In a shocking move yesterday, the Giants released starting inside linebacker Blake Martinez.
In what was a move that has been described as a mutual decision, the Giants now have a hole smack dab in the middle of their defense. It has been said by many that Martinez never really fit in Wink Martindale’s defensive scheme, but losing a good football player like Martinez adds to an already massive concern in the Giants defense.
I think part of the reason the Giants have had such a dismal decade (and there’s a lot of them) is that even when the Giants are successful on one side of the ball, they are bad on the other side of the ball. I think back to the 2015 Giants; who’s offense was number 8 while the defense ranked 32nd. Or even 2020, where the Giants defense was 12thand the offense was 31st. It’s hard to put out a successful team when one side of the ball doesn’t hold up their end of the bargain. With the 2022 Giants, it is looking like the defense is going to be the weaker of the two units. That’s not to say the Giants are guaranteed to have some juggernaut offense, especially with the current health of the offensive line, but I am certainly less worried about them than the defense. The depth of the defensive line was already a concern, the cornerback room outside of Adoree’ Jackson is a major concern, and now the starting middle linebackers as it stands right now are Tae Crowder and Micah McFadden. I’m not sure why the Giants and Blake Martinez decided to part ways, and I’m not here to speculate on those reasons, but this defense is left with yet another hole to overcome.
I want to add to this blog some positivity. I don’t think the Giants will be as bad as they were last year. I think the offense will be MUCH better and I think Wink Martindale is a very good defensive coordinator. With all that being said, I sincerely wish that Blake Martinez was still a part of this football year.
With just about 1 week till we kickoff, let’s just hope the Giants can overcome yet another hold at middle linebacker.
(Photo: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
