Going into this NFL season, the New York Giants were considered serious contenders to win the Super Bowl, but after an 0-4 start, their chances of even making the playoffs are now slim to none.
Technically they aren’t out of playoff contention yet since we’re only 4 games into the season, but they are more likely to end up with a top pick in next year’s draft. Where the Giants struggle the most is on the offensive side of the ball, specifically offensive line and running back. Penn State’s’ Saquon Barkley looks like he could be the perfect pick. He is a running back with a ton of upside and he can both run between the tackles and catch the ball out of the backfield. Many Giants fans want to tank the season for him, and while I don’t think we should give up just yet, I wouldn’t be terribly mad if we did get a high pick to draft him.
The running backs currently on the roster are Paul Perkins, Wayne Gallman, Orleans Darkwa, and Shane Vereen. Paul Perkins came into this season as our starter but has been worse than bad the first three and a half weeks leading into his injury during the game this past Sunday. Orleans Darkwa was expected to be our power back and share snaps with Perkins, but hasn’t really been given the chance he deserves and when given the chance he hasn’t taken advantage. He is also currently injured. Then, There’s Wayne Gallman, a 4th round pick this year out of Clemson. In his first ever NFL game, on his birthday, he recorded 42 yards and a receiving touchdown. In his one game, he showed the most promise. He looked like a good versatile back, but it’s only one game and we don’t know what we’re going to get from him week to week. Shane Vereen is really only used for third downs and passing plays, and while he is good at it, he’s getting older and is not part of the Giant’s future plans. What the Giants need is a young explosive running back who can also catch and has big play potential which is exactly what Barkley is and should be at the next level.
In order to get him, the Giants would probably need a top 5 pick, which they’re on pace for. Considering the Browns look like they probably will go 0-16 and the 49ers also look horrendous, The Giants will probably need to lose at least 11 games for a chance. The playoffs aren’t technically impossible yet and I want to hope we can still make a run,but realistically it probably won’t happen so I think we should start tanking sooner rather than later.
Besides Saquon Barkley, there really aren’t any running backs that should be top 10 picks, but another big need for the Giants is offensive line. This is probably an even bigger need than running back, considering that the only player on the Giants offensive line that can consistently play well is LG/RT Justin Pugh. The best offensive lineman in the draft is OT Connor Williams. The Giants starting left tackle is Ereck Flowers and he is probably the worst offensive lineman in the NFL. Williams should be able to slide right in at left tackle and replace Flowers which should be a huge boost to the o-line.
After the start of this season, The Giants lost their chances of potentially winning the Super Bowl with the struggles of the offensive side.