Sports

The Giants’ offensive line shows cracks at the close of preseason

By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor

Quarterbacks are to football what the sun is to the earth. The game orbits QBs. On one side safeguarding them is paramount. On the other, causing utter disruption for signal callers is the primary objective of opposing defenses.

The Giants have endeavored to construct a stable offensive line for the better part of the past decade. Their failure to meet that target has been central to the franchise making only one postseason appearance over the past nine seasons. If Saturday’s 22-20 loss to the New England Patriots in the final preseason game foreshadowed what is to come during the regular season, the Giants will have another long, fruitless year.

Although their third-year quarterback Daniel Jones did little to lessen doubts among Giants fans that he may not be the team’s long-term answer at the position after posting a subpar 135 yards passing on 17-22 with one touchdown and one interception in his first preseason action, a troubling showing by the starting offensive line indisputably factored into Jones’ shakiness.

As was the case with most of the Giants’ first unit players on both sides of the ball, Jones and his protectors up front had been held out of the two games against the Jets and Cleveland Browns for various reasons by head coach Joe Judge. Playing the Patriots at MetLife Stadium was the Giants’ last opportunity to be tested in an actual game before the regular season opener at home versus the Denver Broncos on Sept. 12.

The teams had participated in joint practices in New England leading up to Sunday’s game but going head-to-head in an environment that best simulates regular season conditions has much greater efficacy. The Giants’ offensive line clearly needs a lot more work and refinement. Jones was sacked twice and was under constant pressure in the one half in which he was under center. The most conspicuous chink in their armor was at left tackle, a spot manned by last year’s first round pick Andrew Thomas.

Selected No. 4 by the Giants out of the University of Georgia, Thomas looked out of sorts. He allowed Patriots defensive ends to get outside of his left shoulder, gain leverage, and get to Jones. The still developing 22-year-old unhesitatingly took ownership of

his faults. “There are some things I’ve got to improve on,” acknowledged Thomas. “My hand placement, staying wide on my set and (Bill Moore photo) keeping the depth with the pocket. “… I think I made improvements, but there are a lot of things that I still need to work on… Sometimes I do it the right way, sometimes it might not be to my liking. I’m just trying to be as consistent as possible.” Judge sees Thomas and the line as a work in progress. But the foundation must urgently be fortified with Week 1 of the regular season rapidly approaching. “Nothing’s perfect at this point, we’re far from a finished product, we know that already,” said the former Patriots special teams coordinator who went 6-10 a season ago in his first year leading the Giants. “We’re going to keep working hard day by day to make sure we improve.” The Giants began the week adding offensive line help by trading defensive lineman B.J. Hill and a 2022 seventh-round draft pick to the CinSecond year left tackle Andrew Thomas is a cinnati Bengals for offensive linecritical piece to the Giants’ playoff aspirations man Billy Price, and on Tuesday sent a 2022 fourth-round pick to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for guard Ben Bredeson, a 2022 fifth-rounder and a 2023 seventh-round pick. Jets rookie Zach Wilson is learning the many aspects of being an NFL quarterback leading up to his team’s Sept. 12 season opener

With preseason over, Jets focus on Week 1 against Darnold and the Panthers

By VINCENT DAVIS Special to the AmNews

Ending last season with a 2-14 record, the second worst record of the NFL’s 32 teams, puts the Jets as a team that opponents will be expecting to beat this season. Having a rookie at quarterback in the No. 2 overall pick Zach Wilson will increase the confidence of opposing defenses as the 22-year-old BYU alum learns the complex NFL game. Although Wilson displayed a strong arm and quick feet, important skill sets, during the preseason, the question of whether the Jets made a mistake in not keeping quarterback Sam Darnold, whom they drafted No. 3 in the first round in 2018, is still being argued.

Darnold is now the starter for the Carolina Panthers, the team the Jets face in Week 1 on the road Sept. 12. The Jets traded Darnold to the Panthers this past April for a 2021 sixth-round pick, and second and fourth round picks in the 2022 draft. Was Darnold, 24, a victim and casualty of the Jets’ front office that never surrounded him with sufficient talent, particularly providing Darnold with a legitimate No. 1 receiver and solid offensive line? Jets GM Joe Douglas has already shaped the offense for Wilson by signing former Tennessee Titan receiver Corey Davis to a $37.5 million contract in March, and adding lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker with the No. 14 pick and wide receiver Elijah Moore at No. 34 in the 2021 draft.

As all NFL teams were required to do, new Jets head coach Robert Saleh had to trim his roster to 53 players by 4 p.m. this past Tuesday. It’s one of the difficult responsibilities of GMs and coaching staffs. It’s also another new aspect of football for Wilson. “You know it is a weird thing and something

I’ve never really experienced before and already seen some guys out of the locker room,” said Wilson via the Jets’ website. “You know, it’s strange because you don’t really say, ‘Hey, we want to welcome this new teammate and we got rid of this guy.’ “It’s a strange process how you all of a sudden see someone else in the locker room and you’re like, ‘Well, he’s gone, what happened?’ It’s a business for sure. And guys just gotta take care of their opportunities and everything that’s going on, but you know, it’s part of the game.” AMNEWS Veterans as well as rookies trying to 07/01/21 secure spots can have anxiety not knowing if they’ll make the team. Even high profile players. The New England Patriots, the team the Jets play in Week 2, released QB Cam Newton, and will go with rookie Mac Jones as their starter.

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(Bill Moore photo)

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