New Jersey Metro: How Do We Rank For Retail Therapy?

Maybe it's not scientifically proven, but it's no surprise that shopping can make you feel better. You browse online or pop into your favorite store, and there's a distraction element that soothes the soul. In fact, StorageCafé recently released a report that details the best spots for retail therapy, and as expected, New Jersey is a great place to be.

"Often at the crossroads between being considered therapy or necessity, shopping remains a favorite pastime for millions of Americans who turn to shopping to relieve stress and uplift their spirits," StorageCafé says. They go on to point out that part of the appeal to retail therapy is the instant gratification.

Consumers have numerous options to shop these days, literally at their fingertips. StorageCafé researched what is really going on here. They examined the primary spending interests of today's generations. Areas such as number of retail establishments and employees per 1,000 residents, and retail square footage per capita were considered. Then, that was compared to the income and spending habits within the major metros across the country. As a result, an official list of best cities to get your retail therapy on was compiled.

In New Jersey, retail therapy can mean going in a few different directions. Sure, we have our malls in every county, but we are also in close proximity to the city areas named here.

This area came in just behind Dallas and ahead of Tampa. In fact, our region was only one of two in the entire Northeast to be recognized. There's the obvious abundance of retail that New York City has to offer, but that wasn't the only thing making an impression. "The NY-NJ area takes the first spot for walkable urbanism with a 100 score in the foot traffic index," StorageCafé said.

As for New Jersey specific, many of the Garden State malls were highlighted. For example, Newport Centre and the Outlets at Bergen Town Center were called out specifically. Their affordability and wide variety of of options was positively noted.

This is the time of year when sports talk starts to get dominated by NFL draft talk. Speculation and theories galore factor into analysts' suggestions on who each time will or should take. Here, we will "redraft" all of the Giants first round picks of the past five years. The team is an important spot this year, with high hopes that they will get it right and set the franchise up for future success.

Let's face it: it's been a tumultuous ride since the GMen last won the Super Bowl in 2012. It has been a roller coaster of sorts, where certain players have unexpectedly succeeded, and many have not met expectations. What's unique about analyzing the top picks since 2019 is that it covers different front office staffs. Dave Gettleman was the team's General Manager from 2018 to 2021. Joe Schoen then took over in 2022. In addition, the past five years have seen three different head coaches. Pat Shurmur and Joe Judge each had less-than-successful two-year runs before Brian Daboll came in.

Of course, much of the draft discussion revolves around quarterbacks. The Giants are no exception to this. In fact, what to do with often-injured Daniel Jones is one of the two primary topics this off-season (the other being Saquon Barkley).

As acting GM from 2019 on, this exercise considers the success players have had in the NFL over the past five seasons. It's important to note that each player listed below that we are saying the Giants should have selected was drafted after the choice they actually made. In other words, the Giants passed on each of these players.

Now, with the NFL combine underway, pro days coming up, and prospective meetings, there is a ton of due diligence that goes into each team's draft process. While no team bats a thousand each year, the preparation the organization does pre-draft is essential to creating a plan that is best for the team. Furthermore, the GM and player personnel departments need to be ready to adjust and make quick decisions based on what happened in the current draft before their pick. This is where the Giants fell short (mostly in the Gettleman days) in years past, and had to make a panic move.

Nonetheless, as we wait for this year's big draft day in Detroit, here are our Giants 1st round redraft picks from the five previous years. Imagine this: the Giants could have had Justin Herbert passing to Garrett Wilson, with Micah Parson patrolling the defense.

To be fair, every other team passed on LaPorta as well. In addition, the Giants first round selection last year, CB Deonte Banks (picked 24th) had a very good rookie season. Nonetheless, it's hard to look at the lack of production by the tight end position last year, the numerous Darren Waller injuries, and the horrific overall offense, and not long for a guy like LaPorta. He had 86 receptions and 10 touchdowns and was selected to the Pro Bowl in his first year with the Lions. LaPorta was drafted 34th last year.

There's an asterisk here because the Giants had two picks in the top ten this year. They nailed it by taking Kayvon Thibodeaux at number five. However, although fans were excited about taking Evan Neal two picks later, this has not lived up to the hype yet. The offensive line continues to be a ten-year problem. Our MetLife neighbors in the Jets took WR Garrett Wilson at number 10. Without a top threat at receiver, you can't help but wish Wilson was in the blue locker room instead of green.

Oh boy, this is the worst of them all. Perhaps it was also the beginning of the end for Dave Gettleman, who terribly fumbled this draft. As a refresher, the Giants held pick #11. Everything had been falling into place nicely with WR DeVonta Smith still on the board and falling right into their hands. That is until the Eagles made a last minute trade, jumped the Giants and took Smith. Gettleman was caught unprepared and traded the 11th pick to the Bears who ended up taking Justin Fields. Right after that at 12, the player many compare to Lawrence Taylor was taken in Micah Parsons. The net of this is, the Giants could have stayed at the 11th pick and had Micah Parsons. Instead they ended up with Kadarius Toney, who was traded to the Chiefs (who benched him).

This is the most intriguing redraft selection, as it changes the franchise the most. Andrew Thomas was selected by the Giants with the fourth pick. Thomas is fantastic and the strong point of the often battered line. However, two picks later, Justin Herbert went to the Chargers. The GMen would not be in the predicament they are in now if they had a franchise talent like Herbert. However, this was not an option at the time because of what happened in the 2019 draft.

Daniel Jones was the choice with the sixth pick in 2019. Eli Manning was still on the team. If it wasn't for all the injuries, Jones would be a solid choice and the player the team continues to build around. They still may do that. However, if we're going to take Herbert in 2020 instead of Andrew Thomas, offensive lineman Chris Lindstrom would have been a nice choice here. This OG has been a two-time Pro Bowler for the Falcons. He's been reliable, durable, and quietly one of the most productive lineman in the league the past five seasons.