Just about everyone is already counting down the days for the 2024 NFL Draft for the NY Giants. What will Joe Schoen do with his first-round pick? The majority of people are ready for Schoen to find a replacement for Daniel Jones.
Danny Dimes, who was battling a neck injury this year, tore his ACL against the Raiders, costing him the rest of the 2023 season. With the ups and downs with Jones, fans are ready to move on from him as the starter. Schoen doesn't appear to be ready for that just yet.
Joe Schoen said Daniel Jones remains his starter when healthy
While speaking to the media on Monday morning, Schoen backed Jones and said that he's his starter when he's healthy. While Schoen did leave the door open for the G-Men to take a QB in the first round, saying he'll take the best player available when NY is on the clock, it seems as if though he's not ready to just forget about the $160 million investment in Jones either.
“The expectation is when Daniel is healthy that he will be our starting quarterback.”
— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) November 27, 2023
Joe Schoen on Daniel Jones pic.twitter.com/ZgPnGw8RVV
"I’ve seen it. You guys all saw last season. The guy won 10 games. He won a road playoff game for the Giants. You guys saw the preseason. I just think we got punched in the nose early on and dug ourselves a hole, and we weren’t able to get out of it. Trying to right now, but we still believe in Daniel."Joe Schoen
Jones indeed was strong last season, helping the Giants go 9-7-1 during the regular season. Then in the playoffs, Jones was sensational in the NFC Wild Card Round win over the Vikings. In the Divisional Round, well, not so much. Jones earned his payday and Schoen is hoping he can prove people wrong in 2024. However, despite Schoen's latest update, it doesn't change the fact that countless Big Blue supporters don't want him to be the starter for the future.
Giants aren't planning on a position change for Evan Neal
Elsewhere for the Giants offense, a major topic of conversation has been the poor play of second-year right tackle Evan Neal. Neal, dealing with an ankle injury right now, was expected to make a big jump during the 2023 campaign. Instead, the opposite has been the case, with the former No. 7 overall pick looking rough throughout the fall.
With Neal consistently getting beat on the outside, people have been calling - no begging for head coach Brian Daboll to move him to guard. Neal on the inside just makes a whole lot of sense and it would open the door for someone else to man the RT job. Perhaps an early pick in '24 is used there? Not so fast, as Schoen said there's no plan to make a move with Neal.
Joe Schoen says the Giants are not thinking about moving Evan Neal from tackle to guard:
— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) November 27, 2023
"I went back and watched the Alabama stuff. The kid can play. We just got to get him to be more consistent." pic.twitter.com/CL952xV2LT
Yes, the potential is there for Neal, but at some point this kid has to live up to the hype that landed him with the G-Men in the first round in 2022. Time and time again, he's getting embarrassed by pass-rushers and Giants quarterbacks are paying the price. Schoen knows Neal has to be better and play more consistent. Next season feels like it should be his last chance to prove to everyone he can play RT at this level.
Kayvon Thibodeaux now has 11 sacks on the season
In case you missed it on Sunday, star pass-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux recorded a half-sack in the 10-7 win over the Pats. With that, Thibodeaux is now up to 11 sacks on the campaign, which is no question silencing all of his haters. The pass-rush for the Giants has been far too inconsistent in recent years, but the Oregon product is getting the job done in the best way possible.
It wasn't too long ago that people were labeling Thibodeaux a first-round bust. He finished with only four sacks in 2022, his rookie campaign, falling way short of his goal for his debut season. However, Thibodeaux has been providing opposing linemen with headaches this year, which Wink Martindale is loving.
Kayvon Thibodeaux was asked about a report regarding tension between Brian Daboll and Wink Martindale:
— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) November 27, 2023
"I don't really know where that came from... I don't really acknowledge stuff that doesn't come from inside the building." pic.twitter.com/Mkl8q2Xkb5
Speaking of Martindale, a report surfaced over the weekend saying there's tension between him and Daboll. Thibodeaux was asked about that in the clip above and he said he doesn't pay attention to what outsiders have to say. Thibodeaux is more worried about this team continuing to improve and posting wins. That's exactly what happened in Week 12 vs. New England.