New York Giants: Pat Shurmur debut a dud

New York Giants head coach Pat Shurmur left much to be desired during his debut, a loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars at MetLife Stadium.

When the New York Giants replaced the much-maligned Ben McAdoo with Pat Shurmur ahead of the 2018 regular season, fans were sold on the idea of Shurmur. He’s credited with improving Nick Foles and Case Keenum during stints as an assistant, and seemingly could milk the last ounces of fluid from the career of quarterback Eli Manning and get the most out of what is, on paper, an exciting offense.

Shurmur would make New York’s offense must-see television and a unit capable of carrying the franchise back to the playoffs, or so supporters were told.

One should be careful about overreacting following Big Blue’s 20-15 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. The Jaguars feature one of the best defenses in the NFL, and that opponent was always going to give Manning and those around him trouble. The Giants won’t be the only team to take a loss because the Jacksonville defense keeps it from finding the end zone more than once.

The hope, heading into the opener, was that Shurmur would do whatever possible to give the Giants the best opportunity to win. Coaching didn’t lose the game for the Giants, but Shurmur also left observers scratching their heads with some curious decisions and play-calling that made little sense at the time and seems more illogical the day after the defeat.

It’s nice Shurmur wanted to get the ball to Odell Beckham Jr., his team’s best weapon, when the Giants were facing a third-and-goal from the Jacksonville eight-yard line. Why run an end-around instead of having Manning throw a jump-ball in the corner of the end zone? Beckham possesses arguably the best hands in the NFL. At worst, such a play should end in an incomplete pass, if not a New York touchdown.

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Beckham had himself quite the afternoon against Jacksonville, catching 11 of 15 targets for 111 yards. Why not have the in-form receiver on the field for the punt late in the fourth quarter, a kick bobbled by Kaelin Clay for a mistake that guaranteed the Giants would have no chance of completing a comeback?

It doesn’t matter the Giants were going for a block in that instance. If anything, that should mean Shurmur would want the sure-handed Beckham there for the fair catch.

Moving forward, Shurmur needs to ensure rookie running back Saquon Barkley gets more touches, particularly in the passing attack. Barkley was drafted to help Manning win and win now, but the second overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft seeing 18 carries and six passes isn’t going to cut it.

Yes, the Jaguars did well to slow Barkley until he journeyed 68 yards to the end zone in the game’s final period, but the coach should have worked harder to give the 21-year old chances to see daylight as a receiver.

Barkley showed at Penn State he can be a dynamic option for his quarterback. It’s one reason the Giants drafted him. Granted, Manning can only throw so many passes to guys other than Beckham, but there were multiple times during the second half when the game was screaming for the Giants to move Barkley out of the backfield and into a different role.

Worst of all for Shurmur, the decision to start Ereck Flowers at right tackle could not have gone much worse. Flowers made a nice block on the previously mentioned touchdown run by Barkley, but that was about the only positive from the 24-year-old who doesn’t belong in the league as a left tackle and didn’t look much better on the opposite side of the line.

What Shurmur decides to do at that position with an 0-1 record will determine the Giants’ fate. Manning isn’t Superman. He can only do so much. His line was responsible for the interception returned for a touchdown and the six-point swing that ultimately affected the contest’s outcome. Shurmur’s first roster shakeup needs to be showing Flowers a seat on the bench. This experiment is no longer worth it for the franchise.

A tough-but-fair grade for Shurmur’s Giants debut is a “C.” He could have done better. He also could have won on a different day with a little better luck (what if Manning would have hit Beckham in the end zone on that pass the two-time Super Bowl MVP will want back?). It’s a process, one that is a little more difficult now that the Giants have a losing record.