If the New York Giants are going to win big in 2017, the key will be managing turnovers. Head coach Ben McAdoo acknowledged as much in a recent interview.
The New York Giants are coming off of one of the strongest non-title seasons in franchise history. In the first season under head coach Ben McAdoo, the Giants won 11 games and made a postseason appearance for the first time since 2011.
Unfortunately, there was a recurring issue that did nearly irreparable damage during the 2016 season: New York couldn’t stop committing turnovers.
New York finished the 2016 NFL regular season with the eighth-most interceptions thrown. It wasn’t much better on the ground, as it lost 11 fumbles—tied for the sixth-highest mark in the league.
According to Paul Schwartz of The New York Post, coach McAdoo singled out the turnover woes as the flaws that the Giants desperately need to improve upon.
"“We all know turning the ball over 27 times isn’t acceptable,’’ McAdoo said Wednesday at the NFL Scouting Combine. “We’re fortunate to have the wins we had turning the ball over the way we turned the ball over. We can’t turn the ball over that way.’’"
McAdoo also singled out starting quarterback Eli Manning as the player who must set an example and take better care of the football.
"I think Eli needs to do a better job playing with fast feet and I think he needs to sit on that back foot in the pocket. We’re seeing a lot of man coverage, so the receivers, it’s gonna take a little time for them to get open, so everything may not be rhythmical. So he’s got to play with fast feet, he’s got to sit on his back foot and be ready to hitch into a throw."
McAdoo is in no way attacking Manning, but instead providing constructive criticism to his franchise player.
Manning has thrown at least 14 interceptions in every season since 2008. That includes the 25 picks he threw in 2010, the 27 he had in 2013, and the 16 he recorded in both 2011—a Super Bowl season—and 2016.
Manning has long been reluctant to take a sack, instead opting to get passes off at any cost—and such an approach is often costly.
That’s partially on the offensive line, but it’s also on a veteran like Manning to take better care of the ball. The numbers display just how poor of a job he’s done of limiting turnovers in the past, which includes the 2016 campaign.
The numbers also show that New York was 6-1 when Manning had no interceptions, 8-2 when he had one or fewer, and 3-3 when he had at least two in 2016.
If the Giants are going to reach the 2017 NFL Playoffs and compete for the Super Bowl, taking care of the ball must be a top priority. The defense was elite in 2017, but even the best of units can suffer from being handed poor field position on a consistent basis.
Manning doesn’t need to play at an elite level in 2017, but he must do a significantly better job of taking care of the ball.
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No one player is without blame, but the New York Giants will need the franchise player to step up and lead a responsible offensive charge in 2017.