Last year’s regular season was a nightmare for both the Giants and Jets, and thus a double nightmare for yours truly, who suffered through twice as many defeats every Sunday.   But November’s woes are April’s thrills, since that means both New York teams are picking high in this year’s NFL draft.  Gang Green has the third overall pick, behind the Cardinals and the Niners.   Big Blue picks sixth… and also 17th, thanks to trading away Odell Beckham Junior.  That was still a terrible trade imo, the Giants did not get nearly enough for a player of Odell’s calibre… but at least they got something, and now at least we get to find out what.

First round is Thursday night, and I’ll be watching, as I always do.   I’ll be watching the whole thing, actually, but by the time we get down to the fifth and sixth and seventh rounds it is just a bunch of names I have never heard of flashing by, so it’s round one where all the excitement is.

The Jets got their quarterback of the future last year in Sam Darnold so the thought is that they go defense this year.   The key to that is the Arizona Cardinals, picking first.   Almost all the mocks have them taking quarterback Kyler Murray, a small, swift, scrambling signal caller who has been compared to Michael Vick and Baker Mayfield.   Mel Kiper says it is 99.99% certain the Cards take Murray, even though they still have Josh Rosen, the qb they traded up for in the first round last year.   If he’s right, that means the Jets at three will have their pick of the top-rated defensive talents. Nick Bosa, Josh Allen, Quinnen Williams are the names you hear most often.  If the Cards take Murray and the Niners take one of those three, the Jets will have their choice between the other two.   I just hope, if it comes to that, that they pick the right one.   We need the next Lawrence Taylor or the next Reggie White.  The danger is that instead you find yourself with the next Vernon Gholston.

The Jets could also trade down with some qb-hungry team, and regain some of the picks they had to give up last year to snag Darnold.   I wouldn’t mind that… so long as they don’t go TOO far down, and get a good package of picks for moving, not just something lame like a fifth rounder.   But all in all, I think I’d prefer that they stay at #3 and take Josh Allen.   If for no other reason than they are in the same division as the Buffalo Bills, who drafted a quarterback named Josh Allen last year.   We could have years of Josh Allen sacking Josh Allen to look forward to.

There’s even more suspense swirling around the New York Giants with their two first-round picks (and a high second, never forget).   The vast majority of talking heads out there have seemingly given up on Eli Manning (though the Giants themselves clearly haven’t), and are insisting that the G-Men draft a young quarterback as his successor.   The most likely choice is Dwayne Haskins out of Ohio State, who grew up a Giants fan.   I will freely admit I do not follow college ball as I do the NFL. so I can’t claim any expertise… but Haskins does look mighty impressive from what I’ve seen of him leading up to the draft.   He is likely to be there at #6 — unless the Raiders, who are lurking in the weeds at #4, surprise everyone and grab him — but everything we are hearing out of Jersey suggests the Giants are going to go defense with that pick.   Haskins is not likely to last until #17, not with so many other quarterback hungry teams in between (the Dolphins, the Redskins, the Bengals)… but it could be that Dave Gettleman the Giants GM prefers one of the other quarterback prospects, and it is possible that either Drew Locke or Daniel Jones or both will still be there, and Gettleman could snag one of them.   Hell, it could even be that one of them will still be there at the top of round two, for the Giants to draft then.

If Big Blue does not take a quarterback at #6 OR #17, though, prepare for a bloodbath.

Only time will tell who is right.   The thing about the draft is, you never know.   The legendary 1983 draft, when six QBs were taken in round one, is proof of that.   Three of those players turned out to be Hall of Famers.   A couple were solid NFL starters with long careers, though they always labored in the shadow of the three guys who were better.   One was an out-and-out bust.   And then there was the year that Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf went one-two.  Some people insisted that Leaf was better.   Boy, were they wrong.

But that’s the fun of it.   You never know.

Myself, I am hoping that whoever the Giants draft, he spends the year on the bench.  Eli Manning is a class guy, and I’d love nothing better than for him to have a great season and lead the Giants to another SuperBowl, making all his detractors eat a big crow pie along the way.

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Current Mood: hopeful

The Giants have traded Odell Beckham Junior to the Cleveland Browns.

They get a first (the 17th overall) and a third in this year’s draft, and a safety, Jabril Peppers.

The Giants are GOING FOR IT ALL, clearly.

Yes, they are.   During the season they traded their best run-stopper, Snacks Harrison.   Come to offseason, they let Landon Collins, an All Pro safety and the heart of their defense, walk for nothing.   Then they traded their best pass rusher, Olivier Vernon.

And now they have traded OBJ.  Their best wideout, and one of the very best in the NFL.  I’ve been watching and rooting for the G-Men since “the Greatest Game Ever Played” in 1958.  Beckham was not only the best receiver on today’s Giants, but he was the best receiver this storied NFL franchise has EVER had in their long  history, and probably the best receiver they will ever have.   They are certainly not going to replace him with the 17th overall pick in the forthcoming draft.

Some of the talking heads on ESPN are suggesting the Giants might package the 6th and 17th first round picks to move up a few slots and take a QB to replace Eli Manning.   If they do, I feel sorry for that quarterback.   He’ll be playing for an awful team.

I don’t follow college football.   Is there some amazing talent coming out next year for the 2020 draft?  A new John Elway, a new Lawrence Taylor?

Because, like I said, it sure looks like the Giants are going for it all… they are going for the first overall pick in 2020.

No way that any team can replace its best wideout, its best pass rusher, its best safety, and its best run stuffer in one year, two years, three years.

I thought the last two seasons were rough for Giants fans.   Next year is going to make them look like the good old days.

Someone pinch me.  I am having a Big Blue nightmare.

Current Mood: sick

It is offseason for the NFL.  The combine is done, and free agency is about to open.

The Jets should be well positioned to be big players in free agency.   They have more than $100 million in salary cap space, more than any other team except the Indianapolis Colts.   They also have the third pick in April’s draft, which should allow them to add a monster edge rusher to the defense.   That is, assuming they pick the right one.   The last time they tried, they got Vernon Gholston.  Let’s hope they pick better this time.   They could also trade down to pick up more picks, but unless someone makes them an offer too good to refuse, I would rather they didn’t.

The Giants pick sixth, and all the mocks have them drafting Dwayne Haskins of Ohio State, a quarterback to succeed Eli Manning.  Unless someone vaults ahead of them to snatch Haskins before he falls to Big Blue, which could happen.   But I am not in favor of the G-Men giving up a king’s ransom just to move up a few slots.   They have too many other needs.

And more needs every day, it seems.  They just let Landon Collins, their all-pro strong safety, leave as a free agent rather than using the franchise tag to keep him.   It’s inexplicable to me.   Jerry Reese, the former Giants GM, drafted a lot of busts during his tenure, the big reason he was let go… but Collins was one of the ones he got right.  He’s been a great player for the Giants, a key part of their defense.   Seems to me that you build around your best players, you don’t just let them walk, but maybe the Giants know something I don’t.   If they did not have the bucks to make Collins a long term deal, at least they could have franchised him and traded him.   Gotten something back, at least.   By letting him walk they get nothing… except the dubious pleasure of watching him excel for some other team next season.

This comes on the heels of two puzzling trades the Giants made during the season.   They traded Eli Apple, one of their starting cornerbacks, to the Saints for fourth and seventh round picks, and they traded Damon ‘Snacks’ Harrison to the Lions for a fifth rounder.   Snacks was a huge presence in the middle of their D-line, one of the best run stoppers in the league.  Once he was gone, teams just started running up the gut on the Giants, gashing them again and again for solid gains.   It was painful to watch.   As for Apple, he was a first round draft choice, but he never lived up to that.   At best he was a good/ adequate cornerback; drafted that high, he should have been a great one.  So, okay, he was a disappointment.   But even so, he was better than the players who replaced him.   And now you have to wonder, can the Giants possibly find a cornerback in the 4th round as good as Apple?  Can they turn that fifth rounder into a defensive tackle as good as Snacks?  If not, they are going to get worse, not better.   And how are they going to replace Collins?

There are rumors out there that claim the Giants are shopping Odell Beckham Junior as well.   If that actually happens, it will prove that the G-Men are intent on getting rid of ALL their good players.   Maybe they really like some college kid coming out in 2020 and figure drafting sixth is not good enough.   Elsewise I really don’t understand what the hell they are doing.

I guess we’ll all know more in a few months, when free agency and the draft are done.

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Current Mood: confused

Life is meaningless…

At least for Jets fans.   Just when the team had won a couple in a row and looked as if it has turned a corner, reality set in with a painful loss to the Vikings.   The Jets hung in there for a long time and looked as if they actually had a chance, only to collapse in the second half.   The defense played hard throughout, despite the absence of three starters in the secondary.  By the end of the game, however, they were plainly exhausted from having been on the field so much.

The offense, however, was inept from start to finish.  Our kid quarterback, Sam Darnold, threw three interceptions, which will kill you every time.   He was turnover prone in college as well; that was the biggest black mark against him in the draft.  Unless he can get that under control and stop throwing the ball to the other team, all the talk about him being the next Joe Namath may be way premature (though, to be fair, Broadway Joe threw quite a few INTs himself).  He may not even be the next Chad Pennington (I still miss Chad, who is way underrated).  The offensive playcalling was pretty questionable as well.   Way too conservative.

And next week, the Bears await.

Meanwhile, I have the Giants game to “look forward to” tonight.   Hoo boy.   The G-Men look terrible.

This looks as if it is going to be another long, painful year.

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Current Mood: morose

Yes, I have been watching the NFL this year, when my schedule permitted it… which has not been every week, alas.

What can I say?  Life is cruel and full of pain.

The Jets and their new kid quarterback looked like world-beaters in week one.   Oh, sure, Darnold threw a pick-six on his first pass in the league, at which point I texted to my brother-in-law, “Please just kill me now.”  But he shook it off and turned things around and for the rest of the game he looked like the second coming of Joe Willie.   For a whole week I had hope.

Then the Jets played another game.

Unfortunately, league rules prohibit them from playing the Detroit Lions every week.   Against other teams, Darnold has looked like what he is — a rookie quarterback.  And losses have followed losses.

As for Big Blue, I really thought that last year’s record was a freakish aberration, and the addition of Saquon Barclay and the new studs on the OL would make the Giants much much better.   So far, that has proved utterly untrue.   Barclay looks as good as advertised, but the O line is still a turnstile and Eli is getting smacked in the face way too often.

It looks to be a long long year.

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Current Mood: gloomy

The NFL Draft is still weeks away, but already the talking heads on the sports shows are talking about little else.

I always follow the draft, but this year, for a change, I won’t have to wait for four hours for my teams to make a pick.

The Giants were supposed to be Superbowl contenders last season.  Instead they finished 3-13, so they have the second overall pick in the draft.

The Jets were supposed to be really really really bad last season, go winless, and get the first overall pick.  Well, no, turns out they were just bad, not really really bad, so they got the sixth overall pick.  Last month, however, they made a trade with the Colts, gave up some picks, and move on up to #3… aiming for a quarterback, clearly.  This is supposed to be an unusually good quarterback class.

So my teams are picking second and third.  The hapless Cleveland Browns are first, where they usually are.  Also fourth.  So Gang Green and the G-Men are in a sort of Browns sandwich.

So… if I was  a GM (I’m not) or an owner, who would I pick?

Most of the mocks have Cleveland taking qb Sam Darnold with the first pick.   He’s the highest rated of the four big quarterbacks that year.  Assuming Darnold is off the table, I am hoping the Giants take running back Saquon Barkley with the second pick.  Yes, lots of folks want Big Blue to grab Eli’s successor, but I don’t.  Eli still has some good years.  He’s won us two Lombardi Trophies, I would rather see us build around him and make a run for a third than start rebuilding already.  Barkley is supposed to be a surefire Hall of Famer, a generational talent, better than Todd Gurley or Ezekial Elliott or any other RB to come out in the last decade… and gods know, Eli could benefit from a running game.   He hasn’t had one since Ahmed Bradshaw moved on.

There’s also a lot of talk that the Giants might trade down, and harvest a lot of extra picks from some team wanting to jump ahead of the Jets.  That would be okay too, provided (1) they get enough for it, and (2) they don’t go any lower than #6.  Given the likely run on QBs at the top of the draft, if the G-Men stay at #6 higher, they can land either Barkley, the monster DE pass rusher Chubb, or the road grader guard out of Notre Dame, Nelson.  Any of those would be fine.  If they go down below #6, though, they could miss out on all three, and no amount of second- and third-rounders would make that worthwhile.

As for the Jets… they definitely need to take a quarterback at #3.   Which one, though?  Darnold will be gone, so the choice comes down to the two Joshs (Allen and Rosen), and Baker Mayfield out of Oklahoma.  I like Rosen, but he makes me nervous.  His injury history, especially the concussions, is worrisome.  The last thing the Jets need is another terrific, smart, accurate signal caller whose career is cut short by injuries.  Been there, done that.  See Pennington, Chad.  No, I’d take Baker Mayfield.  Yeah, he’s “short” (six feet is short?), but he’s accurate, he’s fiery, he has “intangibles.”  He reminds some people of Johnny Manziel, but that’s wrong.  He’s closer to Brett Favre.  I’ll take that.  Broadway Baker… why the hell not?  Bake us A SuperBowl!  The Jets have been waiting since 1969.

((And no, if I were the Giants, I would NOT trade Odell.  I am already pissed that they traded JPP.  Didn’t get enough for him either)).

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Current Mood: thoughtful

The NFL has wound up its regular season. Both of my teams had miserable years and are out of the playoffs. The Giants managed to win their final game, but thankfully the Colts won too, so the G-Men held on to the second overall pick in the draft. The Jets got crushed by the Pats, as usual.

Big Blue already has a new general manager and will be getting a new coach soon. I want a new Bill Parcells. Though I’d gladly take the old Bill Parcells if someone could coax him out of retirement. As for that draft pick, most of the mocks have the Giants taking a QB… but we still have Eli, and we don’t even know what Davis Webb will be yet. I’d prefer to see them trade down for multiple picks, and maybe take that stud running back out of Penn State. Let Eli play another year and bring Webb along before bringing in another QB.

The Jets, on the other hand, should take Baker Mayfield if he’s still on the board.

As for the playoffs, I don’t much care. In the AFC, I will be rooting for whoever is playing against Evil Little Bill and the Pats. In the NFC, no strong preference, but maybe a slight inclination toward the Saints. Love the city of New Orleans, and Drew Brees has been a class act.

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Current Mood: discontent

Life is meaningless and full of pain.

The Giants and Jets both played hard yesterday, but they both lost. Again.

The G-Men almost pulled off a stunning upset of the NFC-leading Eagles, but a bullshit non-call on pass interference in the endzone robbed them of the win. Eli passed for more than four hundred yards, showing why he should remain the Giants’ qb until he hangs it up.

At least the G-Men tightened their grip on that second overall draft choice.

It’s the Jets who need to draft a QB this year, though, not the Giants. Bryce Petty, filled in for the injured Josh McNown, did not impress.

Ah, the bleak December…

Current Mood: depressed