The team’s focus should be on whether they have their cornerstone QB on the roster, or not.
Whatever happened to good ol’ fashion competition, and keeping the main thing, the main thing?
Giants general manager Joe Schoen told the media Monday at the NFL Owners Meeting in Palm Beach, Florida that newly acquired quarterback Russell Wilson will get first-team reps in spring practices and also set the foundation for potentially not drafting a quarterback with their No.3 pick in the NFL Draft in April.
Make no mistake about it; the Giants need to focus on getting the primary position on the field right, not on publicly delivering any potential caveats.
The first way to accomplish that is by having the best passer on the field as a result of their superior attributes, period. This outcome should be free of politics, pay, or any potential pressures leveraged in negotiations for said role. The fact there was already a pre-existing notion that Wilson is the Giants’ QB1 prior to Schoen’s media session in Palm Beach, already works against the aforementioned goal.
Many factors to consider in deciding QB1…
If Wilson is truly that much better than the team’s other quarterbacks, Jameis Winston and Tommy DeVito, it will be clear to everyone through on-field competition, not just a press conference.
Even if one believes salary should be a factor for mandating starting status in the NFL, the reality in Wilson’s case is that making $14.5M annually actually is not the compensation level for such a mandate anyway. Wilson’s average may currently be the highest on the team, but compared to the top quarterbacks in the league, that number speaks for itself. This only reinforces the need for a quarterback competition, beyond the obvious fact that this is sports.
The second way you accomplish getting the primary position right is by doing everything that’s necessary to draft your guy when the opportunity is there at said position. For the Giants, if that is Shedeur Sanders (assuming the Titans draft Cam Ward) then the Giants need to get it done. Meaning, the team should not merely use a season on building around insurance plans; it should be built around attaining the franchise plan.
To make it plain, the Giants of all teams—centered around the Big Apple, ‘the city that never sleeps,’ ‘the concrete jungle where dreams are made of’—have no time for games.
Not under that glare, especially with their recent history of disappointing seasons.
A potential franchise-altering draft
Instead of setting up time to lay the groundwork for potentially going non-quarterback at No.3, Schoen should be using every ounce of his time figuring out what the heck is happening with Cleveland at the No.2 spot, and with all teams looking to make moves; so that you make a move that’s the smartest and the one that is the most stealth.
Alternatively, if the organization feels their guy is not Sanders, you better make sure that decision is not a miss with the anticipated hype that’ll occur with that pass if Cleveland opts for the same.
For me, there’s no talking about next year’s quarterback class; in the same way, there’s no talking about tomorrow, because neither is guaranteed.
The Giants have to seize the moment of the near-top slot that they’re in now.
The current QB room…and what’s next?
Now, the mindset of making a panic move in March by getting Wilson, so you don’t have to panic as much in April, is arguably understandable.
Jameis Winston is 31 and is a younger starting prospect than Wilson at 36. Both have the potential to get it done and anchor a quarterback room for an emergent elite prospect. Right now I believe Winston is physically better situated at this stage for doing that than Wilson, but once again, it still has to be shown on the field. Regardless, the point is that it’s not about doing what is understandable or just building a safety net; it’s about making sure you have your cornerstone.
Seriously.
Which player on the Giants roster right now is the cornerstone? The player that not only generates hope, whether on the bench waiting their turn, or into the future? Who is that player?
If that player is not on the roster now, and that player is not at the primary position, then what are we talking about in terms of announcing who has first-team reps in April, or in March?
The focus should be on the main thing first by ensuring plan A is on the field and having everyone else battle it out in an actual competition from there.
That’s it.
Nothing else.
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