At 1-3, it's looking like it's going to another long and disappointing season for the New York Giants. From the offense not being able to score touchdowns, the defense giving up big chunk plays, or just questionable coaching decisions made by Brian Daboll, Big Blue is looking like they're in for another rough year.
Even though we are just four games into the regular season, it's not looking like the Giants will be able to turn things around anytime soon, especially with four of their next five opponents already having winning records. While there have been plenty of people to blame for New York's woes to start their season, it's been these offseason moves that the Giants made or failed to try and get done that are looking like a disaster thus far:
4. Signing Devin Singletary to a three-year deal
When the Giants shockingly lost Saquon Barkley this offseason to the Philadelphia Eagles, they immediately went out and signed his replacement by giving Devin Singletary a three-year deal. Even though he's coming off a career-high 898-yard season on the ground for the Houston Texans, this move still hasn't worked out well thus far.
Singletary has already fumbled the ball twice in his four games against the Washington Commanders and Cleveland Browns. Those fumbles came at awful times too. Plus, in a prove-it game against the Dallas Cowboys last Thursday night when the Giants were going up against a Dallas defense that allowed a combined 464 rushing yards in their previous two games, Singletary rushed for 24 yards on 14 carries and averaged just over one yard a carry. We knew Singletary wouldn't replicate Barkley's numbers when he was in New York, but it just hasn't worked out for him in his first season on the Giants thus far.
3. Drafting Theo Johnson
When Darren Waller opted to retire after one year playing in New York, the Giants thought they may have found his replacement in Theo Johnson. The Giants drafted Johnson out of Penn State with their fourth-round pick and he's pretty much been a nonfactor on the Giants offense thus far.
Looking to build off his career-best 328 receiving yards and four touchdowns he had last season for the Nittany Lions, he's been very quiet on offense for New York. Johnson has just three catches on the season thus far for 37 yards and has failed to score a touchdown. While Johnson was brought in to be a solid blocking tight end, the Giants have been searching to find their tight end of the future and so far, Johnson has not lived up to those expectations.
2. Not adding a veteran CB
When star safety Xavier McKinney left in free agency to the Green Bay Packers, the Giants were looking like they would have a young secondary. Four games in, New York's secondary struggles have been on full display, as Joe Schoen's failure to add a veteran cornerback last offseason is being shown.
Four games into the season, cornerbacks Cor'Dale Flott and Nick McCloud, who are just 23 and 26 years old, have struggled mightily, as the secondary in particular in the Giants' game against the Cowboys on Thursday allowed a 55-yard touchdown catch by CeeDee Lamb and Cowboys signal-caller Dak Prescott completed over 80 percent of his passes. That's not going to cut it.
Even though the Giants did go out and re-sign veteran cornerback Adoree' Jackson right before the season started, he hasn't done much for Big Blue's secondary, as he only has three total tackles this season and the injury bug has returned for Jackson, as he missed the aforementioned Cowboys game with a calf injury. Not adding a veteran piece to this Giants' secondary has cost them dearly in 2024.
1. Not re-signing Xavier McKinney and spending big on Brian Burns
Even though Giants fans are livid about Barkley's hot start on the Eagles, how about McKinney's start in Green Bay? On the same day last March when word was out that Barkley signed a three-year deal, just minutes later, reports came out that the Giants' former star safety in McKinney was signing with the Packers on a four-year deal. Just like Barkley, he's also had a hot start on his new team which has Giants fans asking, why didn't we try to re-sign him?
Four games into the season, McKinney already has four interceptions which leads the NFL and he is just the fourth player in league history to have four straight games with an interception to begin his tenure with a new team. McKinney's red-hot start with the Packers has to be driving Giants fans everywhere wild. With New York having a young and banged-up secondary this year, Schoen's failure to try and re-sign the Giants former second-round pick is another botched move made by him this past offseason.
He spent big to bring in Brian Burns, and that move is backfiring as well. Burns is simply not living up to his $141 million extension. He has one sack on the year and a forced fumble, but outside of his strong showing in Cleveland, he's been a ghost up front for the New York defense.