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John Mara is pleased with how Dave Gettleman and Joe Judge conducted the 2020 Virtual NFL Draft together and addressed the offensive line, and can now see Blue skies up above. “I do believe that we’re on the right path,” the Giants co-owner told The Post on Sunday night. “But I’m sure our fans are …
John Mara is pleased with how Dave Gettleman and Joe Judge conducted the 2020 Virtual NFL Draft together and addressed the offensive line, and can now see Blue skies up above.
“I do believe that we’re on the right path,” the Giants co-owner told The Post on Sunday night. “But I’m sure our fans are saying, ‘I’ve heard you say that before.’ So until we start winning games, I understand there’s gonna be some doubt. But I do feel good about where we are right now.”
Mara was elated that Gettleman and Judge went hog wild on the offensive line with No. 1 pick tackle Andrew Thomas, third-round pick tackle Matt Peart and fifth-round pick guard Shane Lemieux.
“These guys gotta prove themselves as players, but that was the focus going into the draft,” Mara said. “It’s something I’ve been banging on them for a while, we really had to get this fixed once and for all.
“In football, once you have the quarterback, you better have an offensive line. It sets the tone for the rest of the team, and if you’re not blocking for the quarterback or for the running back, then you have very little chance.”
Mara, who is confident he has that quarterback in Daniel Jones and running back in Saquon Barkley, was encouraged with the collaboration and teamwork between Gettleman and Judge.
“It was terrific, they had great communication,” Mara said. “There’s a lot of discussions, a lot of meetings, and I was really pleased with the way the whole team operated. They obviously respect one another, and I was very pleased with how it all worked out. You never know how that’s gonna work out with a new head coach and a general manager that’s been around the league for a while, and I thought that their communication was excellent.
“I thought it went far more smoothly than I ever could have imagined.”
Gettleman and Judge appear to be philosophically aligned.
“I think that’s a fair statement,” Mara said. “I don’t think they agree 100 percent of the time, but I think they have a lot of respect for one another and they talk it through, and that was pretty evident during this entire process.”
Asked for his early impressions of Judge, Mara said: “He’s very thorough. He does his homework. He’s got great relationships with other coaches around the country who he communicates with. He sees the big picture and so far so good.”
Mara laughed when reminded of Judge cautioning draftees to forget about thinking they can take over the world because they have no idea what being a pro entails.
“It almost sounds like something Tom Coughlin or Bill Parcells would have said, to be honest,” Mara said.
Asked if he’s glad he brought Gettleman back after putting him on the hot seat, Mara said: “Absolutely.”
Gettleman has caught heat for surrendering a third-round draft pick this year for franchise-tagged defensive tackle Leonard Williams. Mara has no such complaint.
“Leonard Williams is better than any player we could have drafted in the third round this year, that much I will say,” Mara said. “And we hope at some point to get him signed.”
Gettleman is hoping a bolstered secondary and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham’s schemes can allay concerns the Giants can manufacture a pass rush.
“You can always use more pass rushers,” Mara said. “I’m comforted by the fact that our defensive staff and the head coach seem to like the guys that we have.”
Linebacker Carter Coughlin, who has pass-rush promise, was drafted in the seventh round. Never a bad thing to bring a Coughlin — no relation to Tom Coughlin — back in the building.
“That is pretty ironic right now,” Mara said, and chuckled.
The Giants didn’t draft a center, but Mara said he didn’t feel it was an overriding need.
“We’ve got some options there, and I know that the Lemieux kid that we drafted from Oregon has a chance to be a center,” Mara said. “We’re hoping [Jon] Halapio comes back [from his Achilles injury] and we still got Spencer Pulley.”
Gettleman and Judge employed a judicious, cost-effective approach in free agency.
“I thought we did a good job in free agency,” Mara said. “We should be a better team this year; we better be a better team this year.”
Mara has yet to meet Abby Judge, the head coach’s golden retriever who stayed home while Judge worked the draft from his apartment near MetLife Stadium.
“Everybody has their own style, what can I tell you?” Mara said, and laughed. “Abby didn’t make it down to the draft like [Bill] Belichick’s dog did.”
No one, of course, knows when or if there will be an NFL season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The NFL, as all the professional leagues, is waiting on guidance from the health professionals and authorities.
“It’s a little bit early to be making predictions on that,” Mara said. “Obviously we’re all hopeful we’ll have a season.”
