Thursday, September 5, 2019 marks the start of the 2019 NFL season. Thank the Lord because we’ve been waiting and a lot has been happening, especially over in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants have experienced many changes, hiccups, and triumphs.
I want to talk about what we’re dealing with, what we should expect, and what I want to see.
The other day, the Giants released the names of the 2019 captains. In the order of how they posted them, we have, Eli Manning, Saquon Barkley, Nate Solder, Antoine Bethea, Alec Ogletree, Zac DeOssie, and Michael Thomas.
I like this. I really like this. Let’s start with Eli. I have NEVER, not once, lost my hope in Eli and I’m excited for this year.
Eli Manning
Alright, last year, Eli achieved a completion percentage of 66% and threw for 4,299 yards. He actually threw for a greater amount of yards than Drew Brees who’s ranked second best QB when Eli’s at 25th.
Whether or not this is Eli’s last year, I feel good about him and what he’s going to achieve this year. I’m sick of people saying that this is it for Eli and it’s Daniel Jones’ time.
Is Eli the same Eli that won both Super Bowls? No. Did Jones impress during preseason? Yes. This doesn’t mean that Eli isn’t still a good player. This isn’t the old Eli. This is simply the new and older Eli. This Eli absolutely NEEDS a cooperative, a solid, an aggressive, a WORKING and overall GOOD O-Line.
Watching his press conferences, he’s fine. He’s calm and very hungry for wins. He is confident in himself and he could not care less about what people have to say about him or how people want to compare him to Daniel Jones. He doesn’t care. He’s grinding and playing for a team that he loves. Bottom line is he has been our captain, is our captain, and will always be remembered as one of the best captains the New York Giants could have asked for. End of story.
Saquon Barkley
SAQUON!!!! This is amazing and I am overjoyed and deliriously happy about Saquon being a captain.
He is entering his sophomore year in the NFL and now a team captain. This man is one of, if not the top running back in the league. Nobody expected what he would achieve last season.
Last season, Saquon achieved 11 rushing touchdowns last season and 15 overall. His speed is incredible which has been the reason for many of his touchdowns. He even achieved 721 receiving yards and 0 fumbles. He hurdles, he gives SOLID stiff arms. He is one of the most entertaining players to watch. Of course, he deserves to be captain.
Now another reason why he deserves his captain status is because of his leadership skills. Over the summer, Saquon was mic’d up at training camp and everything he did exuberated leadership.
In fact, two players walked right through a huddle and Saquon confronted them. He encouraged other players and he hustled himself. I am so incredibly excited to see him play this year and see what else he has up his sleeve.
Nate Solder
Nate Solder is fairly new to New York but obviously made a good impression being this his second year as captain.
Last season, Solder played in and started in all 16 games and achieved one fumble recovery which is great. I’d like to see more but he’s only been here a year so I’m hoping for more.
Antoine Bethea
It’s Bethea’s 14thseason but first with the Giants. Here is a veteran who has a ton of knowledge and experience that will absolutely help improve the Giants defense. I’m excited to see what comes of Bethea’s year and to be honest I see him having a huge impact on the team.
Alec Ogletree
I just want to say congratulations to Ogletree. I think he’s super happy and content being in New York.
This guy made multiple interceptions last season and has such reach and athleticism that makes him a force to be reckoned with. The amount of times that he prevented opposing team gaining yards is unbelievable. He’s right on them. He racked up two touchdowns last year after intercepting. I mean he started the year with a pick 6 in the season opener! He had one sack last season so it’d be awesome to see more than that this year. Ogletree is a beast who absolutely deserves to be captain.
Zak DeOssie
Here we have DeOssie who was drafted by the Giants in 2007 so … I love that he’s a captain. He’s been here a good 12 years now. Personally, for me, I’ve always known him to be on the team since I was seven years old when he was drafted plus I love the fact that his father was a long snapper for the Giants as well.
He had three solo tackles last year. That was in one game which was the only game that he played in.
Michael Thomas
I love it. He is such a team player in addition to being a great guy. (My cousins met him last year and he was so great to them.) Last year he had 59 tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles, and six passes defended! Thank you very much and let’s do that again this year even better!
What We’re Looking At
Ok, so we have our QB’s who have been under a HUGE microscope this offseason. Eli and Daniel Jones. We’ve also got Tanney but we’re talking about Eli and Jones. If Eli is doing well right off the bat, then I don’t see Jones starting until at least week six if and only if they’re losing. If they’re winning, Eli’s staying in. It’d be irresponsible and unintelligent to take him out if they’re winning.
Despite what different commentators and media outlets are saying, Jones never should have been in the conversation of starting week one. That’s absurd. As impressive of a performance he put on in preseason, starting Jones is saying that the Giants have given up on Eli and that they don’t even want to see what he can do this year with new players. Coach Shurmur has been behind Eli 100 percent and I never doubted his decision on his starting QB on opening day.
As we get to receivers, Sterling Shepard is the big man this year. His thumb is looking like it’s brand new and he’s going to be just fine. Odell is gone. Get over it. We have Shepard who signed a new contract and is all smiles. The hustle and effort that I saw from Shepard last year made me like him even more. Odell started dropping passes last year and only played 12 of the 16 games. Shepard started showing himself more and hustled to make catches and ran his routes so well.
Shepard spoke to the press and stated that there’s a different feeling in the locker room this year and I think that’s evident to everyone. There’s more chemistry which obviously makes a player more comfortable and more importantly, more confident. I truly, truly, believe that Shepard is going to have a standout year and is going to perform in a way that we have never seen before or at least he should.
In addition to Shepard we have Cody Latimer, Darius Slayton, Brittan Golden (who did pretty well in preseason), Russell Shepard, and now we have the one and only, Golden Tate. I am so excited to see what he does. I can’t even tell you how excited I am. Now he has a four-game suspension due to taking fertility drugs that he was unaware were violating the NFL’s policy but when he’s back it’s going to be good. I feel it.
Saquon is the man. He is in a category of his own in which no one else can or will be able to get into. Not Zeke, not McCaffrey, not Kamara, Gurley, or Bell. It’s just Saquon and that is an amazing thing. He is on the New York Giants and I think that is so beautiful to say and I truly believe that this whole thing of us getting him in the draft was a work of God.
Saquon is what the New York Giants needed. It’s sort of like when a person feels stuck and becomes doubtful and depressed with their life and then one day they meet a person and that person changes their whole world and everything becomes better and they start to see the light at the end of the tunnel. The Giants and Giants fans are the depressed person and Saquon is the person who changed our lives.
He got the mojo back. Of course, there have been countless other problems with this team *coughs the O-Line* and that is why last year’s record was 5-11 but Saquon gave us hope. Now he’s our captain. He will undoubtedly make plays this year and Giants fans are at the edges of their seats overwhelmingly excited to see what he does.
There is another RB in the house who is Paul Perkins who had a decent preseason but there’s also Wayne Gallman. Gallman experienced a foot injury recently but is still the Saquon backup so we’ll see what happens.
We’ve also got our tight ends, mainly Engram and Ellison who I wasn’t disappointed with last year and I think everyone has got a lot of hope for.
The O-Line. They better Step. It. Up. Everybody likes to say Eli’s the problem. That is a false statement. He was never the full problem. It was the O-Line. I’m writing this in a very calm sense as when your parents are so livid with you, they can’t even yell, they’re just speaking through their teeth and you should be scared out of your mind.
The O-Line should be one of the most frustrating parts of this team for players, staff, and fans. Frankly, what they have allowed happen is unacceptable.
ELI MANNING WAS SACKED 47 TIMES LAST SEASON. 47 times! Last year Blake Bortles was sacked 31 times. Why? Because the Jaguars had a great line. Jared Goff was sacked 33 times, and yes, I’m going to do it because I’m honest; one of biggest enemies in New York…the man who is absolutely worshipped in New England… Tom Brady was sacked exactly 21 times. That’s the number two and one. 21 times. Again why? Because they were better than the Giants. These three teams, the Jaguars, the Rams, and Patriots had better O-Lines.
Here’s a little letter to the O-Line:
Eli’s not getting any younger. Stop letting him take these hits and fix it because the whole city of New York is going to be on your backs. If the O-Line is good, Eli has time to make a complete pass and his targets and the cornerbacks on the opposing team will be our worry. Fix yourselves. I believe in you and I’m not giving up on you so fix-your-selves. Thank you.
As for defense, Collins is gone. Olivier Vernon is gone. It was tough to watch these guys leave but that’s the NFL. New season, new hopes.
We have Ogletree who I trust with all my heart. We have Jabrill Peppers!!!! He had a sack last year and 79 tackles with five passes defended. If he improves this year, we’ll be in good business.
We have Bethea who has a great amount of knowledge and hustle with his veteran status and we have Lorenzo Carter and Dalvin Tomlinson who should improve this year.
We also have Michael Thomas and Jenkins who have both had a major impact. We also have rookie, Cory Ballentine who is third string right now yet has already faced a ton of adversity having lost his friend after being shot. Ballentine was also in the hospital after being injured in the shooting. He was drafted out of a D2 school which is amazing and I hope to see really great things out of him this year.
Preseason
The Giants were undefeated this preseason. I understand that it was only preseason but preseason is where you get to see certain talent that you may not see or would not have seen during the regular season. Players like Victor Cruz are found and sought-after during preseason. For undrafted players like Cruz or guys from smaller schools, this is their time to shine and this year, they definitely did.
Players like Jake Carlock, Reggie White Jr., and CJ Conrad showed what they can do and showed that they have potential.
Reggie White Jr. went to my school, Monmouth University. I’m not being biased because he’s an actual good player! I got the chance to watch him at college games and my senior year of high school I attended the homecoming game with my family. My Dad said that Reggie White Jr. was going to the NFL. That he had to. And he was right!
In the preseason, he caught eight catches for 115 yards. His athleticism is incredible and his family’s support which was all the talk on Twitter made it even better. If he isn’t brought up in the Giants organization, he’ll be somewhere else in the NFL guaranteed.
He is the top player I see being brought up. He’s dedicated, determined, and grateful and that’s what makes a great NFL player.
Last preseason, the Giants were 2-2 in preseason and ended up being 5-11 in the regular season. Wow, they won two more games than the previous year. Wow, they did a little better than the past two years. No, no, no, and no. I’m sick of losing. I’m sick of being a joke. They didn’t make the playoffs in 2012, 2013, 2014, or 2015. They made it in 2016! But they lost and haven’t been back since. It is so sad to see a team be at the top of their game and just crumble downhill.
This year is going to be different. I feel it. I think everyone feels it. There is chemistry back in the locker room and on the field. There’s no drama. It looks like a clean slate for these guys. Just look at the depth that they have. Preseason consists of third and fourth string players and with those players, we were undefeated. Just imagine what can happen.
Sure, Zeke is back in Dallas but I’m ready for a good season opener to remember and more importantly a season to remember. GO BIG BLUE.
Awesome article!
Thanks so much!