When a much-needed victory feels like a loss for the future

EAST RUTHERFORD — The evolution of Malik Nabers, who as a 21-year-old rookie was supposed to talk about frustration with his own game, to becoming the voice of an entire locker room and, by extension, the franchise, is an underrated development in a lost season for the New York Giants.

After Sunday’s somewhat underwhelming 45-33 win over the Indianapolis Colts, still in playoff contention, at MetLife Stadium, these were the realities:

The Giants avoided making NFL history by becoming the first team to finish 0-9 at home, which would have been only the team’s second such winless season in 100 seasons. That disgrace — and the franchise’s worst 10-game losing streak — fell by the wayside in pretty stunning fashion with the performance against the Colts.

At the same time, the Giants have lost something that could have a far greater impact on their future: control of their destiny in the search for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The victory allowed two teams, the Patriots and the Titans, to overtake them , and a third, the Browns, would knock the Giants down to No. 4 with a loss to the Dolphins in Cleveland on Sunday night.

What the result meant for the current team and what it may have done for the Giants’ future offers two different sides of the same coin: a franchise fighting for its best chance at getting a game-changer at quarterback, with Nabers and working together in a locker The room and the coaching staff desperately try to squeeze out as many positives as possible to deflect questions about job security.

If a much-needed win for the Giants still feels like a loss to their future, try to appreciate the centerpiece of the present for what it has become. Also, don’t give up on getting Nabers the right quarterback for the pairing.

“I mean, I don’t really have anything to say about that,” Nabers responded to a reporter who wondered what he thought about actually disappointing Giants fans who wanted the team to lose on Sunday for their draft pick to improve. “I can’t say anything about that. The draft will be the draft.”

Of course nothing has changed. The Giants still need a franchise quarterback, and the prospect of signing either Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward remains the priority for the front office and personnel department, which spent time getting closer to Sanders in person at the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio on Saturday observe (assistant GM Brandon Brown). , Assistant Director of Player Personnel Dennis Hickey and Jessie Armstead) and Ward at the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando (GM Joe Schoen and Director of Player Personnel Tim McDonnell).

But while the rest of us pondered the Giants’ fate, midway through the fourth quarter, Nabers caught a pass from Drew Lock and sprinted virtually untouched up the right sideline for a 59-yard touchdown, the Giants’ sensational wide receiver promised that he didn’t think about who will be at his side next season – or in the foreseeable future?

Nabers represents great promise for the Giants, as he reached the hundred catches mark and passed the 1,000-yard mark in a game in which he had seven receptions for 171 yards and two touchdowns. He currently has 104 catches and 1,140 yards in 14 games this year. That’s three fewer receptions than Steve Smith’s franchise record for receptions in a single season (107) pending next weekend’s Week 18 finale against the Eagles in Philadelphia.

The fact that Nabers has performed well with four different quarterbacks this season – Lock, Daniel Jones, Tommy DeVito and Tim Boyle – underscores another bittersweet outcome of Sunday’s festivities:

The Giants won’t completely turn things around until they get one of these quarterbacks who can consistently turn the team around. That’s how you win in the NFL these days, and using that momentum to get you is paramount to the success of a team that has finished with double-digit losses in nine of the last 11 seasons.

Yes, they need a franchise QB. Yes, they made it even harder for themselves with today’s win. But they can still get into a position to draft the right quarterback.

Here’s what Giants co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch need to know; If not, listen to the head coach about who he might replace when his third season ends in a week. You shouldn’t say goodbye to Brian Daboll, but this organizational failure of the last decade requires another, brutally honest look at where the Giants are, where they were before Daboll and Schoen got here, and where they’re going now.

“If you play well as a quarterback,” Daboll said, “you have a chance in every game.”

No question. He was talking about Lock, who had his best game in a long time on Sunday with four touchdown passes and one touchdown run, completing 17 of 23 passes for 309 yards and zero turnovers. But to be honest, it’s hard not to appreciate the message from a typically taciturn Daboll, who has spent the entire season saying as little as possible despite all the defeats in order to avoid a press secretary who has his could accelerate exit, as Joe Judge did. his predecessor.

That brings us back to Nabers, who along with running back Tyrone Tracy became just the third rookie teammates in NFL history to each rush for more than 1,000 yards rushing.

“It’s not just about me. It’s about the team,” said Nabers. “This is a team sport. There are 11 players on the field. I am educated enough to speak for the entire team because I play, but for the team that gives me this role and this job, I am grateful for that and hope that as a speaker for the team did a great job.

The final question for Nabers was about his shoes—brown suede boots that were apparently built for the harsh Northeast weather—and whether they were comfortable. He joked, smiling, and said he hoped to test them out in the snow on Sunday afternoon.

No snow, but hell froze over in the Meadowlands and the Giants actually won a game.

What impact this will have on their future and the search for a quarterback is uncertain. There were no questions about the shoes Sanders had in his locker Saturday night — the red and blue cleats with the Giants’ NY logo on the heel — and the catch in the streets of Times Square with him and Nabers two weeks ago remains for him a fantasy now.

But for a locker room that was enjoying a win for the first time in 84 days, as Nabers said, the draft will be the draft. These players, this coach – this team – needed this.

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