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NFL Winners and Losers: Time for the Giants to start over, and that includes Eli Manning

The New York Giants’ rebuild started at the moment it gave up a touchdown on third-and-33.

There are plenty of moments to encapsulate how bad it has gotten for the 1-7 Giants, but third-and-33 was truly rock bottom. Los Angeles Rams receiver Robert Woods took a short pass that seemed like an attempt to pick up only a few yards and improve field position, and Woods ran practically untouched for a 52-yard touchdown. The whole 51-17 loss was a debacle, but that was the moment it was obvious the Giants are broken.

Just watch cornerback Eli Apple (No. 24, the team’s first-round pick last season) on that play, looking like he had no interest in making the tackle.

The Giants haven’t had a start this bad since 1980. Coach Ben McAdoo has to go. General manager Jerry Reese has to go. And yes, quarterback Eli Manning has to go, too.

For the first time, McAdoo acknowledged the possibility of benching Manning.

“You really can’t look from my chair too far ahead,” McAdoo said, according to the New York Post. “But you also have to look at getting some players some reps in the game. So we’ll take a look and see if there’s any players that we can give reps to that have a chance to be a part of our future.”

McAdoo was asked if that includes Manning.

“That includes everybody,” McAdoo said.

Manning will probably play out the season, for many reasons. Manning has earned that, given all he has done for the franchise. The Giants don’t really have anyone else. Geno Smith is their backup, and he’s not their future. Rookie Davis Webb is on the roster too and he has some raw skills, but benching Manning for a rookie third-round pick would be a dramatic move. If Manning were to get benched, it would be for the Giants to take a look at what they have for the future, not because anyone can turn this season around. But McAdoo has to know that he better win big in the second half to save his job, and that’s not happening with Smith or Webb at quarterback. Benching Manning would equate to McAdoo writing his own pink slip.

Even if Manning finishes the season as the starter, the offseason will be interesting.

There are plenty of good excuses for why Manning hasn’t played great the past two seasons. The offensive line is awful. There’s no running game. This season, Odell Beckham is done for the year with a broken ankle, and the Giants were desperately thin at receiver due to injuries to Beckham and others. Still, Manning hasn’t played well. He missed some big plays Sunday. Those passes weren’t going to change the final outcome, but they were concerning. He missed Sterling Shepard open deep down the middle. He had Tavarres King wide open for an easy touchdown and threw it out of the end zone. Manning turns 37 on Jan. 3, and he’s not making the throws he needs to make. He has become an erratic quarterback.

In a better situation, however, Manning could still have a productive year or two left. He probably doesn’t have enough good seasons left to make it matter for the Giants. This group isn’t going to have a championship rebound next season. Many teams could use a good veteran quarterback (Denver Broncos general manager John Elway is on line one). If someone was willing to give up a second- and third-round pick for AJ McCarron, the Giants can get something for Manning. The rub is that Manning has a no-trade clause, and he might not want to move his family or start over. Though, it’s also hard to believe he wants to spend another year in this terrible offense, likely for a new coach.

Maybe the Giants need a clean break and should cut Manning. They’ll have a high draft pick next spring, and there are a lot of good quarterbacks in next year’s class. There’s the possibility of Manning being a bridge for the next quarterback, but big-time rookie quarterbacks don’t sit anymore. And the Giants would save about $9.8 million on the salary cap by cutting Manning. It’s hard to imagine Manning playing anywhere else, but he’s declining and the Giants aren’t close to being a contender. And Manning could perhaps follow his brother’s footsteps and have a successful final chapter with another team. It might be best for everyone involved.

A Giants rebuild is going to be tough. They were in the playoffs last season after spending a ton of money in free agency, but the roster as a whole isn’t good enough. That falls on Reese, even though he’s done some good things in his tenure. McAdoo seems in over his head, with internal player punishments becoming a weekly thing. The players didn’t seem to be playing very hard for McAdoo on Sunday. On NBC’s “Sunday Night Football,” former NFL safety Rodney Harrison said the Giants quit on McAdoo.

There will be major changes coming for the Giants. They can’t run back the same players, coaches and front office next season. McAdoo seems to be in the most trouble, barring a strong second-half turnaround. Reese is a tougher call because he is in his 11th season as GM and has overseen two Super Bowl-winning teams. New York will have to make some interesting decisions with players young and old who have disappointed this season.

But the toughest call will be Manning. He’s a legend for the franchise after his two Super Bowl runs, and quietly became the seventh player to reach 50,000 yards for his career on Sunday. It’ll be tough to part ways, but it’s hard to envision any more Giants glory days with Manning at quarterback. The best way for the Giants to get back to the top is to clean house. Completely clean house.

https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-winners-losers-time-giants-start-including-eli-manning-040234956.html?src=rss