Why It's OK for the New York Giants to Start a Major Rebuild This Offseason

I'm not saying it's going to happen; I'm not saying it needs to happen.

I'm just here to remind you, if it does happen, it'll be OK.

I'm talking about a complete rebuilding period in New York, of course. The Giants suffered through last year's low, then sunk to a new one in 2014. Most of Big Blue's championship-caliber components are busted, too rusted to function properly anymore.

It's a sad place for the Giants to be, one where every game is a Hail Mary, the postseason is a faraway notion, and Super Bowl talk is considered hyperbole.

Perhaps it's time for a change—wholesale change, say some. Just this week, former Giants running back Tiki Barber said it's time for head coach Tom Coughlin to go, according to Howie Kussoy of the New York Post. He's not the first to speculate about a coaching change in New York as soon as next season.

I'm not telling those of you clinging to Super Bowl memories, hoping Coughlin & Co. will eventually right the ship and ride off into the sunset, to give up hope. I am a realist, however, and it's my job to tell you when that picture-perfect ending is beginning to look more and more like a fairy tale.

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With only three wins on the season, major changes may be on the way for the Giants.

And if your feelings still lie on the fence about that, look no further than jersey No. 91.

Ron Antonelli/Getty Images

It belongs to Robert Ayers Jr., a backup defensive end signed in free agency last spring. Although he receives limited snaps in Perry Fewell's D-line rotation, there's a good chance Ayers' pass rush has caught your attention this season. In fact, I bet most fans would prefer to see him start over ninth-year veteran Mathias Kiwanuka.

After all, Ayers leads the team with 5.0 sacks on the season.

Yet Ayers didn't enjoy such a warm reception when he first joined the Giants. He was overlooked, overshadowed by higher-profile signings like cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz and running back Rashad Jennings.

While those players were showered with premature praise for saving the Giants, the only headline Ayers snagged after his signing was when he picked a jersey number. He chose to wear No. 91—Justin Tuck's old number—the same one he wore as a Denver Bronco from 2009-2013.

To some, this was disrespectful, a subtle step on Tuck's toes. That jersey wasn't supposed to be worn until after the emotion associated with Tuck's departure had settled, and nostalgia could tell us whether it was to be retired, hung from the rafters and celebrated for generations to come.

The undervalued Ayers didn't care.

Player	Sacks	Tackles
Ayers	5.0	20
Tuck	2.0	27

"Why should I?" Ayers said back in July, according to Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News. "Like Coach (Tom Coughlin) said, the faces change, but the expectations don’t. It’s an honor to come in and play after guys like Justin Tuck and (Michael) Strahan, etc. But the fact that I have his (Tuck’s) number or he just left and I just got here, it doesn’t really mean anything to me.

"It’s my number," Ayers added. "Not Tuck’s number. It’s been my number since college (at Tennessee.)"

Take a closer look at the other guys, and it's easy to see why they didn't experience Ayers' level of scrutiny. Jennings was billed as a do-it-all back to complement quarterback Eli Manning. Schwartz was welcomed as the key to restoring Coughlin's power-running game. DRC was viewed as the perfect counterpart for Prince Amukamara in the defensive backfield, allowing Jason Pierre-Paul and New York's pass rush to return to glory.

Jennings, Schwartz and Rodgers-Cromartie were all additions.

Ayers was different; he was a blatant replacement.

To be fair, at the time, there wasn't much evidence to support Ayers as a viable replacement for Tuck. He was a former first-rounder who failed to pan out with the Broncos' pass rush. Through five seasons in Denver, Ayers mustered only 12 sacks.

Still, a low-risk reclamation project is usually something New Yorkers can get behind.

And what had Tuck done since 2010 to warrant such reverence? He pondered retirement during the Giants' Super Bowl season, recording just five sacks in 2011 and only four more in 2012. If not for a late surge in 2013, most Giants fans would have been happy to watch him walk in free agency.

Instead, they were more interested in Tuck's drama than the infusion of younger talent, as the two-time Super Bowl champion took more money to rot with the winless Oakland Raiders. After kicking his former employers on the way out the door, Tuck has just two sacks in ten losses so far this season.

My point is this: The Giants are still bad, and no one is missing Tuck. If anything, Ayers is one of few bright spots on a defense that currently ranks 31st in the NFL (397.4 yards per game allowed).

Tuck grew less effective as the years wore on, and so, too, have the Giants. 

Instead of adding to an apparently broken system, it's OK for New York to start searching for working replacements.

Kevin Boilard writes about the New York Giants at Bleacher Report.