"On offense, we need to score more points."So says Giants head coach Pat Shurmur in the Captain Obvious moment of the week.
The Giants (1-7) scored another last-gasp touchdown Sunday, making their 20-13 loss to the Washington Redskins look more compelling. But just as they had done the week before against the Atlanta Falcons, it didn't paint the proper montage of the New York "Football" Giants, a team that rarely hits the red zone, and then when it does, they morph into the New York "Field Goal" Giants.
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The Giants aren't publicly tanking. But they traded Eli Apple and Damon Harrison last week. And word is that Janoris Jenkins and Olivier Vernon are being dangled as trade bait. And, according to Chris Mortenson, even stalwart safety Landon Collins might be available at the right price.
Which leads us to the question du jour. What does Big Blue do with Eli Manning? How do they sit, cut or trade their iconic QB? How do they face reality, save face, yet appease their most important player of this young century?
The Giants can't do all the above. Not while Manning still feels he's a franchise quarterback. Not while the Giants plunge toward another 3-13 season. Not while they don't have a Sam Darnold or similar on the sideline.
The team tried benching Manning last year, and it biblically exploded in its face. The timing was wrong, the excuse was wrong, and the QB they used in Manning's place (Geno Smith) had already bombed with the Jets and had eight toes out the door. They don't have Smith anymore. Instead, they have rookie Kyle Lauletta. If we're candid, we all admit that if Lauletta had something special in his arm and soul, he likely would have taken snaps by now.
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But Giants fans must have watched Ryan Fitzpatrick parachute onto the Cincinnati turf Sunday and lead the Buccaneers on yet another comic-book comeback and wonder why this doesn't happen for them. Sure, the Bengals won the game, but Fitzpatrick took a team that had surrendered and pulled them out of an 18-point hole in the fourth quarter. It's hard to imagine such a magical moment from Eli anymore.
Since 2015, only Blake Bortles (72) and Jameis Winston (70) have more turnovers than Eli Manning, who has 64. Unlike Bortles and Winston, Manning turns 38 in January. There's an increasing chorus calling for his vocational head. Move on from Manning now, says the New York Post. Agreed, says NJ.com. He's a gargoyle of a QB playing behind a zombie-laden offensive line. You can see him wince well before he gets hit, bracing for the sack a good two steps before the rusher arrives.
All of it is true. And if anyone knows the meat-hook realities of the NFL, it's Manning, the only starter tethered to the Giants' two blessed Super Bowl wins under Tom Coughlin. He has seen an army of teammates spin through the unforgiving, thorny portal of age, wage and salary-cap cuts. At this point, it's not about Mannings' feelings, his indestructible DNA or his family's regal football stature. He knows his time is coming, but he won't ever admit it.
Since Manning likely won't waive his no-trade clause before Tuesday's deadline -- who's banging on the door anyway? -- the G-Men are signing his checks for this year, at least. So if you'd care to cut Manning the very second this season ends, then go with God. But if your impulse is to bench him at noon Tuesday, then ask yourself two questions:
1) Is Manning the main reason you're losing now? If you've seen the endless jailbreak from opposing defenses, you can't help but think that Manning is just part of the problem, not the roadblock to a playoff run. Like most quarterbacks, Manning is better when he has time to throw. He's not 2007 or 2011 Eli, but he's a serviceable quarterback in a league that doesn't even have enough for every team.
2) Is Lauletta a viable alternative?
Yes, the only way to know for sure is to play him. But the Giants have seen him through every OTA, practice and warm-up. Don't you think if they were dazzled by Lauletta they would have "accidentally" leaked as much to the media? Since they drafted him in the fourth round this year, they were impressed by something while he was in college. But since we don't exactly DVR Richmond football games every Saturday, we must defer to the team.
If you sit Manning, you're not bringing him back. When the Giants bungled his benching last year, there was some waning sense that if you tweaked the team then Eli might have one more playoff march left in his wobbly legs. Not even those of us who had that sense two months ago have it now. But if you start Lauletta, he must stay your starter. The old NFL maxim says that if you have two quarterbacks, you have no quarterback.There's no platoon. There's no revolving door. All decisions are final, and benching Eli feels cosmetic. But we must trust that someone is competent enough to make that call, even a coach who says the offense must score more points.
Follow Jason on Twitter at @JasonKeidel.
