The current Giants regime could do without wide receiver Kenny Golladay and his disastrous $72 million contract. That showed Sunday when the veteran played only two snaps in a win over the Panthers.
And Golladay could likely do without the Giants. That showed Wednesday when he didn’t shut down the idea of a possible exit.
Kenny Golladay on if he'll ask for change of scenery: “We’re gonna see how it goes. … I mean, I came here to play. I’m pretty sure they’re also paying me to play. I guess they want to see more I guess or get whatever situated on their end. I’ll keep on doing what I gotta do."
— Pat Leonard (@PLeonardNYDN) September 21, 2022
In a perfect world, the Giants and Golladay mutually agree to part ways and a proper release or trade is executed. But thanks to former general manager Dave Gettleman and his egregious financial mistakes, the Giants aren’t in a perfect world. Nowhere close to it.
All parties have no choice but to ride this rocky relationship out for the rest of the season, no matter how good or bad the team’s record is.
Because the Giants won’t be able to trade or release Golladay in 2022. Due to how the contract is structured, the organization will need to wait until next offseason to make a move.
For this season, Golladay carries a monstrous $21.15 million cap hit with a $35.6 million dead cap charge. The 2023 cap hit is then $21.4 million with $7.9 million in dead cap if Golladay is made a post-June 1 cut. So while that’s a hefty number for a dead cap charge, an offseason release of Golladay (as a post-June 1 cut) would at least save the Giants $13.5 million in cap space to add to the $55.7 million in space they’re already projected to own.
So they won’t be able to cut him until 2023, if that’s the route general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll wish to take.
As for a trade? Well, that may never happen.
There’s not a chance Schoen pulls off a deal by the Nov. 1 trade deadline given the financials. Either the Giants would have to pay a large chunk of Golladay’s salary for him to do nothing for them (which, I guess, is what they’re doing now). Or, they would need to give up other assets for any acquiring team to take on even the majority of the 29-year-old’s contract.
Golladay’s trade value isn’t expected to change much next offseason — his contract only gets worse. The first two years of the contract (2021-22) have carried $4.5 million and $21.15 million cap hits, respectively, according to Over The Cap. The cap hits increase to $21.4 million for both 2023 and 2024.
Even a wide receiver-needy team like the Packers wouldn’t be willing to incur that financial nightmare, especially when Golladay hasn’t proven to be a legitimate No. 1 receiver who can remain healthy.
If a trade were to come to fruition in some sort of fantasy land, the Giants would earn, at best, third- and fourth-round picks. And that’s if they took on a large portion of the abysmal contract.
So that leaves the Giants and Golladay with no choice but to somehow survive this horrendous marriage until the 2023 offseason, when the organization could finally release the veteran. The Giants must make him a post-June 1 cut to save $13.5 million in space though. Releasing him pre-June 1 would only save the Giants $6.7 million (with a $14.7 million dead cap charge).
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