It's hard to believe that just over a year ago, the New York Giants were not only in the postseason, but they took down the Vikings in the Wild Card Round. This year, though, the G-Men finished the campaign at 6-11 and they're watching the playoffs from home.
The Giants started the year off 1-5, which no one was expecting. Things kept getting worse for the G-Men, highlighted by countless injuries. Daniel Jones tearing his ACL in Week 9 felt like rock bottom. As a whole, nothing went right for this team, but these five players in particular were massive disappointments for both Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll:
5. TE Darren Waller
This was considered the Giants "big" offseason acquisition. NY traded for tight end Darren Waller last March for a compensatory 2023 third-round pick in hopes that Waller could become a top target for Jones. If you look at his stats during his time with Las Vegas, there was real belief that Waller could have a huge impact on the Giants offense. He went to the Pro Bowl in 2019 and was a 1,000-yard receiver in 2019 and 2020. However, this year was a struggle.
Heading into the season, the Giants knew Waller had injury concerns with his hamstring in particular, but he was supposed to stay healthy and not be held back. That wasn't the case. Waller had just 52 receptions for 552 yards and only one touchdown. He was placed on IR in early November and missed more than a month of action. Yikes.
Again, we knew Waller had injury problems entering this season, but it was still disappointing to not see him contribute at a Pro Bowl level - a lot of people were expecting that. Schoen has a tough decision to make with Waller this offseason. It's unknown if he'll return in 2024 or not.
4. QB Daniel Jones
Yes, Jones had a short-lived season due to a neck injury followed by a season-ending ACL tear, but that is exactly why 2023 was such a disappointment for him. Since he arrived to the NFL in 2019, Jones has only played one full season healthy, which is a problem especially after the Giants gave him a $160 million extension. Even when on the field in '23, Jones looked rough.
In his shortened season, Jones had just two touchdown passes and six interceptions. Even though a few of those interceptions were throws that were tipped by Giants receivers and weren't necessarily Jones' fault, he just did not look sharp at all. Plus, in the six games that he did start in 2023, Jones did not have a single touchdown pass in five of those contests. The Giants invested so much in Jones this season and after a strong 2022 campaign, the Giants had high hopes for him to play even better in 2023, but that was not the case.
The Giants are set to pick at No. 6 overall in the NFL Draft and with this class filled with many talented quarterbacks, does Schoen think about drafting a quarterback? There's a lot of buzz that Schoen/Daboll could look to draft 'their own QB' this spring. After how bad Jones played this past fall, it won't be a surprise if it happens.
3. RB Saquon Barkley
In what might have been his last campaign as a member of the New York Giants, running back Saquon Barkley could not build off his 1,300-yard plus season in 2022. Unfortunately for Barkley, he fell way short of his goals for '23 and an injury once again prevented him from playing a full season.
Barkley only rushed for 962 yards in 2023 and averaged under four yards a carry. He rushed for six touchdowns after running for 10 in 2022. Barkley also only had one 100-yard game in 2023 against the New York Jets after having four 100-yard rushing games in 2022. You can blame the offensive line all you want, but Barkley still didn't deliver at times.
After an offseason last year where the two sides were in a standoff of a long-term contract extension until Barkley ended up signing a revised non-exclusive contract tag, it does not look promising he will be back later this year. Barkley failed to live up to the hype that he had entered this season after a career year in 2022. Fans love him, but it may be time for NY to move on.
2. WR Isaiah Hodgins
When the Giants picked up wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins last year, people didn't expect much out of him. However, he became one of the most reliable WR options for Jones down the stretch. Hodgins really made a name for himself in the Wild Card Round win over the Vikings, posting eight receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown. It was a no-brainer to bring him back in 2023.
Unfortunately, Hodgins only had 21 receptions this season for just 231 yards and three touchdowns. His best game was in Week 2 when he hauled in five balls for 40 yards and a TD. Really? Hodgins also had four games without recording a single catch, including back-to-back games in Week 9 against the loss to the Las Vegas Raiders followed by the defeat to Dallas in Week 10. We all know that Hodgins is no No. 1 receiver, but after how great he looked to close out '22, expectations were high for him this year.
Hodgins quite simply had a quiet year for the Giants on offense - so did the Giants WRs as a whole, as they combined for just 15 touchdowns. Hodgins had some high hopes that he could be productive for the Giants this season, but the youngster just didn't get the job done.
1. RT Evan Neal
You already knew Evan Neal was going to be featured on this list. After he worked his tail off in the offseason, focusing on his body and technique, Giants Nation expected the former No. 7 overall pick to make a huge jump in his second year. Would an improvement like what we saw out of Andrew Thomas be on the way? Nope.
Neal posted yet another miserable season for the Giants offensive line and he somehow managed to take a step back. Neal was a complete liability blocking for Jones from his right tackle position. Things went so bad for the Alabama product, that a lot of people were calling for him to be moved inside to guard. People still want Daboll to make that switch.
To make things even worse for the second-year tackle, Neal was only able to appear in seven games in 2023 due to a serious ankle injury. He ended up being placed on Injured Reserve and undergoing surgery for a fractuce in his bum ankle. He'll now look to rehab and make sure he's at 100 percent for Week 1, but him starting at right tackle is not a guarantee for next September.