If this Giants’ season was pulled from a movie script — Hollywood has glamorized lesser underdogs — this would be the time for a clichéd scene when two imaginary figures appear over general manager Joe Schoen’s shoulders to pull him in opposite directions.
“Stick to the plan!” Don’t mortgage the future!” the conservative voice would say.
“Make a move! Playoff berths don’t come around every year,” the daring voice would say.
And maybe Schoen could satisfy both with a line from his first official day as Giants general manager: “You can compete today and still build for tomorrow.”
The surprising Giants are 5-1 with two more games before the NFL trade deadline on Nov. 1, at which point they must decide whether to buy, sell or stand pat. If only it was that simple, without consideration for the salary cap, underlying messages or the initial plan to use Year 1 of a new regime to set up for long-term sustainability.
Or maybe it is simple: Consider all low-risk, high-reward trades for incremental improvement.
Sure, the Giants could stamp their playoff intentions to the locker room and fan base with a roster-bolstering splash, but that thinking is usually reserved for a championship contender one piece away, like the Rams trading two draft picks for Von Miller last season. The Bills, with Schoen as assistant general manager, traded two draft picks for Kelvin Benjamin as surprise playoff contenders in 2017 — only to regrettably cut the receiver after 13 months.
The Giants’ self-aware identity is rooted in fighting an uphill battle against their doubters — installed as 3.5-point underdogs Sunday to the Jaguars (2-4) — and the value of a vote of confidence is often overblown compared to the risk of messing with chemistry. The contributions of so many young players makes every win feel like two.
“We believe, and then we’re good,” linebacker Jihad Ward said. “We ride for each other, can’t do it without each other. That’s what fuels us. I just want to praise this team — offense, defense, special teams, coaching staff. When they came in, they were ready to go. Who knows what this situation might be.”
There’s no need to remind the Giants — who have playoff wins in two of the last 21 seasons (2007 and 2011 Super Bowl-winning teams) — how fleeting opportunities can be.
Expect the Giants to be in the mix if a player on a rookie contract with multiple remaining years of team control becomes available for a late-round pick or in a player-for-player swap. Broncos receiver Jerry Jeudy, Steelers receiver Chase Claypool, Dolphins cornerback Noah Igbinoghene and young inside linebackers make sense to address needs.
Another — albeit less likely possibility — is a star whose multiyear contract is structured to fit under the Giants’ $3.6 million salary cap space, according to NFL Players Association records. Panthers receiver DJ Moore (who is said not to be available) will make about $608,000 over the rest of this season but is owed $19.9 million guaranteed in 2023 — when the Giants have $50 million in cap space, per overthecap.com — and carries $30.7 million in salaries for 2024 and 2025 combined.
Trading premium draft picks for a rental — like the Rams did with Miller — is not in the cards.
The Giants need financial resources to reward their own players — draft-and-develop is Schoen’s model — whether pending free agents Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley, or early-extension candidates Andrew Thomas, Dexter Lawrence and Xavier McKinney.
Draft picks are earmarked for building depth — a potential downfall of this season — so the Giants become less reliant on hitting the lottery on one-year minimum-salary deals through the Veteran Salary Benefit.
Cornerback Fabian Moreau, linebacker Jaylon Smith and receiver Marcus Johnson are all starting after first signing to the practice squad, while cornerbacks Nick McCloud and Jeremy Layne came up big against the Packers as a payoff from the internal emphasis to capitalize on holding the NFL’s No. 5 waiver priority in September.
Recent additions of a 17th regular-season game and seventh playoff spot in both conferences also watered down the number of deadline sellers. Only four teams are more than 1 ½ games out of the playoffs after six weeks, which means the Giants would have been well-positioned as sellers if they got off to the poor start many expected.
Instead, success washed away all appeal in trading Barkley, Lawrence or any other of their few desirable chips for extra draft picks that could be used in a package to move up in the 2023 draft.
Even if the Giants stand pat, reinforcements could be on the way. To borrow from common MLB trade-deadline thinking, the Giants could add three offensive linemen with starting experience (Shane Lemieux, Nick Gates and Matt Peart), a potentially dynamic receiver (Kadarius Toney), a cornerback (Rodarius Williams) and a pass- rusher (Azeez Ojulari) — all of whom have contributed little or nothing to the 5-1 start — from injury beginning this week (Ojulari) through the second half.
It figures to be Schoen’s dual-focus — not the all-or-nothing overreaction — that determines how the Giants react to offers at the deadline.
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