The Jets and Giants have plenty in common this season.
Overall struggling defenses, inconsistent special teams, and maturing quarterbacks with inconsistent offenses sprinkled with optimism, are among the most mentioned.
It hasn’t been a season filled with optimism with both having young quarterbacks who have the potential to be centerpieces in the league for quite some time.
That may still happen, in fact, most signs point their way.
But with Week Eight already behind us, both teams have shown signs of already leaning toward the
Future with imminent changes ahead.
This was on the heels of the Jets (1-6) traveling to Jacksonville for an interesting contest, and the Giants (2-6) heading to Detroit for a challenging one.
The Jets’ offensive line was another disaster and the defensive line couldn’t register a timely sack in their 29-15 loss, and the Giants’ couldn’t make enough big plays in their 31-26 loss to Detroit that wasn’t as close as the score.
The NFL trading deadline is Tuesday, and word had filtered out of Florham Park that the Jets are seeking to deal some major pieces, notably defensive end Leonard Williams and wide receiver Robbie Anderson.
Jamal Adams also allegedly has been mentioned, but it is hard to believe the Jets would deal one oftheir captains and anchors for the future. Williams has long been rumored to be on the block. New England recently sent malcontent defensive lineman Michael Bennett to Dallas for a fourth-round pick. Wouldn’t it be ironic if Bill Belichick picked up Williams for a low-round pick and resurrected him into a valuable member of his rotation? His probable new home will be Kansas City.
The Jets ended the Kelechi Osemele saga by finally releasing the guard a day after his surgery. Stay tuned because it likely isn’t over.
This week’s actions are a major move to cut ties with players from former GM Mike Maccagnan’s reign.
New GM Joe Douglas has been quiet on the western front, and apparently he will begin to put his stamp on the team.
But Douglas should have made that move with a legitimate kicker weeks ago. Did you see how New England plugged in veteran kicker Mike Nugent when Stephen Gostkowski went down with an injury?
The Belichick haunt won’t go away quickly.
Yet, looking at the Jets’ remaining schedule, they easily could notch five more wins on their schedule with their current squad. Sam Darnold was his old self on the opening drive and completed his first seven passes against Jacksonville, but he was a shadow on himself the rest of the way. They also failed to create enough space for Le’Veon Bell, whose 23 yards against Jacksonville and 326 yards overall what anyone expected. Bell has been the good soldier, but will that last?
On the other hand, the Giants are on the verge of lighting a fire sale like they did at trading deadline last year.
Cornerback Janoris Jenkins should have some suitors and is the likeliest to go. Left tackle Nate Solder was made at the time the richest offensive lineman, but he has been a shadow of himself since he left New England. Solder reportedly is being shopped, and Giants GM Dave Gettleman has been looking to replace him with Carolina’s Daryl Williams, who will be a free agent. Look for Jenkins also to be a Chief Tuesday.
If they trade Solder and don’t have a suitable replacement, Daniel Jones could be the next Andrew Luck.
In a couple of seasons. Eight sacks by Arizona last week was one of their embarrassments.
Like the Jets, the Giants had a tough time in Detroit because their defense was inconsistent. Jones rebounded after a sluggish start and showed that his best days are just around the corner with his four touchdown passes.
However, until we see any progress, it won’t be pretty. When these teams meet in two weeks, one team could be headed back toward on the long road toward respectability with a low-number draft pick, while the other could be looking at one of top five picks for next April.
Or both could be continuingly plotting to what they look like in 2022.