The Giants.com crew looks at the state of the team heading into the bye week and what to look for in the second half of the season:
John Schmeelk: As the Giants head into the final seven games of the 2024 season with a record of 2-8, some people's thoughts begin to shift toward the future. But Joe Schoen would have none of that in his press conference on Tuesday afternoon, focusing instead on how to close out the season as strong as possible. One of his reasons did have a future impact: the Giants need to establish a culture of winning. He talked about the team believing they can win close games rather than thinking "here we go again," which has contributed to the team's 1-5 record in one-score games. The team had that culture in 2022, but they have not been able to find it since then.
Schoen also mentioned how 19 starters on this roster are under contract for next season, indicating there was some importance in retaining continuity from year to year. He believed that, along with some key additions in the offseason, they could turn things around for the franchise quickly. The key question remains where resources should be directed for those additions and changes have the greatest impact.
I also want to see how the young secondary continues to play. Does Deonte Banks get more consistent? Will Cor'Dale Flott prove to be a reliable starting cornerback? Does the team need to add a safety or will Jason Pinnock maintain his starting spot as he heads to free agency?
How will the rest of the interior defensive tackles play next to Dexter Lawrence? Does Azeez Ojulari make it impossible to let him walk away as a free agent? Does the offensive line maintain its current form with Greg Van Roten a free agent? Is Darius Slayton returning as a starter or does Jalin Hyatt show enough to start across from Malik Nabers? These are all good questions that I will be trying to answer as I watch the final seven games of the year.
Dan Salomone: The Giants head into the break scoring a league-low 15.6 points per game, a touchdown below the NFL average of 22.5. Naturally, that has led to questions about the quarterback, the most-scrutinized position in sports. Brian Daboll, for the first time this season, did not definitively state whether or not Daniel Jones will be the starter when the Giants next take the field on Nov. 24 at home against the Buccaneers.
"We're going to spend a lot of time here watching our tape and evaluating things," Daboll said after the team returned from Munich on a five-game losing streak. "We'll do that as a coaching staff over the next week here."
Daboll added, "I would say we're evaluating our team at the bye week is what we're doing."
The next day, general manager Joe Schoen was asked the same questions.
"I understand the question, you want to pull him out, but it's everybody," Schoen said. "Everybody's got a hand in this. Again, I know being the quarterback and offensive coordinator, head coach, a lot of people like to point to those guys, in general. Daniel has played some good games. There's some games where maybe he'd like to have some throws back or do things differently. But, in general, it's not one individual or one situation that keeps occurring, unfortunately. So, whether it's the defense is on the field at the end of the game and we've got a chance to close it out. Or offense has the ball in a couple different games and we could go down and score and close the game out. So, we're going to look at solutions and we're going to evaluate everything, like Dabs said yesterday, and that's what we'll do moving forward here.
Schoen added, "It will be a football decision. Any decisions we make moving forward as we evaluate the roster and what we're doing for the final seven games will be football decisions."
Matt Citak: The biggest thing I'm looking for as the Giants head into the second half of the season is the continued development of the rookie class. While they are only 10 games into their first NFL season, the Giants' rookies have shown a lot of promise to start their NFL careers. Heading into last week's matchup in Munich, the rookie class had accounted for 17.9 percent of the team's defensive snaps, the second-highest mark in the league, and 18.4 percent of the offensive snaps, the fifth-highest rate. With Malik Nabers (88 percent of snaps), Tyrone Tracy (80 percent) and Theo Johnson (92 percent) barely leaving the field against the Panthers, along with Tyler Nubin (100 percent) and Dru Phillips (83 percent), the Giants might have moved up even further in those rookie playing time rankings.
"I think it's important for veterans to have leadership presence, but I'd say our rookies have a lot of leadership in them too," coach Brian Daboll told the media last week. "Again, they're playing a lot of football. They're learning as we go, but they all have the right mindset. I'm pleased with how they act outside the building, inside the building, the work they put in and their skill set. I really enjoy working with these young guys. They're made of the right kind of stuff."
Not only have the rookies been playing a lot, but they've also been performing well. Nabers leads the Giants with 61 receptions for 607 yards and three touchdowns. He ranks third in the NFL in receptions, he sits just five catches behind Ja'Marr Chase for the league-lead, and he is tied with Brian Thomas Jr. as the league's leading rookie receiver. He has accomplished all of this despite missing two games with a concussion.
Tracy is the team's leading rusher with 107 attempts for 545 yards (5.1 avg.) and three touchdowns. He has totaled 100+ yards of offense in four of the last six games, he ranks eighth in the NFL in average yards per carry, and he leads all rookies in rushing yards. Tracy has done all of this despite playing limited snaps in each of the first four games.
Then you have Johnson, who ranks third among rookie tight ends and 12th among all rookies with his 238 receiving yards.
Moving over to the defensive side of the ball, Nubin ranks second on the team with his 69 total tackles and has missed a mere two snaps all season. Phillips was just named Pro Football Focus' Rookie of the Week for his performance against the Panthers, and finds himself inside the top 5 of PFF's list of the season's top rookies.
Meanwhile, undrafted rookie Elijah Chatman has generated a quarterback pressure on 8.3 percent of his pass rushes, the sixth-highest QB pressure rate among all rookies, according to Next Gen Stats. The continued growth and development of these players, along with the other young players on the roster, should be one of the top priorities for the Giants heading into the final seven games of the season.
View photos of the Giants' 2024 rookie class in their first NFL season.
WR Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94)
New York Giants place kicker Jude McAtamney (99)
New York Giants guard Jake Kubas (63)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1), RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
K Jude McAtamney (99)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
OLB Brian Burns (0), DT Elijah Chatman (94)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
RB Dante Miller (25)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
DT Elijah Chatman (94), DL Dexter Lawrence II (97)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
RB Dante Miller (25)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
RB Dante Miller (25)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
K Jude McAtamney (99)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
K Jude McAtamney (99)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
G Jake Kubas (63)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
CB Dru Phillips (22), S Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants guard Jake Kubas (63)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants running back Dante Miller (25)
New York Giants guard Jake Kubas (63)
New York Giants place kicker Jude McAtamney (99)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants guard Jake Kubas (63)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants place kicker Jude McAtamney (99)
New York Giants running back Dante Miller (25)
New York Giants running back Dante Miller (25)
New York Giants running back Dante Miller (25)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants safety Jason Pinnock (27),New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
![New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)]](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/t_new_photo_album_2x/t_lazy/f_auto/giants/svlxsa7cidc7hxhwdm8v.jpg)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)]
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84), touchdown
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84), touchdown
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84), touchdown
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
TE Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
K Jude McAtamney (99)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
K Jude McAtamney (99)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
DT Elijah Chatman (94)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
New York Giants cornerback Dru Phillips (22)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (5), DT Elijah Chatman (94)
RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94),New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (5), New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94),New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (5), New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants defensive tackle Elijah Chatman (94)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson
WR Malik Nabers (1), RB Tyrone Tracy (29)
LB Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (1)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin (31)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
CB Dru Phillips (22)
ILB Darius Muasau (53)
CB Dru Phillips (22), S Tyler Nubin (31)
New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84)
S Tyler Nubin (31)
ILB Bobby Okereke (58), CB Dru Phillips (22), CB Adoree' Jackson (21)
New York Giants linebacker Darius Muasau (53)
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