The New York Giants have surprised the rest of the NFL more than once in recent years -- head coach Tom Coughlin has had his team competitive and in the spotlight late into the season on several occasions. But despite the relatively weak NFC East the last three seasons, Coughlin seems to be keeping his job due to past goodwill rather than success here and now.
The Giants need to lean on their rookies in 2015
The New York Giants need their first- and second-round picks to earn starting roles by the time the regular season rolls around.
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Last season, the Giants won just six games, going 2-4 within the division and 4-8 within the conference. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys were battling it out not just for the division crown, but one of the top seeds in the entire NFC. New York, despite a talented roster, wasn't even close to being in the discussion.
The Giants didn’t shake things up this offseason, at least as far as the coaching staff is concerned. Coughlin will get at least one more season, but he’s found plenty of success over his career and the Giants could easily turn things around. There are definitely some questions the team needs to answer before things get underway, and we’ll take a look at a few of them below.
Can Flowers win a starting job?
The Giants didn't have a terrible offensive line last season, but it definitely had its issues. They were hurting at the left guard and right tackle positions heading into the draft, which is why they addressed a need by taking Miami offensive tackle Ereck Flowers with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. While this seemed to work out well at left guard and right tackle -- Flowers would surely find a spot somewhere -- the Giants then found out they'd be without left tackle Will Beatty for 5-6 due to a torn pectoral muscle.
That complicates things a whole lot. Flowers was set to push Justin Pugh for the starting right tackle job, with Pugh potentially moving to left guard. That was considered a good possible outcome alongside Beatty. Now the line combination could go in plenty of different directions. Will Flowers still be considered a tackle, or will the Giants move him inside to left guard? Will Geoff Schwartz start next to Flowers to give him a veteran presence, and where does John Jerry fit into the picture? As noted by the folks over at Big Blue View, it could go a number of ways.
Is Collins the real deal?
There was plenty of talk about a weak safety class in this year's draft, and that's true as far as the depth was concerned. But the Giants spent the No. 33 overall selection on Alabama safety Landon Collins, a selection that was universally praised by critics. Many people are pegging Collins as a surefire starter over Flowers, despite the fact that Flowers is the team's first-round pick.
Collins is a playmaker, something the Giants need at the strong safety position. Most believe he'll step right into a starting role and that he has a lot of Defensive Rookie of the Year potential. New York's defensive success might just hinge on this. Collins, if he's the real deal, immediately upgrades a secondary that also includes Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Prince Amukamara.
Can Odighizuwa develop into a pass-rusher?
The Giants have a strong group of defensive ends on the roster, with Jason Pierre-Paul, Robert Ayers, George Selvie and Damontre Moore. But the team is thinking for the future when it comes to pass rushers, and feel that they got their man in Owamagbe Odighizuwa of UCLA.
The problem: Odighizuwa wasn't a top-tier pass rusher in college, and the Giants are banking on developing him into one. Many have compared him to Justin Tuck, the former Giant the team struck gold on in the third round. But Odighizuwa isn't a sure thing by any stretch of the imagination. He has a long way to get to the level of Tuck in his prime.
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