What changes will Pat Shurmur make when Giants return from bye week?
Giants head coach Pat Shurmur and quarterback Eli Manning work on a play during training camp. Credit: Brad Penner
Whatever quarterback cliffhanger there was when the Giants departed for their bye last week is about to be resolved.
The Giants return to practice on Tuesday, and Pat Shurmur undoubtedly will be asked what changes he hopes to employ in the second half of the season, not only to improve the team’s chances of winning but also to start preparing for the future. He left the door open for all types of considerations last week, and even gave Eli Manning a decidedly lukewarm “we’ll see” when asked about the 37-year-old returning as the starting quarterback.
“There’s certainly a handful of plays each game where he needs to do better and I think that’s pretty obvious when we all watch,” Shurmur said of Manning. “We’ll look at all things. We’ve got a minute here to do that, and we’ve just got to make some good decisions moving forward.”
That, of course, was before rookie Kyle Lauletta was arrested for a number of traffic violations while on his way to practice last Tuesday morning. While that has nothing to do with Lauletta’s readiness on the field, it undoubtedly created ripples in the organization that was – and most likely still is – hoping to see him get some extended playing time in the next eight weeks. The Giants also may consider veteran backup Alex Tanney but that seems unlikely. Tanney, with one career start and no regular-season action since 2015 -- would neither improve the Giants' odds of beating the 49ers on Monday night nor provide them a glimpse down the road.
As for other changes, Shurmur said he and the coaches were spending the bye week evaluating personnel as well as the play-calling.
“In terms of the players, there may be some changes,” he said. “But in terms of the scheme, you just step back and look and seek better ways to do things… It’s not like you’re going to come out and we’re going to be running the Wing T. You go back and say this route combination has worked against these types of coverages, we’ll do this more, this less. This is what the quarterback can do well. So we have a pretty good sample size now, half a year, and then try to refocus on those things.”
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
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