Pre-game ‘things I think’: Giants’ season already at critical point

While we wait for the Sunday night New York Giants vs. Kansas City Chiefs collision of 0-2 teams, and before I hop in my car for the trip to East Rutherford, N.J, here are some ‘things I think’ about the Giants in Week 3.

Season at a tipping point already?

The Giants have started this season like they have started so many others over the last decade — losing their first two games.

• They put up their annual Week 1 stinker in a 21-6 loss to a vulnerable Washington Commanders team that, in truth, did not do a whole lot on its own to win that game.
• Despite the flash of a 450-yard passing performance by Russell Wilson, the lost a game they should have won to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 2. A defense that spit up four leads, an offense that flopped in the red zone and an overall lack of discipline that saw an astounding 21 penalties (14 accepted) called against the Giants were the culprits.

If 0-2 turns to 0-3 the MetLife Stadium mood could turn foul quickly. There might even be planes with not-so-nice messages flying about the stadium in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

There has already been a report that the jobs of head coach Brian Daboll and defensive coordinator Shane Bowen could be “hanging by a thread” after the first two weeks.

If the Giants fall to 0-3, Daboll could have only two heavy-duty cards left to play in an effort to keep his job.

He could fire Bowen, especially in the offensively-challenged Chiefs have a breakout game. The Giants’ defense has too much talent to play the way it has the first two weeks and to be a statistical bottom-feeder in most important categories. After last week’s defensive failure against Dallas, another one might be too much for a head coach under fire not to do something.

Defensive backs coach Marquand Manuel and defensive line coach Andre Patterson both have experience as coordinators.

The other card Daboll has to play is, of course, Jaxson Dart. The view here has consistently been that the longer the Giants could wait before turning to Dart the better it would be for the rookie quarterback. It still is.

If the Giants keep losing, though, there is simply no point in playing a 37-year-old quarterback who probably has no future with the team beyond this year. Plus, Dart looking like the real deal could be a major selling point in pitching to keep his job for the coach who pushed to draft him.

It isn’t too late for the Giants to have a decent season. In the words of Yogi Berra, though “it’s getting late early.”

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