I don't remember the last time the Giants were positioned as well as they seem to be this year. Even in the last 2 Super Bowl runs, the season's were ones where the team outplayed expectations. When was the last time this team was ranked top 5 in March?
They still need to have a few pieces fall into place like resigning Hankins and having a draft that lets them fill in the right spots, but it sure does look promising.
This Giants' team is good but has some question marks that need to be improved upon. Im excited about the season.
I agree, some good steps taken so far this offseason, but the OL is still a very major concern for me.
They need to win the division as well. Dallas unexpectedly going 13-3 did not help matters. A home game or two would help the cause.
A team that peaked early physically and emotionally. The Burress incident took the wind out of the sails that season.
To me they are still very thin at RB, and they need to get 1 or even 2 good ones in FA + the draft.
Love what we have on paper (sans a few small holes) but you never know how it's going to translate and what types of things we'll have to overcome once the season is here.
In 2012, a lot of people thought the Giants would be closer in terms of execution to their playoff run rather than their regular season.
In 2013, Mara said he thought they had the most talented Giants team they'd had in a long while.
AnnapolisMike : 12:52 pm : link : reply
In comment 13403948 mrvax said:
Quote:
season. I remember thinking that the team was as good as any, better than most. It proved true until after the 12th game and an unforeseen incident...
A team that peaked early physically and emotionally. The Burress incident took the wind out of the sails that season.
Losing Osi.....
I'm glad they got Fluker and Marshall, but I'll wait and see how the draft and training camp go before I start clearing out my calendar for the playoffs and SB.
1. How will the offensive line perform?
2. Who is the kicker?
3. Where will the pass rush come from?
Any one of those three elements can ruin a season if they go wrong.
You should just say the #3 question is how will JPP and Vernon perform. You know you want to.
Good to very good team. Roster is pretty solid all around. The OL could stand to see some improvement, mainly out of Flowers. Hopefully they add a RT or Guard to push the incumbents. I'll assume they add one OL in April with good shot at pushing for a starting job.
TEs and outside WR should be the most improved players on offense from 2016. Marshall is just a better outside WR than Cruz. Ellison is a huge upgrade at TE.
The D is going to play even better this coming season. I'd love to add one more highly touted pass rusher to the mix--whether it be in the form of DE, DT or LB matters not. I just want one more young horse. If the Giants go for another position that entices them, that's fine too. Either way, the holes on this team are lessening to the point where we can start to form am embarrassment of talent at certain spots. That doesn't last long, so we better make noise while the getting's good.
Get to January in one piece and still breathing. Then pray. Even if everything goes right from here through December and this team is close to dominant, there's always a holy shit scary moment in the NFL postseason. Even the best teams need to catch a break or three.
And what is this based on:
"The D is going to play even better this coming season."
Most people (including the front office) made the same assumption about the 2016 offense based on 2015.
The defense hasn't gotten better in any single area. Not one player has been improved upon, Hankins's old spot is up in the air, and the linebacker depth is a question mark.
That's how I feel.
They had a pretty soft schedule last year, the furthest west they traveled was Dallas, and they had a slew of back to back home games with a trip to London vs a team that was crossing 8 timezones.
This year, they're traveling to Oakland, Denver (never an easy place to play), SF, AZ, and Tampa! It's going to be tough.
Eli Apple no longer a rookie.
OV played first half of the season with a shattered hand.
JPP missed last 5 games.
D. Thompson back and healthy.
B.J. Goodson expected to become factor at LB.
If Hankins doesnt sign, you're probably looking at another DT in round 1, 2, or 3.
On what planet would anyone expect this defense to take a step back?
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While I agree for the most part, we do have a wild card in Darian Thompson. He was a ball hawk in college and could make the secondary even better than last year. We do need to re-sign or replace Hankins though.
Barring a draft where Dallas hits on basically every defensive selection, their defense is going to be bad this year and they should come back to the pack. The Giants have an excellent shot to win the division.
With the offense (hopefully) improved in 2017, we may see a less conservative offense that while it may score more points could also put opposing offenses in better position to score points themselves.
The 2016 Giants were second in the NFL in lowest points allowed with 284. That was the fewest number of points they've conceded in 14 seasons. Expecting an improvement or even a repeat performance is probably unrealistic.
Eli Apple no longer a rookie.
OV played first half of the season with a shattered hand.
JPP missed last 5 games.
D. Thompson back and healthy.
B.J. Goodson expected to become factor at LB.
If Hankins doesnt sign, you're probably looking at another DT in round 1, 2, or 3.
On what planet would anyone expect this defense to take a step back?
On a planet where fandom doesn't obscure reason and logic.
The issue is 2 of those 3 haven't proven to be super durable which is why in a deep corner draft I hope we take one in he first 2 rounds - or a top level cover safety
If Hankins comes back you're looking at young nucleus of:
Collins (DPOY candidate by the way, not many defenses have those)
Hankins
Apple
Thompson
Goodson (Spags has already said is in plans for major role)
Plus vet leadership of:
Jenkins
JPP
Snacks
DRC
OV
Plus a bunch of guys who all played their role well last yearor will continue to provide depth:
Robinson
Bromley
Adams
Okwara
Don't give me blind fandom. If you can't see this defense is built to win, that's on you. They have to go out and play 16 games, but the pieces are all there, and that's without a single draft pick yet this year obviously.
And what is this based on:
"The D is going to play even better this coming season."
Most people (including the front office) made the same assumption about the 2016 offense based on 2015.
The defense hasn't gotten better in any single area. Not one player has been improved upon, Hankins's old spot is up in the air, and the linebacker depth is a question mark.
I was hopeful, not convinced, but hopeful that the 2016 offense would mirror the 2015 offense. I don't think I ever said it would be even better. I also said might just play the entire year and surprise everyone and then be out of football in 2017.
I think the defense will be even better in 2017. For one thing, Spags and all the players are firmly entrenched. There won't be the same learning curve period. Another thing, I love Thompson at safety. I think he will be a big boost.
The issue is 2 of those 3 haven't proven to be super durable which is why in a deep corner draft I hope we take one in he first 2 rounds - or a top level cover safety
I expect the Giants to draft a good CB prospect, although not necessarily in the first two rounds.
I'm all over the place with Safeties. There are several that I really like a lot, but of course I don't know how the Giants feel about them, or the position itself.
On defense Hankins is the only check in the debit column and that issue will be addressed. You'd expect organic growth from Apple. Thompson if healthy looked like a prodigy before his injury.
We still have the draft and you'd like to think we'll get several contributing pieces there.
So yes we are contenders this season if injuries don't derail us.
So the team should be better as a whole.
In 2015 we lost the close games / 6-10
Last season we won the close games / 11-5
With the offense (hopefully) improved in 2017, we may see a less conservative offense that while it may score more points could also put opposing offenses in better position to score points themselves.
The 2016 Giants were second in the NFL in lowest points allowed with 284. That was the fewest number of points they've conceded in 14 seasons. Expecting an improvement or even a repeat performance is probably unrealistic.
You're kind of all over the place, Terps. One side of you says there's no reason to believe in the defense improving even though it's a young unit that had a lot of new faces on the team in 2016. Then earlier you state that the 2015 offense could have been great if the just added to it with two OL FA signings.
I'm sorry dude, but this just seems to be an odd stance to take. How can you put that much faith in the 2015 offense? It went 6-10! I don't care how good the passing game looked. It was never elite in 2015. Never. Yet you saw enough to convince yourself that allocating all our money to the offense would take it to a super elite level? And now, here we are coming off a season that saw the defense actually win games! They didn't play well despite losing. There weren't 4-5 black holes on the D that caused everyone concern. They played very very well. They won! But nope, there is no reason to build on that. You cite a lack of pass rush. Then the Giants re-sign the best or second best DE in the NFC East and you complain. Never mind that the D was the solution. It was the reason why they won. Instead you rail against this defense and lament not building on an offense that won jack shit in 2015 and had red flags all over the unit. But in your world the D could have been repaired simply by allocating all funds and attention to the offense.
That's just ridiculous. I can't help but think you just want to argue.
The defense heading out of 2015 had literally two known commodities that could be depended on. TWO. You had JPP who was still a bit of an unknown plus he was signed for only one year and Hankins, who should never be confused with a franchise player. Two players up front. Two in the secondary in Collins and DRC.
The defense had about 6 gaping holes on it heading into the 2016 off-season.
If the Giants turned the OL into the 93 Cowboys and added nothing to the D, we would have been lucky to win 8 games in 2016. Lucky.