Drew Lock’s performance on Sunday hinted at what it could look like if the Giants got quality QB play on a consistent basis
With 309 passing yards, four touchdown throws, and a rushing touchdown Drew Lock on Sunday played the most prolific game by a New York Giants quarterback since Daniel Jones threw five touchdown passes in a 2019 Week 16 victory over Washington.
The result was that the Giants blew past not only the 30-point barrier for the first time this season, but scored 45 points, their most since that aforementioned 2019 game in which they beat Washington in overtime, 41-35. Sunday’s output against the Indianapolis Colts was the most points the Giants have scored since a 52-49 loss to the New Orleans Saints in a classic 2015 meeting between Eli Manning and Drew Brees.
Was Sunday’s game proof of concept that all the 3-13 Giants need is the right quarterback to bring about a dramatic turnaround? Could their own C.J. Stroud or Jayden Daniels be all the Giants need to become a winning team?
GM Joe Schoen said at the bye week, when the Giants were 2-8 and preparing to move on from Daniel Jones, that the Giants were “not far off” from being a good team. That could have been interpreted as Schoen saying the right quarterback would go a long way toward helping the team make a significant leap in 2025.
Was that the GM pre-emptively pitching to keep his job and have the chance to find that quarterback this offseason? Maybe.
We will know in a few days if Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll will remain in their jobs past Sunday’s season finale against the Philadelphia Eagles.
After watching Lock’s performance on Sunday, Daboll spent a lot of time focused on the impact of good quarterback play. Time that could also be interpreted as Daboll pitching for a chance to keep his job and work with a quarterback he helps to choose next season.
“That’s how the offense needs to perform. That’s how the quarterback needs to perform,” was Daboll’s first quarterback reference. It came in his opening remarks, and there were others.
There was:
“I think if you get good quarterback play, you have an opportunity in every game.”
And then one that was all-encompassing, but included the quarterback:
“That’s what it needs to look like, though. You need to win the turnover ratio. You need good quarterback play. You need to take the ball away. You need run after catch. You need explosive plays. You need good tackling. There’s no secret to this league. If you do all those things, you have a chance.”
Is it really as simple for the Giants as get the right quarterback, and they magically become a contender? They become the Texans with Stroud, the Commanders with Daniels, the Minnesota Vikings with the suddenly superb Sam Darnold? The Miami Dolphins when Tua Tagovailoa is healthy?
Well, no. There are a lot of other problems to fix and questions to answer.
- They clearly need more help on the defensive line.
- They need a No. 1 cornerback. They also need to figure out if Deonte Banks is a player they can work with.
- With Jason Pinnock headed to free agency, they probably need help at safety.
- Sticking to the defensive side of the ball, they need to decide if Shane Bowen was the right hire as defensive coordinator. If they believe he is, they need to get him more players who fit what he wants to do.
- They need to build the offensive line depth. In particular, they need to get some young players into the pipeline.
- With Darius Slayton likely headed to free agency and Jalin Hyatt not meeting expectations, they need more at wide receiver.
More important that any of that, though, is getting the quarterback position right. I honestly believe the Giants, before the rash of injuries to critical players, had a roster that should have won more than three games at this point. I do believe quarterback play held the Giants back in many winnable games this season.
Quarterback is the most important position in football, probably the most important and most difficult position to play in all of sports.
When you get it right, other things tend to fall into place. When you get it wrong, that tends to hold you back, no matter how much you get right across the rest of the roster.
I do think it is fair to believe that Schoen and Daboll are pitching the idea that they can turn the Giants around if they get the right quarterback. Maybe they can. Maybe they can’t. Maybe they won’t even get the opportunity.
If they do get to stick around for 2025, the way the Jones era ended and not drafting a quarterback last season means they have backed themselves into a corner and have almost no choice but to take a quarterback this time — whether it is a great quarterback class or not.
“I love evaluating quarterbacks,” Daboll said last offseason. “I love meeting with the quarterbacks. It’s an awesome position to work with and it’s a really fun position to evaluate.”
Can he and Schoen get it right? If they get the chance, they better.
