Giants Mailbag: Should Big Blue trade Jaxson Dart, select Indiana's Fernando Mendoza if they land No. 1 pick?
Just when you think the Giants hit rock bottom, they sink just a little bit lower.
The latest: An ugly 16-13 loss to the Vikings to drop their record to 2-13. The good news is the Giants currently hold the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. The bad news is that it's clear this team is far and away worse than many people expected.
Remember when the Giants pursued Matt Stafford and Aaron Rodgers this offseason because all they needed was a quarterback? Now it looks like they have the quarterback and nothing else.
Actually, considering Jaxson Dart just played a game where he had 13 net passing yards and has seen his play drop quite a bit since Brian Daboll's firing, even he looks like a question.
We opened the mailbag this week to address your concerns on the state of New York, let's get to it.
The Giants should fire Joe Schoen now to set the tone for the offseason. - @jvm52106I'm going to remove personal opinion and report only what I know to address this one.
You weren't the only to ask about Schoen.
The Giants had no intention of firing Schoen when they dismissed Daboll. There are people within the building -- especially Tim McDonnell -- who remain high on him. They support his process, believe he has assembled a foundational core and credit him with modernizing the organization's scouting and player evaluation methods.
Internally, the Giants believed the leads they built earlier in the season were evidence the team was on the right track. Blowing five of those leads was viewed as an indication the coaching staff was the issue. Replacing Daboll and finding the right coach could position the Giants for a turnaround similar to what the Patriots, Bears or Jaguars experienced this year.
There looks to be some flaw in that thinking. The Giants are winless in the five games since Daboll was fired. Results did not improve after Shane Bowen was dismissed as defensive coordinator, either. Several players appear disengaged. Core pieces have taken steps backward and draft classes once viewed as building blocks now resemble previous misses. Perhaps most concerning, Dart -- one of the few bright spots this season -- has regressed.
Under Daboll, Dart averaged 202 passing yards, 45 rushing yards and 2.4 total touchdowns per game. In three starts under Mike Kafka, those numbers have dropped to 139.3 passing yards, 30 rushing yards and one touchdown per game.
While Schoen has support inside the building, owner John Mara has historically been responsive to fan sentiment. Calls for change have grown louder, and it would be difficult to counter that if the Giants finish 2-15.
The Giants need to close the season in a way that reinforces ownership's belief in the current direction. That would require wins against the Raiders and Cowboys, with Dart showing progress. Even that may not be enough.
If the Giants were to have a new general manager, could you see players like Dexter Lawrence or Kayvon Thibodeaux available via trade? - @Jimmy_TomredleAbsolutely on Thibodeaux. Unfortunately for the Giants, his trade value is not nearly as high as it would have been had they explored offers at the deadline.
The Giants placed the former first-round pick on injured reserve last week. He will finish the season with 2.5 sacks. Since his 11.5-sack breakout season in 2023, Thibodeaux has recorded eight sacks over his last 22 games. Durability has also been an issue. He missed five games last season and seven this year.
A second-round return is highly unlikely. Even a third-round pick would be difficult to secure. A fourth-round selection appearing to be the most realistic outcome.
Dexter Lawrence presents an interesting case. The former All-Pro has been largely ineffective this season, recording just half a sack. He has not posted a full sack in his last 20 games (insanity). The prolonged losing appears to have taken a toll, based on his public comments before and after games, and a change of scenery could appeal to him.
From a financial standpoint, moving Lawrence would be manageable. Trading him would free $13.04 million in cap space while carrying a $13.9 million dead-money charge.
Say the Giants finish with the No. 1 overall pick, should they considering trading Jaxson Dart and drafting Fernando Mendoza? - @Gavbear90Dart's regression since returning from a concussion will only amplify the discussion. Still, there is little indication the Giants are prepared to move on. Doing so would require trading Dart, drafting Mendoza and hoping Mendoza shows even a fraction of what Dart demonstrated before he was injured in Chicago.
It is easy to overlook how productive Dart has been this season. He has 20 touchdowns in 10 career starts despite operating with limited support around him. At times, Lil'Jordan Humphrey, Ray-Ray McCloud and Isaiah Hodgins were starting at wide receiver. Dart consistently elevated the play of those around him. That's a trait you cannot overlook.
The comparison frequently raised is Arizona's decision to draft Josh Rosen, then fire Steve Wilks, hire Kliff Kingsbury, draft Kyler Murray and trade Rosen. The situations are not directly comparable. Rosen entered the league with documented personality concerns and struggled in Arizona. He went 3-10 as a starter, completing 55.2 percent of his passes for 2,278 yards with 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
Had Rosen produced a season similar to Dart's, the Cardinals likely would not have moved on so quickly. Instead, Arizona concluded it had missed and selected Murray.
There is a possibility Mendoza ultimately develops into a superior player, but he remains largely unknown. With Dart, the Giants have already established a baseline: He can play at the NFL level, with reason to believe he can develop into more. The more logical approach is to build around that.