Giants' call on Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen is the first step, but they can't repeat old mistakes
How many times have we seen teams deciding to keep general managers and head coaches around, and the following decisions are all based on job security, affecting the future of the franchise? It's so frequent in the NFL that it's scary. At first glance, the New York Giants' decision to retain general manager Joe Schoen […]
How many times have we seen teams deciding to keep general managers and head coaches around, and the following decisions are all based on job security, affecting the future of the franchise?
It's so frequent in the NFL that it's scary. At first glance, the New York Giants' decision to retain general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll makes sense. After all, this season was more of a retooling year, and it's fair to give the leadership structure another shot.
But it has to be a long-term plan. The Giants will obviously need a new quarterback after the Daniel Jones' experience miserably failed.
However, it would be harmful for the future of the Giants to draft a rookie quarterback and fire the GM and HC one year after the fact. A new leadership would be in place for his second season without the same level of commitment.
Track record
Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll were hired together from the Buffalo Bills in 2022. In their first year, they put together a surprisingly strong season, which included a playoff win over the Minnesota Vikings.
But that was fool's gold. The Giants changed their long-term plan because of the successful season and ended up giving Daniel Jones a four-year, $160 million extension. While only two of those years were guaranteed, the decision delayed a necessary rebuild in two seasons. And almost cost Schoen and Daboll their jobs.
In 2023, the group made a sequence of questionable moves. They franchise-tagged running back Saquon Barkley and extended Jones, when the reverse would have probably been the smartest way to operate.
One year later, Saquon left in free agency to sign with the Philadelphia Eagles and had an amazing first season. Meanwhile, Jones was released during year 2 of the extension.
Moving on from players like Saquon Barkley and safety Xavier McKinney, two Pro Bowlers in 2024, is tough, but understandable based on their non-valuable positions and where the Giants' roster is.
But now, Schoen and Daboll need to acquire real talent and put together a better version of their plan on the field.
And it creates a concerning level of pressure over them. The Giants must be sure that job security won't drive future decisions, and that's the first step to build a sustainable winner, retaining Schoen and Daboll or not for the long term.
Joe Schoen did what his background told him not to, and the Giants are paying a huge price
Giants GM made a philosophical mistake
