It’s a tradition. The Giants and Jets are playing out the season, competing for draft positions. The Giants are 2-8, and the Jets are 3-7, and neither team has a chance of making the playoffs … again.
Both teams entered the season with high hopes. For the Giants, it was about making the playoffs after a disappointing 6-11 season last year. For the Jets, it was about being all in for the Super Bowl with a healthy Aaron Rodgers after a 7-10 season last year.
Hope was then. The same-old-same-old is now.
Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll (photo, NY Daily News)
Giants GM Joe Schoen’s draftees have regressed as players, and the team is poorly coached, often unprepared, and disorganized. QB Daniel Jones has been ineffective—make that awful all season—struggling to get the Giants to the end zone while throwing eight touchdowns and seven interceptions in 10 games. Meanwhile, the defense can’t stop the run, defend receivers, get to the quarterback, or tackle.
The Giants have missed the playoffs in 10 of the last 12 seasons. Right now, Schoen and Giants head coach Brian Daboll don’t appear to be in danger of being fired, but is it about those two that suggest 2025 will get better? As I see it, Daboll is worse than the last three failed Giants coaches (McAdoo, Shurmur, and Judge), and Schoen is an awful GM.
Hope was resurrected for the Jets when they registered a 21-13 victory over the Houston Texans on Thursday Night Football. However, hope was short-lived with Sunday’s subsequent 31-6 loss to the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Plus, we’ve seen enough now (through ten games) to realize that Aaron Rodgers has failed to elevate the Jets. Even though he has thrown 15 touchdowns, he has also tossed seven interceptions, struggles to throw the long ball, and seems out of sync with Davante Adams and Garrett Wilson.
Just like the Giants, NYJ’s defense hasn’t stepped up. Sauce Gardner has regressed. He isn’t shutting down wide receivers or tackling well. He’s not alone. On Sunday vs. the Cardinals, Arizona scored on the first five possessions and feasted all game on long drives, scoring three times on 70-yard drives and another on 83 yards. Overall, the Jets missed 20 tackles, allowed 406 total yards, and gave up 28 first downs. The Cardinals did not punt until the fourth quarter.
Woody Johnson (photo courtesy JetNation)
Jets owner Woody Johnson fired Robert Saleh, replaced him with Jeff Ulbrich, and acquired Adams to spark the passing game. The Jets, 1-4 since those moves, look increasingly like this may be one of the worst teams in Jets history. It will surely be the team’s 14th consecutive year without a playoff appearance, the longest drought in North American sports history.
Here’s what is damning about both of our football teams: They are neither fun nor exciting to watch, and rather than feeling the anticipation of great things to come, fans experience continuing frustration associated with losing.
Will things get even worse before getting better? Who knows? But one thing we know is true: bad pro football has haunted New York for over a decade.
The Jets problem is Aaron Rodgers. He’s past his prime. Secondly, the offensive line is not what it used to be. Need to reevaluate both this off-season. Defense will be fine just as long as they are not on the field more than half the game.
As far as the Giants go, that 5-yr contract that gave to Daniel Jones was the worst in history imo. A new GM is needed in the Giants staff especially one that is competent and can spot talent.
Thanks for reading and responding, Corey.
Aaron Rodgers stinks. There’s no doubt he’s done. But the problems go beyond him. The Jets problem starts and ends with ownership. Woody Johnson owned the team for 25 years, and most of the time, coaches and executives come as a result of losing and dysfunction, and here we are again with Joe Douglas being gone and Woody being involved. It’s a mess that won’t get better anytime soon. What GM, head coach and a QB wants to play here.
Daniel Jones will be released this offseason so that experiment is over, but the problem doesn’t just end with him. The Giants front office and coaching staff is bad.