked depth. After striking out in the Devin McCourty sweepstakes, they didn’t add a game-changing safety and chose to rely on their draft picks. They did not account for injuries, and gave second round pick Landon Collins the starting job. His coverage skills were weak coming out of college, and we can see why after Weeks 1 & 2. Reese signed Brandon Meriweather who has played well, but he is not the answer.

Sep 20, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) runs with the ball while New York Giants linebacker Uani

The linebacking corps also was underwhelming. Relying on oft-injured Jon Beason‘s health, Reese let go of MLB Jameel McClain and used Uani Unga as his “temporary solution”. As we saw against the Falcons, his coverage skills need much improvement and cannot be thrust into a key role on the defense just yet. Other LB Casillas also dropped a red-zone interception, and looks like he has to work on catching the ball.

Reese did not also account for injuries on the offense. Victor Cruz‘s loss has been deeply felt throughout New York, as fill-in Parker has played himself out of the position. However, the Giants have no one else to insert at slot WR, so fans have to get used to seeing Parker there. It was wrong to expect Cruz to be fully healthy to begin with. Even though his new injury is for his calf, Reese should not have expected him to be back to normal following a serious patella injury. Many thought the Giants would add receiving depth as insurance for Cruz, but the only receiver they signed was Dwayne Harris. Harris has been excellent as a return man, but I do not want to see him lined up on offense. He is clearly not comfortable there, and as shown by his illegal motion penalty, his job should only be on special teams.

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Another area to analyze for Reese is his money management. Though Harris has been good on special teams, I would not have paid a special teamer $17.5 million for five years. The Giants also overpaid for linebacker Casillas. His role is mostly on special teams, so $10.5 million over three years is questionable. With Harris and Casillas, the special teams unit has become much better, but by competing against themselves during the signing process, money could have been better spent.

Reese’s offseason haven’t been all that great either. Jason Pierre-Paul, Prince Amukamara, and Beckham have been excellent first-round picks. The signing of DRC and trade for Beason were good additions. However, Adrien Robinson proved not to be the “JPP of tight-ends”. Markus Kuhn is not Reggie White. Many of his draft picks have not developed. His signings did not address all the areas of need. These are what we use to judge a GM, and Reese has as many negatives as he does positives.

If things continue to go bad for the Giants (by bad I mean 7-9 or worse), I think we will be looking at a new GM and head coach next year. A fresh start for the team looks imminent, but I don’t know if any other coach or GM can correct their issues immediately. One concern I would have is if Mara promotes McAdoo or Spags as the new head coach at the end of the season, just so the team does not have to learn new systems. I hope that Mara realizes that McAdoo’s credit is entirely due to Beckham, and that Spags looks like the bad Saints’ DC more than the 2007 Giants’ DC. If they do start anew, I would hope that everyone is gone and not just Tom and Jerry.

Regardless, the Giants are 0-2 in 2015. Better decisions could have put them at 2-0. What frustrates fans the most is that the NFC East is ripe for the taking. Facts are that they’re now at the bottom of their division (even below the Washington Redskins).

The first two games of the season were literally gift-wrapped for the Giants. So was the NFC East throne this year.

Both the offense and defense don’t look good so far, and the coaching staff looks even worse. The season has barely begun, and everyone could already be on the hot seat. And they haven’t even reached the hard part of their schedule yet.

This appears to be an exciting or heart-breaking season, one way or another.

Next: Giants vs. Falcons Full Team Grades

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