I feel we had a strong off season and expectations for a good season are growing but as we knew, they had too many holes.
These 6 spots can be the Giants down fall:
Corner: They can truly trust only Jenkins and brought in a bunch of options of difference size and experience. Although, it seems fine for now, it is not easily forgotten what happened with Eli Apple last year. The defense will blitz more which will add pressure to the corners.
Free Safety: I am not thrilled with the current options. A great center fielder would really transform this defense but it seems it was not a major priority and unless one of these "no-name" additions is a hidden gem. Combined with the corners, This could become an area that might be exploited.
Right Tackle: I know beggars can not be choosy and our current options (Wheeler and Flowers) are much better then Hart, last years RT. But neither are proven and Flowers is a malcontent.
Center: I suspect Jones is acceptable especially supported by the 2 new guards but I would have liked an upgrade here as well.....call me greedy.
Quarterback: I suspect nothing else would matter if Eli does not rebound. I personally, expect him to make a big jump from last year but I can not guarantee it. Fear in the pocket is not easily corrected but he must. I still see a strong enough arm but he must correct his happy feet.
Kicker: Games in the NFL are too close to bleed points from the kicker and survive. It's that simple. We need the Giants kicker to be NFL steady. Right now, I do not trust Rosas.
We certainly can discuss our 3rd WRs and relying on unproven rookies and others but I feel if the above 6 positions "do their jobs", the Giants can contend with anyone
There are a lot of guys used to losing on this team and an early hole will have a lot of them saying "here we go again."
Good call. Lets be honest, Janikowski is definitely the better kicker.
I expect them to bring in a vet before preseason and even if preseason is going rough, sign a released vet just before the regular season.
Maybe I'm too inclined to give William Gay the benefit of the doubt because he's an outstanding human being. I think he at least puts a floor under the nickel job. There's a reasonable chance one of the other backups can become a serviceable "system CB". Clearly, depth is a huge concern even if Apple steps up. That's true throughout the NFL: most backup CBs are special-teamers and raw-prospects, few of whom you would trust on an island, or even an isthmus.
The defense is the biggest concern for me. Questionable pass rush plus shaky secondary? Not a good combination.
I think they've done pretty much all they could do though in one offseason. I'm interested to see how it all shakes out.
Quote:
Janikowski to compete with Rosas.
Good call. Lets be honest, Janikowski is definitely the better kicker.
Janikowski signed a 1 year deal with Seattle on April 13th. I do agree that they need to sign a veteran kicker, but I imagine that won't happen until they get closer to training camp.
RT is the worry spot for me along with what we have at WR. If Odell holds out we will be stuck with Shepard and Latimore as the two real WR's and a LOT of unknowns.
From my perspective, here is my top 3.
1. Corner.
2. Edge Rusher
3. Right Tackle
From my perspective of players who could foreseeably make a huge jump with the greatest impact, they would be:
1. Apple - All the talent in the world. We could go from a major concern to a huge strength.
2. Goodson - There were incredibly high hopes for him last year before he got injured. I think he is now flying under the Radar as people think he is injury prone (he had one injury that lasted the year - not injury prone, just injured) but could contribute to the pass rush in addition to being a very good run stopper and not be a liability in coverage.
3. Carter. JPP wasn't a natural pass rusher. I think people crap on him but his only flaw was that he didn't have that natural ability. A lot of athletic talent and despite what people say, made his living on getting hustle sacks. Hopefully Carter can provide a true edge pass rush that JPP didn't.
4. Wheeler. I think he can play in this league. With added strength, I'm hoping that he makes Flowers obsolete. I think his impact would be greater long term than immediate.
Where’s the pass rush coming from?
I'd worry less about RT if our new RG turns out to be a stud.
To me, everything else is secondary (no pun intended).
There is no depth at corner. In fact we are arguably worse at nickel and dime than last year's thirtieth ranked pass defense.
Jints let JPP go and brought in some touted draft picks for the DL
Lb may have seen a boost at least in speed with the addition of FA's.
So the front seven has been addressed somewhat with the philosophy that a rotating fresh front seven will bring enough pressure to cover up the weak links in the back.
Call me doubtful on that philosophy in the face of a passing league.
It's about money which will be resolved.
OBJ and Shep are a very good 1 2 punch. Cody Latimor will surprise. Dez would sign in a minute.
I am not concerned about the Giants WRs
It's about money which will be resolved.
OBJ and Shep are a very good 1 2 punch. Cody Latimor will surprise. Dez would sign in a minute.
I am not concerned about the Giants WRs
We are not signing Dez.
Latimor is a question mark.
If OBJ isn't paid, he may not play. In fact, he has already indicated that a while back. That leaves Shep and some scrubs. That didn't work too well last year.
;>)
No. He will play either with or without a contract. The way the Giants are talking....they are going to give him a new deal.
We won't sign Dez because we do not need to....as we is not a concern
Cody Latimor is an unknown to us but not our WR coach....who coached him in Denver and brought him here....
And Shepard has turned into one of the better slot recievers.
And we haven't even brought up Engram.
But you go ahead and worry about wr....I'm not
No. He will play either with or without a contract. The way the Giants are talking....they are going to give him a new deal.
We won't sign Dez because we do not need to....as we is not a concern
Cody Latimor is an unknown to us but not our WR coach....who coached him in Denver and brought him here....
And Shepard has turned into one of the better slot recievers.
And we haven't even brought up Engram.
But you go ahead and worry about wr....I'm not
The Kurt Warner Rams had 4 legit receiving threats . Their 3 WRs and Faulk. We have likely have 4. OBJ, Barkley, Shep, Engram. Its plenty good enough if the OL does its job.
Cornerback, edge rusher and free safety is concerning. The learning curve for both units is a concern for early season games. Engram can EASILY go out wide when needed, in fact this coaching staff will use this guy correctly and move him all over the field like he should be used.
We only know where two out of five guys will play: Solder at LT and Jones at C. Of Hernandez and Omameh, we still don't know who's going to play LG and who's going to play RG. And of course RT has yet to be determined.
Once the starting five is set, they still have to learn how to play as a unit, and that takes time. With the limited amount of practice time nowadays, you bet your ass I'm worried.
You just can't go into next season with Rojas as your kicker. Forget compete, the day you signs anyone is his last day on the roster.
IDK, I'm starting to wonder if another >3 win season is in the cards before the turnaround actually occurs. Some great pieces added, but some serious flaws on Defense.
DT definately one of the best with Snacks and the 3-4 DE seems decent....we got a ton better at Lber....our front 7 seems to be strong and deep.
DT definately one of the best with Snacks and the 3-4 DE seems decent....we got a ton better at Lber....our front 7 seems to be strong and deep.
Agreed. Secondary and O-Line stand out as the weak units to me. And yet in the secondary we have Collins who was 1st-team all-pro a year ago and Jackrabbit who was 2nd team all-pro a year ago, and Eli Apple who was a top-10 pick had a very promising rookie season. I'm hoping Bettcher can resurrect this D to it's 2016 form because honestly it seems like a lot of the pieces are right there.