How low can they go? New York football has become competition in futility
Published 23 October 2024
The sad news for Big Apple football fans – that would be followers of the Giants, or the Jets, or those who might happen to root for both of the New York teams – is that it hasn’t hit rock bottom yet.
Not even with the Giants releasing Daniel Jones, a couple days after demoting their starting quarterback. Not with the Jets firing general manager Joe Douglas, a few weeks after dumping coach Robert Saleh.
This could get even worse. I mean, there’s too much more football (or at least the concept of it) to be played this season. After such an eventful week, it can turn even uglier to throw mud on the holiday season. And without refunds for season-ticket holders.
OK, here’s a bright spot: The Jets (3-8) have a bye this weekend. So, with Baker Mayfield and the scrappy Bucs coming to the Meadowlands, that’s only one (likely) L for the NY scene. Then the Giants (2-8) will spend Turkey Day in Dallas. So, that’s winnable.
The Jets, with zero winning seasons since 2015, went all-in on Aaron Rodgers in 2023. Soon, with a new GM and coach coming, it will be time to craft a new long-time strategy without him – and that’s even if A-Rod, pushing 41, sticks around for another year because some crazy coach (hello, Rex Ryan) thinks he can squeeze a bit more juice out of the quarterback.
The Giants, meanwhile, with two winning seasons since 2016, went all-out on Saquon Barkley. They let the star running back walk last spring, after making the huge commitment in 2023 to keep Jones, their first-round pick in 2019 (sixth overall), with a four-year, $160 million extension. Bad moves.
Barkley, who took a free agent trek to the Philadelphia Eagles, might be the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year. Shame on the Giants fans who booed Barkley – who demonstrated much class throughout his New York tenure – during his recent return to MetLife Stadium. It’s funny, though, that Barkley finally beat the Cowboys … and had to join the Eagles to get it done. Jones had one decent season, with one playoff win, and got a $40 million-per-year extension.
For what? Just because the market rate for quarterbacks is so staggering, NFL decision-makers need to know better for spending their cap dollars. This is where Giants GM Joe Schoen, flanked by coach Brian Daboll, failed miserably. And the franchise is paying for it immensely. The philosophy that dictates spending on a quarterback rather than a running back because the position is more valued, is rather flawed.
Game-changing running back vs mediocre quarterback? Sure, the injury risk is greater for a runner. But if the running back is special, I’d invest in winning. You hear a lot about running backs being a dime a dozen. Well, so-so quarterbacks like "Danny Dimes" can be easily found, too, with values are already inflated in the draft process.