Giants news, 1/4: Herzlich — Gettleman “doesn’t see a future” for Eli Manning

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Mark Herzlich: Dave Gettleman, Giants Don’t See Future For Eli Manning | CBS Sports Radio

Long-time Giant Mark Herzlich said Thursday that Giants GM Dave Gettleman isn’t watching film “until his eyes bleed” to judge Eli Manning, He is doing it to replace him.

“He’s saying he doesn’t see a future for Eli,” former NFL linebacker and Super Bowl champion Mark Herzlich said on Taz & The Moose. “He wanted to stay as non-committal as he possibly could, but you could tell he let his emotions kind of get in the way a little bit.”

Herzlich also said this about Manning:

“I think the best course of action for the Giants and the best course of action for Eli are two different things,” Herzlich said. “If the Giants can restructure his contract and get him to stick around for a year and be the mentor for a young quarterback, that would be best-case scenario for the Giants. Now, that being said, that’s what a lot of people, including me, thought was going to happen this year.”

Herzlich also took a shot at Odell Beckham Jr., more or less saying that he undermined former coach Ben McAdoo.

“He came in, we had a good season, and Odell started doing things that were distractions for the team,” said Herzlich, who played for the Giants from 2011-17. “And Ben McAdoo, who is a young coach – which Mike Tomlin is not – let those things go for a long period of time. Then when it was time to put his foot down, he could only put his foot down to Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. There was this unfair balance of power: ‘This guy can break the rules, but I can’t?’ It’s a double standard. Once you lose the respect of the locker room, then you have a tough time coming back. I think Antonio Brown is in that same category. The fan base has got to be losing their mind.”

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Is Dave Gettleman’s conviction that the Giants are ‘headed in the right direction’ justified? – The Athletic

Dan Duggan of The Athletic took issue with Gettleman’s description of where the Giants are following a 5-11 season. He called the general manager’s outlook “surprisingly rosy” and said he he is “0-for-1” in his efforts to fix the Giants.

Valentine’s View: I’m going to strongly disagree here. I do believe that perhaps Gettleman was overly optimistic, or hopeful, about the ability to compete in 2018. I do, however, absolutely believe that the Giants are in a better place than they were when Gettleman was hired to replace Jerry Reese. There are no guarantees Gettleman and Pat Shurmur can return the Giants to contention, but I do believe strides were made. As I have said many times, in the end the tenures of the GM and coach are going to be defined by whether or not they eventually get the right long-term quarterback.

Jaguars, Giants, Jets head worst-to-first candidates in 2019 - NFL.com

Long-time Dallas Cowboys executive Gil Brandt believes in the Giants. And in Eli Manning. He wrote:

While the Giants seriously underachieved in 2018, they’re closer to contending in 2019 than some people think. After all, they lost an NFL-high eight games by seven points or less, and they became the first team in league history to lose each of their final two games by a single point. Rookie running back Saquon Barkley was everything they were hoping he’d be when they drafted him No. 2 overall, while receiver Odell Beckham Jr. -- even with his penchant for generating off-field attention -- became one of just seven players to post four or more 1,000-yard seasons in the last five years. The keys for New York will be upgrading the pass rush after finishing tied for 30th in sacks and fortifying the offensive line to give Eli Manning time to throw.

As for Manning, I think he’s got two good seasons left in him. He didn’t play especially poorly in 2018. The offense ranked a decent 17th, and he completed a career-best 66.0 percent of his passes for 4,299 yards (fourth best in his career) and a passer rating of 92.4 (also fourth best). I would think about drafting a quarterback to develop behind Manning, but at this point, the Giants’ best option is probably finding some extra talent to put around the 37-year-old.

Hall of Fame reveals finalists for Class of 2019 - NFL.com

Once again, no George Young. That’s all I’m saying.

Pros and cons of Eli Manning returning for another season with Giants - New York Giants Blog- ESPN

Everyone and their mother appears to have an opinion on this. Here is yet another one.