It seems like light years ago when the New York Giants captured a 2016 wild card berth with a 11-5 record. Since then, the franchise has suffered through a 12-36 mark and began this season 0-2 for the fourth consecutive year. I know this notion is hard to believe as the franchise sinks further into oblivion, but Giants fans need to be patient with first-year head coach Joe Judge.
Giants Fans Must Stay Patient With Joe Judge
Joe Judge Has a Huge Challenge Ahead of Him
Judge wasn’t the first choice of Big Blue’s fan base, but he came with the blessings of two football gods in Bill Belichick and Nick Saban. The reality is Judge has inherited a very inexperienced roster that has not enjoyed much success on the football field.
Regardless, Judge’s main goal is for his team to play error-free football each week. And that commitment is a two-way street as he expects the players to show discipline and attention to detail on the field. Unfortunately, this mess will take some time to clean up.
One of Judge’s biggest challenges will be trying to change the losing culture that has seeped into this once proud franchise. He needs to find a way to win, but that is easier said than done. The Giants have had plenty of ups and downs in their first two games. Now, Judge must get his players to block out the negative noise and begin believing in one another. If not, then the Giants won’t be able to move forward any time soon.
Daniel Jones Must Become a Team Leader
If the Giants are going to come out of this abyss, then Daniel Jones must be leading the charge. No question, Jones has the skills to be successful in the NFL. He can make plays, but Jones hasn’t received enough protection (seven sacks allowed) in the pocket to accomplish this task. The lack of time negates him from getting comfortable and picking a part an opposing defense. When Jones is on his game, he sees the entire field well and throws an exceptional deep ball. But, that aspect of the passing game has been missing in the first two weeks of the season.
Pandemic Has Compromised Judge’s Ability to Coach
In all honesty, this season shouldn’t come with much expectations from a Giants perspective. No question, the coronavirus pandemic has brought a challenge to Joe Judge. He wasn’t allowed to have any in-person contact with his players until the start of training camp in late July. That meant no organized team activities (OTAs), mini-camps or on-field practice sessions. This made it impossible for him and his coaching staff to implement a new system.
Instead, they held virtual team meetings, which helps with the learning of the terminology, but does very little with executing the scheme on the field. Don’t discount the importance of preseason games as this is a terrific player evaluation tool for a new coaching staff.
Right now, the deck is stacked against the Giants having any success in 2020. But you won’t hear Judge complaining about the cards that was dealt to him. He feels every NFL team is facing the same obstacles this season.
With the current mix on the roster and the upcoming schedule that doesn’t afford the Giants an opportunity for a possible win until Week 6 at home against Washington. It’s time for Giants fans to keep their head up and stay positive.
It is not hard to remain optimistic with Judge at the helm. Now, the players must stay on course and create their own opportunities to garner a win.
Right now, we are all talking in hypotheticals until actual improvement is seen on the field.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
