If the New York Giants were attempting to tank the season away in effort to land the no. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, they had been doing a marvelous job up until Week 17.
And then, Drew Lock had the game of his life as the Giants not only won, but knocked the Indianapolis Colts out of the postseason race at the same time. It was one heck of a way to announce to the football world that they weren't about to tank the entire season away.
Although the Giants are undoubtedly thinking about their next franchise quarterback and will look to make that a reality through the draft next spring, they took a step backward if they were trying to kick off the festivities with the first overall pick.
Now, one thing this team did simultaneously was to also try and save the job of head coach Brian Daboll. At the moment, no one really knows if Daboll's job is truly in danger. But, there has been plenty of speculation.
On the latest episode of the Scoop City podcast, senior reporter and NFL insider Dianna Russini of The Athletic discussed Daboll's current status with the team and offered up her own insight:
"They haven't made a decision yet. I don't think anyone would be shocked if Brian Daboll was fired. But, no decision has been made."
Joe Schoen could be made more the fool in Week 18 than Brian Daboll ever could
So, while Russini says she wouldn't be shocked if Daboll was fired after the season, we've also got quite the storyline brewing in Week 18 when the Giants take on the Philadelphia Eagles. It's the story everybody will be talking about, especially if a certain record is, indeed, broken.
Joe Schoen opted not to pay Saquon Barkley. By now, Giants fans know how this went down. But, against the Giants next week, Barkley has an opportunity to break Eric Dickerson's all-time single-season rushing record if he gains 101 yards on the ground against his former team.
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If the Eagles not only win, but Barkley breaks the record against the Giants, then Schoen will never live that decision down. Forget the fact that Tyrone Tracy has shown plenty of promise as a rookie.
Saquon has been downright special.
It's almost as if, when you give him a decent enough offensive line, he could be even better.
If Barkley breaks the record, everyone will be laughing a whole lot more at Schoen than they will be at Daboll. The Giants head coach should be safe, especially knowing that he hasn't gotten an opportunity to pick a quarterback yet.
But, we'll have to wait and see what happens.