Suddenly, the New York Giants have alignment, on top of everything else.

It has been well-documented how significantly the young talent has improved in New York in recent years.

The rapid influx of elite young talent, anchored by the first-round arrivals of Malik Nabers, Abdul Carter, Jaxson Dart, Arvell Reese, and Francis Mauigoa over the past three drafts, has fundamentally positioned New York to close the gap on the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East.

It is evident that, at least from John Mara and ownership’s perspective, and apparently incoming head coach John Harbaugh’s as well, general manager Joe Schoen’s adept talent acquisition during the NFL Draft has overridden the blowback that accompanied whiffing on hiring Brian Daboll as head coach and allowing All-Pros Xavier McKinney and Saquon Barkley to walk out the door in free agency.

Thursday night, the Giants put any talk or speculation that Schoen is on the hot seat to bed for good by signing the 46-year-old general manager to a multi-year contract extension.

Harbaugh and Schoen are on equal footing within the organization’s power chart, each reporting to Mara, and evidently each sharing a vision for how they believe the Giants can build a contender and the kind of players they’re setting out to build the roster around.

Schoen's drafted core is now being flanked by hand-picked veteran newcomers. Tight end Isaiah Likely, linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, cornerback Greg Newsome, and field-position-flipping punter Jordan Stout were undoubtedly the apples of Harbaugh’s eye to bring to the Big Apple. It’s now wholly obvious that this partnership is well on its way to revamping the Giants’ roster.

Now, there is confirmation that this partnership will be forging ahead, collaboratively, with alignment, in what the Giants hope is finally the payoff of its young core, ushering in an era of sustained success.

This week’s mailbag tackles your questions around the moves made by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Giants’ neighboring New York Jets and the impact they’ll have on the upcoming season as well as one coach’s skeptical outlook for Mike McDaniel’s shotgun marriage to Justin Herbert and the Chargers.

Let’s get after it …

The Jets have the potential to be one of the more interesting teams across the league this season.

At an absolute minimum, Geno Smith’s competency at quarterback, first-round picks Kenyon Sadiq and Omar Cooper’s arrivals in the passing game as well as No. 2 overall selection David Bailey anchoring a revamped pass rush, should raise New York’s floor.

General manager Darren Mougey seemed to covet two things during a modest free agent spending spree; competence and culture.

Edge rusher Josh Ossai and linebacker Demario Davis are proven veteran commodities and culture drivers.

Cornerback Nahshon Wright and pass rusher Kingsley Enagbare are big bets on potential, and that both players are on the upward trajectory that their 2025 production suggests is possible.

Minkah Fitzpatrick’s presence elevates a secondary that’s been in search of an identity even before cornerback Sauce Gardner was shipped off to the Indianapolis Colts, in exchange for a pair of first-round picks at last fall’s trade deadline.

All of that is setting up a bit of an inevitability for Aaron Glenn.

“I think Jets coaches are always on the hot seat,” an agent who represents at least one Jets player tells Between The Hashmarks, on the condition of anonymity to avoid retribution for his comments.

There is genuine merit to that statement, too.

Owner Woody Johnson is irrationally impatient by nature.

For Glenn, specifically, it would seem that this offseason’s moves were tailored around increasing the talent on defense, to bring in the type of players better capable of running some sort of scheme that even remotely resembles the one he oversaw turning the Detroit Lions into one of the more feared teams across the league.

There is genuine optimism that the Jets are finally ascending, giving Glenn a legitimate opportunity to climb off the hot seat and stave off a pink slip for at least one more season.

Five different evaluators, in five different buildings, recently suggested to Between The Hashmarks that the Jets’ draft was best in class.

“The Jets,” one rival AFC Scouting Director tells Between The Hashmarks, was the team that helped itself the most. “Darren grabbed the best pass rusher, the best tight end, a starting wide receiver, and the best nickel cornerback in this class. That was just the first two days.”

Echoed a long-time AFC South scout, “The Jets had a really solid class.”

The talent Mougey and the Jets added this offseason should be both a blessing and a curse for Glenn.

New York’s defense is undeniably both more experienced and more talented than the group that walked off the field back in January.

No one is expecting the Jets to push for the AFC East crown in 2026.

But, if New York doesn’t steal at least six or seven victories this season, despite significant investments on both sides of the ball, and in bringing in veteran offensive coordinator and former head coach Frank Reich, it will prove increasingly difficult for Glenn to inspire confidence that he is the right coach for the job.

If the 2026 season is about showing growth and progress, the 2027 season should be about the Jets taking flight.

That’s especially the case, given New York’s three first-round picks in what is expected to be an extremely talented class generally, and a potentially historic one at quarterback. New York’s resources in the draft, combined with the $92.4 million in cap space Mougey is projected to have at his disposal to keep building, mean that the time for excuses is about to end in Florham Park.

Glenn will have a better roster, a deeper defense, and a savvy offensive play-caller at the start of this season. If he doesn’t finish it by showing progress, he might not have the chance to do much more than clean out his office and clear the way for the coach hired to raise the Jets’ ceiling.