Tag: new york giants

New York Giants’ Saquon Barkley working out with Deebo Samuel

The New York Giants will open training camp in just over three weeks but it remains unclear if running back Saquon Barkley will be present.

Despite some level of optimism that a long-term agreement can be reached, the Giants and Barkley remain deadlocked in negotiations. They have until July 11 to get a deal done or risk having talks tabled until after the season.

If no agreement is reached, Barkley will have to sign his one-year, $10.1 million franchise tender. Of course, he could also skip the season, which is something he’s left open as a possibility.

That end remains unlikely and Barkley certainly doesn’t seem like a player preparing to skip any meaningful time. He’s been training hard this offseason and that continued this week when he teamed up with San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel.

Barkley had also previously been spotted working out with Giants quarterback Daniel Jones and squatting nearly 600 pounds.

The best-case scenario for both sides would be to get a long-term deal done that satisfies each party but even if they don’t, Barkley seems like a player preparing to carry the load for the Giants in 2023.



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Ranking 8 best assistant coaches in New York Giants history

Tom Landry began his professional playing career in 1949 with the New York Yankees of the All-American Football Conference. In 1950,  Landry moved over to the New York Giants of the NFL where he was a key contributor as a punter, returner, and defensive back as well as a player-coach.

Landry became the Giants’ defensive coordinator in the mid-50s under head coach Jim Lee Howell and led one of the NFL’s most dominant defenses of the era. The Giants won the NFL Championship in 1956 with Landry running the defense and were a staple in the postseason the entire decade.

In 1960, Landry — a native Texan — accepted the head coaching job of the expansion Dallas Cowboys, a job he would hold for the next 29 years.

Landry was an innovator and is considered the father of the modern NFL franchise model. He led the Cowboys to five Super Bowls, winning two, and had his team in the postseason every year from 1966-82 with the exception of 1974.

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Could Giants select a receiver in the 2023 NFL supplemental draft?

The NFL is bringing back the supplemental draft this summer. The event, which was last held back in 2019, will be conducted on July 11.

The New York Giants, who have dipped into the supplemental draft in the past, could show some interest in two wide receivers that have qualified for the special draft.

Purdue’s Milton Wright, a 6-foot-3, 200-pound wideout, and Malachi Wideman (6’5″, 190), who played for Deion Sanders at Jackson State, are the featured players this season.

A team can use any of their upcoming picks in the 2024 NFL draft to secure the rights to an eligible player. If the player(s) go undrafted, they immediately become free agents and can be signed by any team.

The Giants have a crowded wide receiver room at the moment and there has been no indication they have any interest in spending future draft capital on either player, but it is worth keeping an eye on.

The Giants have used the supplemental draft three times in their history, most recently in 2018 when they used a third-round pick to select Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal.

In 1992, the Giants spent a first-round pick on Duke quarterback Dave Brown and two years later a fourth-rounder on Northeast Louisiana cornerback Tito Wooten.

Since the supplemental draft’s inception in 1977, it has produced several star players including Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter. Other notables include Bernie Kosar, Rob Moore, and Josh Gordon.

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Giants’ Darius Slayton named NFL’s most underrated wide receiver

As the 2022 New York Giants’ offseason neared its end, a roster spot for wide receiver Darius Slayton was far from guaranteed. And while Slayton did ultimately make the team’s roster, it was quite a rocky start.

After season-ending injuries to Sterling Shepard and Wan’Dale Robinson along with Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney failing to contribute, Slayton quickly climbed the depth chart.

Recently, Bleacher Report listed Slayton as the most underrated wide receiver in the NFL ahead of the 2023 season.

1. Darius Slayton, New York Giants

Fantasy Ranking: No. 75

The New York Giants have utilized a run-heavy offense and haven’t consistently relied on quarterback Daniel Jones’ arm. That has and will continue to limit the overall production of wideout Darius Slayton.

Still, the 26-year-old’s fantasy ranking feels low.

Outside of fantasy, Slayton also remains underrated, and the offseason additions of Darren Waller and rookie Jalen Hyatt will likely keep him overlooked in New York. Even in an inconsistent Giants passing attack, though, he has topped 700 yards in three of his four seasons and has provided a passer rating above 96.0 in two of them.

What’s really impressive about Slayton is his efficiency. This past season, he ranked fourth in the NFL in yards per target (10.2), behind only A.J. Brown, Jaylen Waddle and Dallas Goedert—and one spot ahead of Tyreek Hill.

Slayton also possesses a ton of upside, with good size (6’1″, 190 lbs) and 4.39 speed. The key to unlocking that potential will be allowing Jones to stretch the field, which could be in the cards this season.

“Walking away from last season, explosive (plays) were the thing we needed more of, so I think this spring there’s been a conscious effort to push the ball down the field,” Slayton said, per SNY’s Alex Smith.

If Brian Daboll and Mike Kafka are willing to open up the Giants offense this year, Slayton could finally shine.

Two former Giants also made Bleacher Report’s list: Kaliff Raymond (3rd) and Richie James (2nd), who climbed his way up the depth chart last season, just as Slayton did.

Slayton and Daniel Jones have built a trustworthy connection in the passing game since being drafted together in 2019. Slayton has become a Daniel Jones advocate and actually credited his QB as the reason he returned to Big Blue.

Even after climbing the depth chart last season, Slayton was overshadowed by the emergence of Isaiah Hodgins.

Slayton will continue to be featured in the Giants’ passing game despite the weapons added this offseason.

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NFL.com boots Giants TE Darren Waller from the ‘Superstar Club’

There is a groundswell of hype surrounding New York Giants tight end Darren Waller, who was acquired in an offseason trade with the Las Vegas Raiders.

The 6-foot-6, 258-pound Waller impressed his coaches and teammates throughout organized team activities and minicamp, hauling in eye-popping catches while displaying unique traits the team hasn’t seen since the days of Jeremy Shockey.

By all accounts, Waller is ready to take the Giants’ offense to the next level but not everyone is buying in on the veteran tight end.

Dan Hanzus of NFL.com recently welcomed new additions to the 2023 NFL Superstar Club while also saying goodbye to a handful of others. Among those to get the boot was the Giants’ tight end.

We remained patient after Waller followed his breakout 2020 with an injury-plagued dud in 2021. We can’t look the other way after another injury-plagued campaign for Waller, who enters his age-31 season having missed 14 games in the past two years. The Raiders decided to move on from Waller less than a year after giving him a fat new contract (hmmm), dealing him to the Giants for the modest return of a Day 2 draft pick (odd). Waller now joins an offense that recorded just 17 touchdowns through the air last season. Could Waller be the missing piece for Daniel Jones in Brian Daboll’s attack? Sure … I just need to see it.

Waller was in good company on the way out the door, joining the likes of tight end George Kittle, running back Alvin Kamara, and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

The recent injury history is an understandable concern, but Waller has changed his offseason approach in hopes of avoiding a repeat in 2023. He also benefits from joining the Giants, who, contrary to popular belief, have one of the league’s best training and medical staffs, led by Ronnie Barnes.

Waller also lucks out in the sense that he will avoid the old, disastrous MetLife Stadium turf, which was replaced this offseason.

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Giants select Clemson DB Andrew Mukuba in PFN 2024 NFL mock draft

The 2023 NFL draft is barely in the books and none of the players selected have hit the playing field in earnest as of yet, but that doesn’t mean we can’t turn our attention to next year’s draft.

The folks at Pro Football Network did just that recently as analyst Cam Mellor released his way-too-early 2024 mock draft.

Mellor has the New York Giants selecting 20th overall, which means he’s predicting they’ll be back in the playoffs this year. With that pick, he forecasts Big Blue further solidifying their secondary.

20) New York Giants: Andrew Mukuba, S, Clemson

The New York Giants make the sensible pick, tightening up their coverage unit with the selection of Andrew Mukuba. The Clemson safety has terrific range and can arguably play either free or strong safety for the Giants. With versatility, Mukuba has the flexibility to land in any number of roles throughout his journey as a professional.

You can rarely go wrong with a safety or corner in the middle of the first round. Along with wide receivers and running backs, defensive backs are the most NFL-ready players coming out of the draft these days.

The 20-year-old Mukuba was born in Zimbabwe and moved to the U.S. with his family at the age of nine, settling in Austin, Texas. The 6-foot, 185-pound Mukuba was named the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021 as well as an All-ACC Third-Team selection.

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Giants’ interior defenders ranked among best defensive position groups

The New York Giants might be lacking at several positions but their interior defensive line is not one of them.

Already strong thanks to the presence of All-Pro Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams, the Giants beefed up at the position this offseason, adding run defenders A’Shawn Robinson and Rakeem Nunez-Roches. They also selected the massive Jordon Riley in the 2023 NFL draft.

Given their top-end talent combined with the newly-added depth, it should come as little surprise that Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports has ranked the Giants’ interior defenders as one of the NFL’s best defensive position groups.

Hard to find a batter tandem last season than Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams, two defensive tackles who anchored the Giants’ turnaround on that side of the ball.

Lawrence had a monster season at defensive tackle, recording 68 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles. His impact came when getting to the quarterback, with 63 pressures, 28 quarterback hits, and a 12.9% pressure rate (only Chris Jones had more pressures and quarterback hits at defensive tackle).

Williams is coming off a year which he had 45 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 33 pressures, and a forced fumble. He did battle a neck injury last season and ended up missing five games, the first time he’s missed any games in his career. Regardless, Williams is still a force to be reckoned with in the A-gap and B-gap (he does switch to the edge on certain formations).

A’Shawn Robinson is also part of this rotation, but Williams and Lawrence are the two that makes the defensive interior elite.

Although the Giants’ interior D-line ranked in the top 10, they were actually second at the position behind the San Francisco 49ers. Kerr gave that unit a slight advantage.

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Andrew Thomas named New York Giants’ most prominent building block

The New York Giants have several foundational building blocks on their current roster including quarterback Daniel Jones, nose tackle Dexter Lawrence, and recently drafted center John Michael Schmitz.

But who is the most prominent building block on the team? That’s a question Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report recently set out to answer.

There were a few rules for Ballentine during this exercise — ones that eliminated Jones and Lawrence from the conversation.

First and foremost, the player must be on their rookie contract/without an extension. Players from this year’s rookie class were also ineligible, eliminating JMS. And finally, the player must have zero Pro Bowls to their name.

When it came to the Giants, that left an obvious answer: left tackle Andrew Thomas.

Andrew Thomas’ inexplicable Pro Bowl snub lands him on this list because he technically qualifies.

Much like Darrisaw with the Vikings, Thomas’ Pro Bowl snub was likely caused by the fact that line play often goes unnoticed so improvement can often lead to delayed recognition.

PFF certainly didn’t delay their recognition. Thomas went from giving up 10 sacks and getting a 61.9 grade as a rookie to conceding just three sacks and earning an 89.1 grade from the outlet in his third season.

Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley and Brian Daboll are often credited with the Giants success on offense last season, but Thomas’ improvement should draw more praise. His quarterback certainly thinks so at least.

“There’s no one playing at a higher level right now at that position in the league,” Jones said, per Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports. “He’s an unbelievable player. If you saw how he works and how approaches every day you wouldn’t be surprised.”

With Thomas playing on his fifth-year option this season he will look to earn a massive payday and cement his spot as a building block for the Giants.

Thomas may have been overlooked in the eyes of the Pro Bowl voters, but he received his well-deserved praise from Giants fans. They recognize how important he is to the team and how dominant he has become.

Expectations are that Thomas will continue to improve in 2023 and beyond, establishing himself as the best left tackle in all of football.

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Giants’ Parris Campbell was among NFL’s ‘most open’ receivers in 2022

New York Giants wide receivers have struggled creating separation for several years but that was an area that improved a bit a season ago.

Under first-year offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, the Giants were able to get a little more creative with their play calling, allowing for better spacing on the field and, subsequently, larger windows for quarterback Daniel Jones to throw.

It was still far from perfect but it was a moderate improvement.

One player who helped tip those scales was former wide receiver Richie James Jr., who is now with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Not only was James among the most-sure-handed receivers in football, but he was also among the league’s best at getting open, according to data compiled by Pro Football Focus.

In fact, only two wide receivers in the league were better and one of them just happens to now play for the Giants: Parris Campbell.

Everything the Giants lost in free agency, they seemingly gained right back.

PLAYER 2022 TEAM OPEN-TARGET%
Tyler Lockett Seahawks 67.5%
Parris Campbell Colts 62.4%
Richie James Jr. Giants 61%
Cooper Kupp Rams 60%
Zay Jones Jaguars 59.9%

PFF went on to name James a free agent who could surprise with his new team while glossing over the presence of Campbell on their own list.

One free agent signing that could surprise is Richie James Jr., who quietly finished third in open-target rate while catching 68 passes for 651 yards and 4 touchdowns for the Giants last season.

While James’ contributions to the 2022 Giants shouldn’t be overlooked or discounted, the reality is that Campbell is bigger, taller and faster. He can get open as frequently as James but is able to stretch the field a bit more. By every measure, the Giants improved by going from James to Campbell.

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Giants’ Dexter Lawrence is NFL’s best 0-Tech/1-Tech pass rusher

Last year, New York Giants nose tackle Dexter Lawrence came into his own, racking up career highs in tackles (68), sacks (7.5), and quarterback hits (28) en route to Second-Team All-Pro honors.

In a recent article on Touchdown Wire, analysts Doug Farrar and Greg Cosell named Lawrence the top ‘0-Tech/1-Tech’ pass rusher in the NFL.

For reference, ‘0-Tech’ rushers line up directly over the center and ‘1-Tech’ rushers line up in the gap between the center and guard.

“Normally, the guys we think of as the best at those positions, and there are exceptions, but they’re usually more run players than pass players,” Cosell said. “Obviously, Quinnen Williams doesn’t come off the field [on passing downs]. Jeffery Simmons doesn’t come off the field. Dexter Lawrence had an unbelievable year last year, just with bull-rushing — just driving the center into the quarterback. There aren’t 100 of those guys. But normally, when you think of 0-techniques and 1-techniques, you think more in terms of playing the run.”

Last season, Lawrence wasn’t just the most productive pass-rusher from over the center or to the center’s shoulder — he was the most productive by an absolutely crushing margin. Last season, from 0- and 1-tech, Lawrence had one solo sack, three assisted sacks, 34 quarterback hits, 30 quarterback hurries. Those 47 total pressures ranked first in the NFL by more than twice as much as No.2 on the list — Vita Vea of the Buccaneers with 18.

Lawrence has become such a dangerous interior pass-rusher because he combines formidable size (6-foot-4, 342 pounds) with speed to and through the pocket you’d expect from a man 40 pounds lighter.

This year, the Giants have fortified the defensive front with more run support by adding veterans A’Shawn Robinson, Rakeem Nunez-Roches, and rookie Jordon Riley. That beefed-up rotation should give Lawrence a bit of a respite on rushing downs and he’ll be even fresher longer during games to harass the passer.

Last year, Lawrence was on the field on 76.4 percent of the Giants’ defensive snaps, which is unusually high these days for an interior lineman.

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