Plenty of people criticized the Giants’ decision to take Saquon Barkley with the second overall pick. While Barkley has been electric, many people thought the opportunity to take one of this year’s class of quarterback prospects was too good to pass up. Eli Manning has struggled mightily this year, and the Giants now have no clear succession plan. Despite not drafting a quarterback early this year, New York “believed that somehow, some way, they’d find their heir apparent somewhere down the line”, according to Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.
Now that they might have to find that heir apparent earlier than expected, Vacchiano went through all the Giants’ options to find a quarterback of the future, including a trade before the deadline this year, free agency, and the draft. They have fourth round rookie Kyle Lauletta on the roster, and Vacchiano writes they must “absolutely take a look at him in a game this year.” One way or another, it looks like Manning’s days as the Giants’ starter are numbered.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- There’s been growing frustration with Jason Garrett as coach of the Cowboys, especially after his decision to punt the ball away on 4th & 1 in overtime last week. While owner Jerry Jones and his son Stephen have insisted, Garret’s job isn’t in danger, “there’s been buzz in league circles indicating that the Joneses may eventually set their sights on Oklahoma’s Lincoln Riley”, according to Albert Breer of SI.com.
- Aaron Rodgers recently suffered a setback with his injured knee, but is looking to avoid going back to the bulky brace he had to wear initially, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN. Rodgers re-injured the knee on a hit he took early in the Packers’ loss to the Lions last week. The game against Detroit was his first game without the large brace that made it harder for him to move around.
- Josh Norman was benched to start the second half of the Redskins’ loss to the Saints on Monday night, and it apparently wasn’t about his play. “It was definitely something between Gruden and Norman that got a little heated and definitely not because of him getting beat in coverage”, according to John Keim of ESPN (Twitter link). Apparently Norman and coach Jay Gruden got into an altercation at halftime, and this will be an interesting situation to monitor going forward.
Giants should have traded for Teddy B when the Jets were dangling him around early in the year. Instead, now Teddy B is sitting in New Orleans collecting dust as he watches Brees put his name in the history books and the Giants plummet further into oblivion.
Side Note: I wouldn’t be surprised if Flowers who was just released by the Giants, who signed with Jacksonville today will end up becoming an All-Pro guard for Bortles and the Jags get some more of the good ju-ju from Coughlin.
Good call
I’ve bee giving this a lot of thought lately, and the more I think about it, the more convinced I am that taking Barkley was the right choice. Sure, they don’t have a quarterback still but what they do have is a stud running back, and a pick in the 1-3 range. Barkley is the perfect safety net for whoever they take in next year’s draft
Exactly right. There are no quick fixes in the NFL and the Giants are no exception. Saquon was absolutely the right pick.
Regardless of the Barkley pick they’ll be in a similar draft position this offseason and can get their QB. It was the right move. As an Eagles fan, it was scary to watch Barkley Thursday night. He’s must watch TV.
But the bad thing Barkley may not last long. He’s a tough runner and his shelf like may only be 3-4 years. The QB such as Darnold could be there 15 years. And Eli didn’t even start his career until he was 23-24, while Darnold just turned 21. Barkley is no doubt elite, but you can find RBs in the middle rounds. The majority of good QBs and most starters in the league today are first round picks.
Saquon is exceptional and Barry Sanders-Esque. You don’t pass on a talent like that.
I agree that franchise quarterback‘s are harder to find than solid runners, but when you talk about a generational type back, he becomes irreplaceable and necessary to develop young quarterbacks.
Dwayne Haskins to giants
2-3 yrs minimum to develop a starting quarter back, running back’s plug/play. dark days ahead for the giants
The Giants need O-line help, a good/great QB or RB is nothing without a good offensive line. Being a Cowboys fantastic for years, we may not have the best o-line now it’s still not to shabby.
Eli or Carr or whoever you put at QB look for help on the O-line.