Dave Gettleman starting to be vindicated after New York Giants’ wins
By Matt Clark
After non-stop criticism, the New York Giants’ 24-3 win over the Washington Redskins gives Dave Gettleman some vindication that he just may know what he is doing.
While the thrill of victory over a rival NFC East opponent certainly has to be rewarding for New York Giants General Manager, Dave Gettleman, there is another feeling that must be even more satisfying for him — vindication.
Since coming to the Giants as the man tasked with replacing Jerry Reese – who utterly mismanaged one of the most prestigious organizations in the National Football League to the point of irrelevance – Dave Gettleman has been a lightning rod for Giants fans and media members alike.
Gettleman received criticism for drafting generational talent, running back Saquon Barkley, with the second overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft – opting to forgo drafting the franchise quarterback of the future. He was then chastised for stating that the Giants were not in a rebuild and that they were actually contenders, only for the Giants to under-perform and find themselves with the sixth-overall pick in the 2019 draft.
Critics mocked his handling of the Odell Beckham Jr. trade, the fact that he let Landon Collins walk and that he stated that he believed Eli Manning could be the starting quarterback for the Giants for years to come. Then came the mother of all criticisms, the decision to draft Daniel Jones with the sixth-overall pick in the 2019 draft.
Media elites were suggesting that Gettleman not only needed to be fired immediately for being so unqualified to lead the Giants, but that he should be drug tested, checked for senility and that he had no plan whatsoever to lead Big Blue back to relevance. Pictures circulated in New York media venues of Gettleman as a clown and he was constant fodder for sports talk show hosts to crucify as a prime example of nepotism leading to the hiring of unqualified individuals. To say things looked bleak for Gettleman and the Giants would be a massive understatement.
Fast forward to game four of the Giants regular season to a matchup against their divisional rivals, the Washington Redskins. Coming off of a week three win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that saw newly-crowned starting quarterback Daniel Jones get his first career victory in dramatic fashion, stakes remained high as the Giants took on Washington. Besides the standard hype surrounding a divisional game, this game included emotion stemming from the backstories provided by two salty former players, Landon Collins and Ereck Flowers, who had provided the media with countless hot takes about their former team.
Both Collins and Flowers were all too pleased to be able to take shots at their general displeasure while playing for the Giants organization, both telling the media how grateful they were to be out and how much they disliked Gettleman and head coach Pat Shurmur. Honestly, the inability of either to let go of their time with the Giants, and their constant efforts to convince everyone how happy they were to be in Washington, made both players seem like those guys who constantly tell you how much they hated their ex and how happy they are with their new girlfriend – all while constantly talking about their ex. Both players stated that they had this game circled and could not wait to show the Giants the error of letting them walk.
As if that wasn’t enough drama for this matchup, we also endured the situation surrounding the drafting of Daniel Jones over Dwayne Haskins. Haskins, a New Jersey native, made no qualms about telling everyone how much he was hoping for the Giants to draft him. Following the Giants shocking selection of Jones, ESPN cameras cut to Haskins, who was shaking his head and laughing in disbelief, later quipping that “the league done messed up” by letting him slip in the draft. While the struggling Redskins stated that they would stay with starting quarterback Case Keenum to start against the Giants, given their poor performance to begin the year many expected Haskins to play against the Giants.
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Given all of those backstories – despite the dismal records of the Giants and Redskins- this game was highly anticipated. In the end, it would result in Dave Gettleman getting the last laugh. Landon Collins had nine tackles in the game, but did not make any major impact against his former team despite his many promises. However, Jabrill Peppers, whom the Giants received as part of the ‘OBJ’ trade and was brought in to replace Collins, had six tackles, two passes defended and had an interception against Haskins that he returned 32 yards for a touchdown.
The Giants let Landon Collins walk for a couple of reasons; one was that his contract was going to be too lofty for a rebuilding team- paying a box safety $14-million annually over six years, does not make sense. That especially rings true when that safety does not fit your defensive scheme- that is the other main reason that the Giants let Collins walk. They wanted a cheaper, more athletic and diverse option that fit the 3-4 defensive scheme of James Bettcher. Pepper’s performance yesterday, was magnified by the fact that the man he replaced was on the opposing sideline, making the Giants decision look brilliant. It should also be noted that Landon Collins looked extremely petty trying to fight members of the Giants organization and shouting at Jabril Peppers after the game ended.
As for Ereck Flowers, the offensive line of the Washington Redskins went on to allow three sacks to the Giant defense. Meanwhile, the Giants offensive line would keep Daniel Jones from being sacked against the Redskins at all. Flowers really doesn’t have any right to speak out against the Giants- after all, the organization had faith enough in him to draft him with the ninth-overall pick in 2015, ahead of the likes of Todd Gurley, Andrus Peat, Melvin Gordon, Marcus Peters and Byron Jones — all who made Pro-Bowls. One could argue that the team would be within it’s right to call the local authorities on the grounds of larceny – let’s also not forget that this is the same guy that sat and sulked while sitting on the bench in the last game of the 2017 season.
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Daniel Jones was able to come out and lead the Giants to a second-consecutive win. While his stats were not anywhere near as good as they were against the Buccaneers (which subsequently looks like a much better win after the Bucs drubbed the Rams 55-40 yesterday), they were still respectable and it was still a win. Jones would complete 23 of 31 passes for 225 yards and one passing touchdown, while rushing five times for 33 yards – but the biggest difference was the two interceptions that Jones threw.
That said, neither interception was game-changing and growing pains can be expected with any rookie quarterback. The Redskins, after stumbling out of the gate with Case Keenum under center, opted to go to rookie Dwayne Haskins at quarterback – Haskins would not enjoy the same success of his counterpart Jones. Instead, the former Ohio State University star would complete only 9 of 17 passes for 107 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions, including the pick six to Jabril Peppers.
The successes of Peppers, Jones and offensive line of the Giants in comparison to Collins, Flowers and Haskins has to leave Dave Gettleman wanting to take to every sports talk show and proclaim “I told you so!”, as though he were a child who just won an argument in the schoolyard. In addition to those personal victories, Gettleman has to feel good about the success that has been had by his draft picks so far.
While it is important to note that this success is only over a two game stretch, it is encouraging to a fan base that was completely inundated with the constant barrage of media reports telling them what a dire situation Gettleman had put the Giants in. That said, after two weeks, it is beginning to look as though Dave Gettleman might just be an evil genius, who may or may not be currently sitting in his basement, laughing maniacally at all of his naysayers.
To that I say kudos to you Mr. Gettleman, keep up the good work!