The bulk of NFL Free Agency and the 2023 draft are done. And it’s officially that time of year when teams employ nearly 40 guys who won’t even be on their Week 1 roster.
The Giants currently have 90 players, including the franchise-tagged Saquon Barkley. But ahead of the regular season, in late August, they will need to have trimmed that number to 53.
General manager Joe Schoen, head coach Brian Daboll, and the rest of the staff will have tough decisions to make in the coming months. Which 53 guys could make the team ahead of the Sept. 10 season opener?
Quarterback
- Daniel Jones
- Tyrod Taylor
Running back
- Saquon Barkley
- Matt Breida
- Eric Gray
- Gary Brightwell
Wide receiver
- Isaiah Hodgins
- Darius Slayton
- Parris Campbell
- Jalin Hyatt
- Sterling Shepard
- Wan’Dale Robinson
Tight end
- Darren Waller
- Daniel Bellinger
- Lawrence Cager
- Chris Myarick
Offensive tackle
- Andrew Thomas
- Evan Neal
- Tyre Phillips
Guard/center
- Josh Ezeudu
- John Michael Schmitz
- Mark Glowinski
- Ben Bredeson
- Marcus McKethan
- Shane Lemieux
Defensive line
- Dexter Lawrence
- Leonard Williams
- A’Shawn Robinson
- Rakeem Nunez-Roches
- Jordon Riley
Outside linebacker
- Kayvon Thibodeaux
- Azeez Ojulari
- Jihad Ward
- Oshane Ximines
- Tomon Fox
Inside linebacker
- Bobby Okereke
- Jarrad Davis
- Micah McFadden
- Darrian Beavers
Safety
- Xavier McKinney
- Jason Pinnock
- Dane Belton
- Bobby McCain
- Gervarrius Owens
Cornerback
- Adoree’ Jackson
- Deonte Banks
- Cor’Dale Flott
- Tre Hawkins
- Nick McCloud
- Amani Oruwariye
Specialists
- K Graham Gano
- P Jamie Gillan
- LS Casey Kreiter
Thoughts:
Crowder/Smith odd men out. The Giants have loaded up on receivers this offseason. But there are two specific wideouts who may see the exit sign before Week 1.
New York signed Jamison Crowder and Jeff Smith this spring but it’s unclear if either will have a role. If the Giants were to keep six receivers (with Hodgins, Hyatt, and Robinson as locks), you’d think retaining Slayton and Shepard would make more sense due to their familiarity with Daboll’s offense. Keeping Campbell would also make sense — his one-year contract ($4.7 million) is larger than those of Crowder ($1.3 million) and Smith ($1.2 million).
Peart says his goodbyes. If the Giants were to keep one reserve swing offensive tackle behind starters Thomas and Neal, Phillips has a much better chance of assuming the role than Matt Peart.
Peart, an injury-prone 2020 third-rounder, hasn’t developed as the organization hoped. He’s started only six games in three seasons and was on the field for just 19% of the offensive snaps last year.
On the other hand, Phillips was called upon to fill in for Neal when the then-rookie missed time due to injury last year. Phillips started five games for New York.
An acquisition of this current regime, Phillips should have the inside track on earning a roster spot.
Expanded DL depth. Lawrence and Williams respectively played 82% and 75% of the defensive snaps in 2022 — not ideal. The Giants need to expand the defensive line depth this season to keep those two important bodies fresh, which is why we have them keeping five linemen.
Robinson and Nunez-Roches should find roles after signing this offseason while Riley, a rookie seventh-rounder, could see time on heavy run downs.
Giants part ways with CB Holmes. We project the Giants to cut nickel corner Darnay Holmes and roll the dice with either Flott or McCloud in the slot.
Releasing Holmes would help the Giants financially, as it would save them over $2.7 million in much-needed cap space.
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