New York Giants Off To A Solid Start Erasing Any Hope For A Successful 2015

With a dismal 2014 season long gone, there was reason for optimism coming into 2015. On the offensive side of the ball, Eli & Odell are leading the way with significant reinforcements for Ben McAdoo’s sophomore year as OC. A healthy Cruz & James Jones better the receiving corps. The signing of Shane Vereen bolsters the backfield. Getting arguably their best offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz back strengthens a line that also added absolute mauler Ereck Flowers with their top pick. Defensively, they couldn’t get much worse – but dumping Perry Fewell for the return of Steve Spags was a great start. A potential full season from Prince with DRC & some new young blood at the safety position gives upside to improving their secondary. A healthy Beason & Ayers, a franchised JPP and DaMonster/Big Hank ready to take the next step got Big Blue fans excited. Wishful thinking? Maybe…but there was hope.
Fast forward past their preseason opener and already we’ve been kicked in the collective dicks repeatedly by a Giants squad apparently looking to stretch their “NFL’s Most Injured Team” streak to 3 seasons. Forget how poorly most of the 1’s played while out there – if the G-Men are to surprise, players need to stay in one piece. Instead, that secondary upside lost Landon Collins for most likely the rest of the preseason with a sprained MCL. While he should be OK for the start of the season, he’s losing valuable rookie reps. 5th rounder Mykkele Thompson will miss his rookie year with a blown Achilles while McBride & Hosley joined Prince & Chykie Brown on the list of injured DB’s. It’s already bad enough for the Giants to bring in past-his-prime head hunter Brandon Meriweather for help. Yikes.
That’s not all. With Beatty sidelined, Flowers is the guy we’re crossing our fingers for to man the left tackle position. He’s missed some work with hip issues though, along with Schwartz’s foot costing him time already too. Jake Long has been on the radar for some time now but if he was a legitimate boost to the line he’d be inked. Oh yeah, and we still don’t know how many fingers Big Blue’s best defensive end has. Good times.
The question marks the Giants had coming in were supposed to be based on performance. Could rookies Flowers & Collins contribute right away? Can Spags scheme a mediocre defense with the pieces he’s got? Would a realigned, retooled line open up enough room for their three-headed RB committee to better their paltry 3.6 yards per carry from last year? Instead it’s barely mid-August and already a crapshoot as to who will be on the field next month in Dallas. Injuries are a part of football but no squad has been hit harder since 2013. Yeah it’s early, but any hopes for a competitive year in the NFC East are already being replaced with hopes that the season doesn’t end before it starts.