Boomer and Gio agree that if the Giants season goes down in flames, putting them in position to draft one of the top available quarterbacks, then it would be time to plan for using the opt-out in Daniel Jones’ contract after next season.
But Boomer says Big Blue had its quarterback of the future, but let him go years ago.
“They had their guy, and they let him go. They had Geno Smith. They had him,” Boomer said, at the 2:30 mark of the above clip. “The Jets had him when he was younger, and he got punched in the face…when Geno was here for the Giants, he was unfortunately the guy that was taking over for Eli and the sacred ground he stood on. It was impossible for him to get a fair shake. They saw him in practice and loved what he was doing.”
Smith didn’t play his best against the Giants earlier this season, but did more than enough in a 24-3 rout, coming off a Pro Bowl season where he led the league in completion percentage and took home the Comeback Player of the Year award. He made just one start for New York in 2017 before signing on with the Chargers, and eventually the Seahawks, where he unloaded 30 touchdown passes last season.
“Sitting there for a couple years in Seattle behind a very unpopular starting quarterback in Russell Wilson…it all came into play for him,” Boomer said. “He’s figured it out.”