New York overachieved in 2022, so what steps need to be taken in order to return to the postseason next year? Check out the Giants’ top priorities ahead of the 2023 campaign.
There’s always something special about a cinderella team like the New York Giants. It’s a feeling of betting with house money. If the team stinks, it’s just another year at the Meadowlands. But if the team is good? The entire Tri-state is ready to party.
That’s what made this past season special for the Giants. Nobody expected them to be good. Nobody expected them to win more than seven games. There were a couple of things New York fans hoped for this season:
- Saquon Barkley coming back and looking like a superstar.
- Daniel Jones looking like a competent starting QB.
- Brian Daboll implementing a creative system.
- Joe Schoen getting the organization back on track.
All the boxes were checked, and the G-Men ended a six-year playoff drought. They even squeezed a win out in the Super Wild Card round, though that was followed by a blowout loss at the hands of the Eagles. The difference is that the Giants were happy to be there. The Eagles were supposed to be there.
Now, it’s on Joe Schoen and the front office to maximize the $3,023,936 in cap space they have and turn into one of those teams that are supposed to be there.
“We’d like to have all the guys back, I really would,” said Schoen. “But there’s a business side to it. There are rules that you need to operate under in terms of the salary cap.”
Let’s break down the offseason outlook and priorities for the New York Giants.
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2023 Giants Offseason Priorities
Saquon Barkley
Barkley was back looking like the superstar he was during his rookie season, falling one TD shy of matching his career mark while turning in his third 1,000-yard season. At 25, he’s reasserted himself as one of the best backs in all of football — and he wants to be paid as such. His market value indicates an average annual salary of $11,946,991, but he wants more than that.
“We weren’t really that close,” Schoen said via Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano, who reported that a multi-year deal worth $12 million per season was offered to Barkley. Barkley reportedly declined that offer, hoping for a deal similar to 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey, who earns $16 million per year.
“I’m not really too concerned about resetting any markets,” he explained. “I know what I was on pace to do, but having two years filled up with injuries and having a season not performing to the level I know I can perform (last year) doesn’t help.”
Daniel Jones
The 25-year-old QB isn’t overly fancy, but he’s learned how to get the job done for a winning football team, and that’s more than the G-Men have been able to say for quite a while.
Jones is ineligible for the franchise tag because the Giants declined the fifth-year option on his contract in April 2022. So, in the upcoming offseason, it’s a question more so related to how much and how long? The value Jones creates indicates that he could land something in the neighborhood of three years and $75 million.
Notable Mentions:
- S Julian Love
- WR Darius Slayton
- DE Jihad Ward
What to do with Kenny Golladay?
What a mess. The Giants signed the supposed-to-be WR1 to a four-year, $72 million deal in the 2021 offseason. It took him two seasons, 22 months, 26 games, and $36 million later for him to catch his first TD as a Giant in the final moments of the Giants’ Week 18 loss to the Eagles. Otherwise, he managed just 43 receptions and 602 receiving yards — an absolute brutal return on investment for the G-Men.
Schoen can release Golladay and save $6.7 million in cap space while assuming $14.7 million in dead money.
Closing Statement
The Giants did everything they needed to do this season in order to rid the stench that reeked from the Dave Gettleman era. The culture is re-established, young players flourished, and the coaching staff and front office proved themselves worthy. Now, they’ll have to take that next step in the 2023 offseason and build on the momentum with continuity and growth.
Expectations will only mount along with the cornerstones’ paychecks.
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