Tom Vayda asks: What is the source of the problem with Hyatt? He played in the Seattle game but I did not see targets. I believe he has 0 catches this year. Does Jones not have confidence in him, is it poor route running or lack of separation?
Maybe related, it seems Jones does not distribute the ball often. He finally threw to TEs this week. He focuses on a few receivers, even when others are on the field. Is his progression poor or is it that he stares down receivers?
Tim Carroll asks: When he was so highly praised throughout spring and camp . Why is he not being used something is rotten in Denmark
Ed says: Guys, it is correct that Jalin Hyatt did not receive any targets vs. the Seattle Seahawks despite playing 48 snaps. It is stunning that Hyatt doesn’t have a catch through five games. To me, the “problem” is that Hyatt is the No. 4 wide receiver. Malik Nabers, Wan’Dale Robinson, and Darius Slayton are better. The Giants are throwing the ball to the running backs a fair amount. They want to target rookie tight end Theo Johnson.
I think that stuff about Daniel Jones not distributing the ball is nonsense. Have you read or listened to Brian Daboll praise Jones multiple times this season for making good decisions and throwing the ball where it needed to or was supposed to go? Jones is playing well.
Nabers is really good and the Giants call his number A LOT. Same with Robinson. Nabers is on pace to break Steve Smith’s franchise record of 109 catches, and Robinson is on pace to tie it.
Daboll is calling plays for his best players, they are getting open, and that is where the ball is going.
I like Hyatt a lot and still think he can be a successful player. Maybe, though, when the pads come on he isn’t as good as he looks practicing in shorts and a t-shirt. It wouldn’t be the first time we have seen that.
Dave P. asks: When is Graham Gano expected to be back? If this week or next, do you think a team like the 49ers be willing to give a draft pick for Greg Joseph? Even a 6th round would be like finding a lucky coin on the sidewalk. What do you think?
Ed says: Dave, Gano was placed on IR after Week 2. He has to miss at least four games, which means he won’t be eligible to return until Week 7 against the Philadelphia Eagles? Will he be ready by then? No idea. The Giants aren’t going to give us any information on that. I’m sure Brian Daboll will be asked about that next week, so maybe we will get some idea then.
As for Joseph, do you seriously think any team out there is going to give up a sixth-round pick for him? There are probably a dozen kickers like Joseph on practice squads or available as free agents right now. No one is giving up a draft pick for Joseph
Tom Rudolph asks: Why do NFL refs sometimes specify that a timeout is a 30-second timeout and other times not? Are there different timeout lengths and if so how is that determined?
Ed says: This comes directly from the NFL rulebook:
Length of Timeouts. Charged team timeouts shall be two minutes in length unless the timeout is not used by television for a commercial break. Timeouts shall be 30 seconds in length when the designated number of television commercials have been exhausted in a quarter, if it is a second charged team timeout in the same dead-ball period, or when the Referee so indicates.
Bill Goggin asks: I watched the YouTube of the final injury report press conference and it was impossible to hear what Daboll was saying because of the plane noise. The New York Giants are one of the premier sports franchises on the planet. Can they really not afford a room that is quiet to hold press conferences? I’d imagine this must bug you way more than it bugs me, but can they really not find a better location?
Ed says: Bill, I wish they would change the location as well. Those pressers are held right outside the Giants’ facility just a few steps from the practice field. So, it’s on the way for head coach Brian Daboll. Yes, the planes fly directly overhead, which often makes questions and answers impossible to hear.
There are other places these could be held, but that is their choice.
Bryan Stone asks: You’ve written that in all likelihood the Giants will move on from Jones after this year. You’ve also said how hard it is to acquire a great or even good QB given the difficulty of the position.
Without opining on any individual 2025 draft prospect, do you think the Giants would be wise to select two QBs – and even keep selecting into 2026. I know there are other needs but QB seems to be the one that is most urgent and most difficult.
Ed says: Bryan, no I’m not a fan of selecting multiple quarterbacks in a draft. Washington did that years ago ago with Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins, and it worked to a certain extent because of RGIII’s injuries. I can’t, though, recall that working in another circumstance.
To me, it’s a waste of resources. You have to fill out a full roster, and by picking two quarterbacks you are guaranteeing picking at least one player who won’t play. I don’t have any issue with taking a mid- or late-round flier on a quarterback occasionally, but the odds of those things working out are incredibly slim.
Wayne Mirsky asks: In watching last weeks Giant game, in their first possession they drove to the Seahawks 1 yard line . Why didn’t they use the push, the one that the Eagles have perfected, especially on fourth down. It seems that every time I see the Eagles use it, it always works.
Do you know if the Giants have ever used it or even practiced it?
On another note to the same issue, Dexter Lawrence cannot be stopped by one player. Why not put him in on these offensive goal line plays and run it right behind him? Incidentally, he looks like the second coming of Aaron Donald on defense.
Ed says: Wayne, just because a play works for one team doesn’t mean it will work for another. The Giants tried the Tush Push a couple of times a year ago, and failed miserably with it. Besides, you really want to put a quarterback who has had two neck injuries in the middle of a scrum like that?
As for Dexter Lawrence, you really want to risk getting your best defensive player hurt playing fullback? I don’t. I know he did occasionally in college, but I can’t see it now.
David Kanter asks: After reading all the stats of how much Jones is targeting Nabers do you think the Giants really need a solid No. 2 to keep Ds away from focusing on him moving forward? I’m thinking of an effective, proven receiver who stays on the field and is an AMAZING teammate and garners a reasonable contract. Oh wait, don’t we have that in Slayton? Why aren’t they resigning this guy. He’s everything I love in a Giant. And I would put it on Jones to get him the ball more this season. Look at what he is a capable of!
Ed says: C’mon, David! Have you watched the games? Wan’Dale Robinson is the No. 2 wide receiver. He is on pace to tie Steve Smith’s franchise record of 109 receptions, which Malik Nabers is on pace to break.
Darius Slayton is a good player. The Giants know that. Maybe they will re-sign him. Maybe he will be too expensive, and will go elsewhere. That is to be determined. As for Jones getting the ball to Slayton, they have worked together for six years. You know that Jones has no hesitation in throwing Slayton the ball. Jones executes the plays that are called. If the play call is for Nabers, or Robinson, or Theo Johnson, or whoever, and that player is open that is where the ball is going to go.
Jones has done a good job so far this season making decisions with the ball and throwing it where it needed to be thrown. It will go to Slayton when it’s supposed to.
Doug Mollin asks: What do you think of the play of JMS this season?
Last year he may have been the worst starting center in the league.
This season, he’s played 337 snaps with 0 penalties and 0 sacks allowed. His PFF score is up from a horrific 41.4 last year to an almost average 60.6.
Maybe he’s healthy, maybe it’s Bricillo magic, but it would be huge to have our 2023 second-round pick hold down the center spot for the next 7-8 years.
Ed says: John Michael Schmitz has undoubtedly been much better this season. He has, thus far, taken a step forward. That is exactly what you hope second-year players will do.
Pro Football Focus grades are never the be-all, end-all for a player. I do think they are useful here. Schmitz has seen his overall PFF grade rise nearly 20 points, his pass-blocking grade go up 23 points, and his run-blocking grade go up 12 points. Of 30 centers who have played at least 349 snaps (don’t ask me how PFF comes up with a number like 349) Schmitz is ranked No. 19. That is middle of the pack, and very much an improvement from 2023.
Offensive line coaches Carmen Bricillo and James Ferentz get some of the credit, I’m sure. Schmitz gets some of the credit. The solid veteran players around him also are a big help.
Whatever the reason, the improvement was something the Giants needed and it is good to see.
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