New York Giants: In Reese I Don’t Trust
The great thing about history is that it is constantly being written; a fact that I am sure Jerry Reese takes comfort in. His legacy as the New York Giants general manager is a patch of inconsistency in the NFL Draft and his usual lackluster swing at free agency. If you aren’t questioning Reese even a little bit, you’re either a homer or you’re in denial.
I’m not here to bash the guy. I am just here to give you the facts. You can do what you will with these facts but the truth doesn’t change. Jerry Reese is in the most pivotal moment in his career. He either delivers hope of a brighter future or he gets out of the way.
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The 2015 NFL Draft is a big opportunity. The truth is that this offseason isn’t going so bad for the Giants. Reese added a quality running back and improved both the special teams units and depth of the roster in free agency. A good draft class could be the spring-board for getting back to success.
The NFL Draft is not just a big opportunity because the Giants have the 9th overall pick. It is hard to mess the 9th pick up. Reese has proven that he can get a good player when all the best players are still sitting in front of him (example: Jason Pierre-Paul, Odell Beckham Jr.) What he needs to prove is that he can bring in a solid draft class.
Not too long ago I wrote a piece about Reese’s draft history. I showed you each draft pick. There were some good drafts, but the results were more bad than good. The Giants routinely take chances on players, often from small schools that don’t pan out.
Credit: Pat Lovell-USA TODAY Sports
An NFL Draft pick is an investment. It costs the franchise dearly each time Reese misses in the draft. Good drafting teams routinely get starters as late as the 4th round. Late draft picks are often developed into functioning members of the active roster. The only commonality in Reese’s draft history is inconsistency.
Nobody is perfect, we need to address that argument. Look at Ozzie Newsome of the Baltimore Ravens. Matt Elam turned out to be a horrible 1st round pick.
Newsome makes mistakes. It happens. What makes him great is not that he is perfect but that he routinely reloads the roster through the draft. The Ravens have made the playoffs 6 of the last 7 years, despite losing good players every offseason.
Results ultimately show you the merit of your general manager. The greats like Newsome, Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots and Ted Thompson of the Green Bay Packers have consistent success. The Patriots, Packers and Ravens are constant contenders because of the decision makers they employ.
The Giants have won 2 Super Bowls under Reese. That being said he is not one of the greats.
To be fair, the Super Bowls were won with two good teams that got hot only at the right moment. The Super Bowls speak more to the validation of Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning than that of Reese.
In between the glory, there has been a lot of bad. Since 2011’s Super Bowl magic the Giants have missed the playoffs three straight times.
The moral of the story is that the Giants are now counting on a man who may not be able to deliver. The fact of the matter is that if he does not come through, he needs to be fired.