As the New York Giants‘ bye week approaches the head coach and staff will have the week to ponder where the team is headed, its identity and make sense of where it has come from to prepare for the trials ahead.
As the Giants organization released after Sunday’s victory, much of the responsibility will be place on the shoulders of Ben McAdoo, as he will be spending the week in and out of play staff meetings in self-reflection and tragically, much self-doubt as he questions his role in leading this Giants team to the playoffs the first time since 2011.
The NFC East has always been a contentious division. Compared to other division in the AFC, teams do not face as competitive teams twice in the course of a season.
The Philadelphia Eagles have and will always remain a difficulty for the Giants even with injuries and a slow start.
Beckham
Eli Manning was able to win against the Ravens thanks to a slant run in the final moments of the game. Now that Beckham has been inured with damage to his hip, questions will surface of whether he can be productive or whether even the duo of Sterling Sheppard and Victor Cruz can be successful candidates fore replacements.
Vereen
Vereen contributed so much beyond expectations early on the in the season. Ever since his injury to his tricep on a return, he will not be very helpful until his scheduled return of November 27, 2016 against Cleveland. Vereen rushed for a season high of 67 yards in his last game against Washington. Packers in Week 5. His replacements have been inadequate because they have not had enough experience playing in the NFL. One shouldn’t expect Paul Perkins or Bobby Rainey to play like Vereen in his prime anytime this season
Brown
The loss of Josh Brown since the second week of the season has not been very merry. Replacement field goal kicker Robbie Gould, though capable of kicking a field goal successfully in Week 7, has yet to provide a guarantee that he can match Brown’s 91.7% field goal made percentage this season. Other legitimate questions to wonder about is whether Gould can do well in hi pressure filled games when the score is tied in the fourth quarter with minutes or seconds to go. As much as Gould practices during the Bye week and in between games, there is no guarantee that he can be as reliable to the Giants as Brown.
Goodell
As allegations continue to swirl around the controversy of how Josh Brown used domestic violence against his wife and the commonly thought of as mishandling of the investigation, McAdoo will spend most of his energy this week thinking about the way to oppose or respond in an effective way to the tarnished image of Big Blue since the New York media got a hold of the statements by John Mara that Brown’s suspension will still allow him to collect his salary for the year.
Time could be better spent correcting errors in a an imperfect offense and defense that causes the team to have panics on a regular basis whenever the Giants drive more than 70 yards own the field only to turn over the football.
Eli
Coming off of a season low yardage output in passing is never a good thing for a starting quarter ack. While Eli has been ale to stay off the injured reserve for the entire season, many wonder whether this veteran has some of his best years behind him. Without the ability to use Beckham due to his injuries, Eli must rely on a recuperating Rashad Jennings and Orleans Darwka to gain yardage when the Giants choose to run the ball. There seems to be little prospect that Manning can rely on deep passes to his wideouts when the Eagles secondary ranks among the greatest in the NFL year after year.
Repeating costly mistakes
Missed tackles. Turnovers. Emotional breakdowns. These are the ills that will continue to haunt the Giants, and unless McAdoo makes each player internalize the Giant’s brand of a zero-tolerance policy against behavior that prioritizes the individual at the expense of the team, expect more of the same from Big Blue.
Facing injuries
As NJ.com Advanced Media reported, injuries have not affected the morale of the players. Darian Thompson is in good spirits.
"I’m getting there. I feel like the bye week couldn’t come at a more perfect time for me personally. I’m just looking to get healthy and get back out there when we get back. If you ask me, I’m ready to go right now. Hopefully I’ll be cleared by that time.”"