NFL Spin Zone
Fansided

New York Giants: Should Davis Webb get a chance to start?

By Zac Wassink

FOXBORO, MA - AUGUST 31: Davis Webb #5 of the New York Giants prepares to throw in the second half during a preseason game with the New England Patriots in the first half at Gillette Stadium on August 31, 2017 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
FOXBORO, MA - AUGUST 31: Davis Webb #5 of the New York Giants prepares to throw in the second half during a preseason game with the New England Patriots in the first half at Gillette Stadium on August 31, 2017 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Is there any chance that Davis Webb is the better option at quarterback for the 2018 edition of the New York Giants than Eli Manning?

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning is 37 years old. Inevitably, it will be one of the major talking points hovering over the Giants during training camp, the preseason and the fall months, especially if New York holds a losing record come Thanksgiving Day. Davis Webb, second on the depth chart behind Manning, is a former third-round pick who is only 23 years old. Arguably the only major things they have in common today is they’re both quarterbacks who happen to play for the Giants, and the futures of both are in doubt.

Manning is a two-time Super Bowl MVP who is the greatest to ever play the position for the franchise that has been around for over 90 years. He holds just about every club passing record imaginable. Regardless of what some critics may say about the matter, Manning deserves to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer years after he rides off into the sunset and retires, either as a member of the Giants or after finishing his career elsewhere as did older brother, Peyton Manning.

Every good thing must come to an end, including Manning’s tenure with the only NFL home he’s had since entering the league in 2004. Per Spotrac, the dead cap value on Manning’s current deal drops dramatically, meaning the Giants could save millions of dollars in salary cap space by parting ways with the iconic signal-caller next winter. While Manning has accepted team-friendly discounts in the past, it seems the time for those types of negotiations are in the past.

Webb’s contract could not be more cap friendly, to the point that linking its deals, offered by Spotrac, is more a courtesy than showing how it affects the Giants over the next three seasons. In an ideal situation, Webb will show he is able to replace Manning after the 2018 campaign, play on a cheap contract through the end of 2019, at least, and the Giants will pay playmakers like Odell Beckham Jr. knowing that the team will eventually have to splash cash to keep Webb.

More from New York Giants

For the second consecutive summer, the Giants are a team that is both “win now” and also building for the future. However good you think rookie running back Saquon Barkley will play in 2018, the Giants unquestionably will have whiffed on the draft pick if his rookie season is his best. New York’s defense, not quite a Big Blue Wrecking Crew these days, is a work in progress. The team’s state is why Manning mentoring Webb is as important as is the starting quarterback throwing touchdown passes on league Sundays.

One question that may not be answered in July in August is: What if Webb gives the Giants the best chance to win in 2018? A year ago, this would not have been a valid conversation. Webb clearly wasn’t ready for live meaningful action following his preseason appearances. He was a project, which was why keeping him seated even as the Giants fell further and further down the overall NFL standings made sense.

Recently, Mark Schofield of Big Blue View offered five examples from the 2017 season that, in his opinion, show Manning can still go and throw at an elite level. That’s great and all, but you don’t need to have access to All-22 film to see the veteran’s fastball has lost some zip over the past few years. It happens to every quarterback, even to those who made livings off their strong arms. It happened to Brett Favre. It happened to Peyton Manning. It’s happening to Eli, whether his biggest fans want to admit it or not.

Webb’s arm wasn’t a concern last summer, and it isn’t today. Has his footwork improved? Can he read NFL defenses any better than he could in August 2017? Does he possess the character traits and personality to guide members of an offense who originally thought they would be taken into battle by a proven commodity who has seen it all and done it all on football’s biggest stages? There’s only one way to answer these queries.

General manager Dave Gettleman and head coach Pat Shurmur unofficially gave Manning and Webb votes of confidence when the club drafted Barkley over one of the several quarterbacks still available after Baker Mayfield (who was never being drafted by the Giants in the first place) became a member of the Cleveland Browns. Logic suggests Gettleman and Shurmur should want to know what they have in Webb before Christmas.

Next: NFL 2018: Each team's biggest celebrity fan

When’s the best time to learn that? Determining when may be the biggest task on the agenda for a new front office, and for a head coach who flopped the last time he held a similar gig. Remove Manning’s name, resume and past achievements from the equation, and examine the franchise legend and Webb for the players and men they are as of July 19. Who gives the Giants the best chance to win on a weekly basis?

If the gap separating the two isn’t significant, playing Webb in Week 1 must be on the table.

Home/New York Giants