The New York Giants are starting the 2024 NFL season 2-8 and have virtually disappeared from the postseason list – again – two weeks before Thanksgiving.
It's co-owner John Mara's recurring nightmare. That their multi-billion dollar stadium may be half empty while the rest of the league chases their dreams has become an all-too-familiar reality for the Giants.
Since handing over the reins to general manager Joe Schoen in January 2022, the Giants are 17-26-1 and 1-1 in the postseason.
But there is hope, Schoen said in his annual bye news conference this week. He is confident that the team is “not far away” and has no doubts about his plan, which is already in its third season.
“I believe in the process. I believe where we are going,” he said. “Even when you’re building up, sometimes it hurts and it’s painful and it’s hard to get through it. But we are going in the right direction.”
Schoen feels this because of the young core he has under his roof and which he would like to continue to expand. He talked about his latest draft class, which has performed very well.
“There are some young foundations here that we will continue to build on. Another year of free agency and another draft, we're not far away. We’re not far away,” he said.
The previous two drafts also added some talent and depth to the roster that it so desperately needed.
“I like the guys in our first two drafts. Where we were then and what we wanted to achieve when we returned,” he said. “We needed players. At this point there were five healthy offensive players in the squad. So there were players or situations where you were trying to complete the roster, whether some of those players were strong players or certain roles that they had developed.
“(Cor'Dale) Flott is a third-round pick who has played solid for us this year. He plays nickel. Wan'Dale (Robinson) has developed into a good slot receiver. I think he's in the top 10 in receptions in the league. Some guys are role players. You need these people too. I wish I could hit a thousand, you always want to do that.
“But I believe in the people in the building. I believe in our process. I believe in the research we do, the work we do. I think you saw the results last offseason with the draft we had. I look forward to continuing to hopefully have some designs comparable to this.”
Schoen will obviously get the chance to continue building. He was asked if he felt like he would come back next year and didn't hesitate to confirm this.
This came after Mara said he did not believe the team would make any changes at the top during or after the season.
