It’s very apparent that the New York Giants have been on a decline since winning Super Bowl 46 in 2011.
If you have seen any of their games this year it’s easy to see the struggles and mishaps on both sides of the football.
Fans of any team in the New York market have unquestionable passion and also want answers to problems quickly. We have very little patience.
So, what has happened to the New York Giants? They have the same elite quarterback, and the same hall of fame head coach who have won two Super Bowls in their time with the Giants.
Also, after letting him go, they acquired defensive coordinator Steve Spagnola who helped them win a Super Bowl in 2008. I have my opinions on what has happened with the Giants, and I’ve also looked at the numbers – which turned up some compelling things.
The first point I want to touch on, which I do believe is the fundamental reason for the Giants’ decline, and that is the lack of talent on this team.
Eli Manning, who is on the back end of his career now and without a bunch of talent around him, is still putting up decent numbers. So far this season Manning has 24 TDs, only 10 interceptions, and a quarterback rating of 91.6. In my view he only has one really elite WR in Odell Beckham Jr.
Their number two receiver is Ruben Randle, which to me is almost laughable.
Randle is maybe a number three wide-out, he is ranked in the top five for dropped passes this season which to me is unacceptable in professional football.
Ben McAdoo (Giants offensive coordinator) who came to New York from the Packers has installed a new offense that worked wonders in Green Bay.
Aaron Rodgers had so many weapons around him so it worked so well, the problem here is Manning doesn’t have the same calibre players for it to be successful. You can only throw to ODB so many times a game.
Opposing defences know that he is Eli’s only weapon, so once they stick double coverage on him it’s tough to make something happen through the air. Victor Cruz not coming back this year has been detrimental to the New York Giants offense.
The second reason for the Giants decline – which ties into my original point – is their running game, or lack thereof. They are averaging 88.1 rush yards per game which is ranked 29th in the NFL, also they have rushed the ball only 282 times – which is half as many times they have thrown the ball, and are averaging 3.7 yards per carry.
This is atrocious and affects the passing game in such a negative way and it has shown. In my opinion I can’t stand this running back by committee that a bunch of teams have implemented recently.
When you have three or four players all getting equal touches every game you aren’t giving your offense any consistency.
Also I believe it causes these running backs to become resentful that no matter how hard they work they will still be sharing carries every game.
If you look at any elite or championship teams they all have two solid WRs and one starting RB getting 25-30 carries a game.
When you have one starting running back that you stick with it enhances the ability for the quarterback, offensive line, and the back to be on the same page.
Eli Manning’s pass attempts have increased every single year since 2011, which in turn has caused a rise in interceptions and his QBR has dropped consistently.
This is a direct result of having no running game, and every defence facing them knows this.
I am a firm believer that defence wins championships, so I can’t possibly write this article without mentioning the New York Giants defence.
Now, an abundance of people want to put total blame for this disappointing team on the defence.
That is a fair statement, but at the same time it makes sense to me. Their defence is full of very young players either in their first or second year with no real leadership or veterans around them.
The defence has been plagued with injuries this year including losing Jason Pierre Paul for the first half of the season due to a firework accident back on July fourth.
The biggest issue with this defence is the lack of the pass rush, which in 2008 and 2011 (both years they won the Super Bowl) they had one of the best pass rush and front four in the NFL.
If you aren’t getting any pressure on the opposing quarterback and your secondary is not very talented as well as inexperienced, of course you will get picked apart. The surprising fact after having said all that is the Giants turnover ratio is +9 which is ranked third this season.
They are 5-7 going into a Monday night showdown against Miami this week, and are in a three-way tie for first place in the NFC East- which is a whole other subject.
The Giants have lost five games this year after leading with less than two-minutes left, four of those losses were with less than one-minute left.
This tells me that coaching mistakes have played a tremendous factor in the Giants decline and why this team looks out of sync this season.
Tom Coughlin, who is a hall of fame coach, is 69 years old, making him the oldest in the NFL.
I do believe that even if the Giants pull it off and win the division this year and make the playoffs, this is Coughlin’s last season as head coach. Also with Eli Manning now 34 years old and on the back end of his career, it’s time for the Giants to start looking for someone to come in and learn under him.
I think it would be smart to use their higher up draft spots to grab some defensive players first, maybe a quarterback that can be a protege for Manning, and I would certainly spend the money to get a free agent running back.
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