Monday Reaction: Is There Reason for Optimism After Giants’ Opener?

What a difference a healthy Odell Beckham, Jr and game-breaking player like Saquon Barkley make. Or do they? The Giants ranked 31st out of 32 NFL teams last season in points per game. A lowly 15 points per game in 2017. It's a new season with a new general manager, new head coach, new offensive scheme, rebuilt offensive line and the aforementioned healthy OBJ and number two overall pick running back out of Penn State. And on Sunday afternoon, in the season opener to 2018, the Giants scored....15 points.

Don't get me wrong, I think this offense will do more to live up to its lofty expectations of being explosive and dangerous to defenses. You should know that I also predicted the Cowboys to win the NFC East and it looks like Dallas might have the worst offense in football. Okay, second-worst. The top, or bottom, spot is reserved for the Bills at this point.

Both Barkley and Beckham produced 100-plus yard afternoons and still....only 15 points. An issue that was made clear again on Sunday is that Eli Manning needs time to throw. He needs a clean pocket. He needs the Tom Brady treatment from his offensive line and the group up front simply can't provide that or at least couldn't in week 1.

As we so often do on Big Board Sports, we turned to Giants reporter for the New York Daily News and SNYtv Pat Leonard: