Louis Riddick: If Giants offense fails vs. Buccaneers, it's clear signal changes need to be made

The Giants have spent the entire season waiting for their injured offensive stars to return, convinced that when they did, they’d be a dangerous team. That’s the hope they’ve been clinging to since training camp began.

And now, with Saquon Barkley, Kenny Golladay, Kadarius Toney and just about all of their weapons expected to be on the field Monday night in Tampa, their moment of truth is now.

“You can sell hope until the cows come home in this league if you want,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick said in an interview with SNY. “But considering what this organization’s history has been and what the standard needs to be there, I get the feeling that it’s ‘Enough of that selling hope s--t. Enough.

“’Either we’re getting it done or we’re not.’”

The way Riddick sees it, this is actually the “perfect time” for the Giants offense to get it done, even against the defending Super Bowl champion Buccaneers. And it’s not just because they should have all their offensive stars, with the possible exception of receiver Sterling Shepard. He sees this as a “huge opportunity” for the Giants against an injury-riddled Bucs secondary.

It’s so huge, in fact, that Riddick – who was a candidate for the Giants GM job four years ago -- thinks that if the Giants offense fails on Monday night, it should send a clear signal to management that changes need to be made.

“I’m telling you, this secondary is a problem for Tampa Bay,” Riddick said. “If they cannot move the ball then it isn’t a talent issue, it’s a utilization and production/performance issue. Then you start looking at other areas as to why the hell is this happening?

“And then it’s up to John Mara to figure out ‘What do I need to do next?’ Because if these guys are all healthy then yeah, there’s no excuse. There’s just no excuse.”

There certainly shouldn’t be any for a Giants offense that has floundered for most of the season with so many of its top players out with injuries. The Giants expect a nearly full cast to be available against the Bucs, making this the healthiest the Giants have been since their overtime win in New Orleans on Oct. 3 when they had a season-high 485 yards in a 27-21 win.

And they’ll be going against a Bucs secondary without cornerbacks Carlton Davis, Sean Murphy-Bunting and even veteran Richard Sherman. They’ve had so many injuries there that they’re forced to reach down their depth chart to start Jamel Dean and Dee Delaney, and back them up with journeymen veterans Ross Cockrell and Pierre Desir.

“I’m telling you, if this wide receiver corps isn’t just absolutely going ‘Please, put me in and let me run a couple of routes,’ then I don’t know what to tell you,” Riddick said. “And if they go out and they s--t the bed against this secondary on Monday Night Football, then if I’m a decision-maker I’m going ‘What the hell is going on?’”

Riddick didn’t specifically say who should be in the Giants’ crosshairs if the offense is a no-show on Monday, but he strongly implied that offensive coordinator Jason Garrett should be first up. He said “There’s no question there’s talent” on the Giants’ offense and said he knows that if the offense fails again, the heat from fans and media in New York on Garrett will really be turned up.

“These guys have to show up in this game, especially against a defense that’s down to Dee Delaney, Jamel Dean, Pierre Desir and Ross Cockrell (at corner),” Riddick said. “They have no business putting the clamps on Evan Engram, Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney. They have no business doing that. That shouldn’t happen.”

“I don’t care that they’re Super Bowl champions. Tom Brady is not playing corner, come on now. The (Giants offensive stars) need to show up in this game.”

And it’s not just because a win would put the Giants right in the thick of the race for the last NFC wild-card spot, since they are only 1 ½ games back at the moment. To Riddick, it’s more about finally seeing their investments pay off. Their offense is littered with first-round picks like quarterback Daniel Jones, Barkley, Engram and Toney, and big-money free agents like Golladay.

The Giants have always believed that when everyone is available, they’d have a one of the better offenses in the league. The chance to prove it against a shaky secondary is, Riddick said “a big litmus test to determine just where are they going.”

And if they can’t, they could be going someplace bad.

“This game will either keep things moving in a positive direction, which they kind of shifted the narrative that way recently,” Riddick said. “Or they’re going to bring back all those old boogeymen, and all of a sudden people are going to start wondering ‘Am I going to be sticking around here at the end of this year?’”