Giants Praised for Heavily Addressing Offensive Line During Off-season

The Giants' offensive line was the worst unit on the team last year and, unsurprisingly, the one most heavily addressed by General Manager Joe Schoen.

Oct 22, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Las Vegas Raiders guard Jermaine Eluemunor (72) heads to the locker room after warming up before a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports / Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Giants had plenty to do this offseason after a 6-11 season that followed what was a promising 2022 campaign under Brian Daboll. But if there is one thing the disappointing 2023 campaign revealed, it was all the areas in which the Giants roster lacked, even before the team would go on to lose two cornerstones such as running back Saquon Barkey, tight end Darren Waller, and safety Xavier McKinney.  

 Of all the deficiencies on the Giants' roster, none was greater than the offensive line, which was abysmal due to injuries and poor performance. But thanks to Giants general manager Joe Schoen’s plan to revamp the unit, the offensive line seems better equipped to handle its upcoming weekly battles in the trenches.

Not surprisingly, Pro Football Focus' Trevor Sikkema, in his rundown of every NFC team's best off-season decision, praised the Giants for their attention to the offensive line.  

"This is more of a ‘best strategy.’While the Giants didn’t add a massive name in free agency along their offensive line, they brought in Jermaine Eluemunor, Jon Runyan, Aaron Stinnie, and Austin Schlottmann," Sikkema wrote. 

"The sum of those four signals new life and some needed flexibility to improve the unit from 2023 after the Giants fielded the lowest-graded offensive line in the league (47.2)."

Runyan started 50 of the last 51 games over the last three years. Last season, he had a 92.4 pass rush win rate, which was good for ninth among all guards in the league. Eluemunor, of course, was reunited with offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo, who was in Las Vegas with the guard. Eluemunor has made 45 starts in his career and has played every position on the offensive line except center.  

Stinnie was made a starter in Week 8 last season with Tampa Bay and played the rest of the season, including the playoffs. Stinnie, who carries a $1.1 million cap figure, will have plenty of competition to be Eluemunor's backup left guard, though he is a more than solid option and is believed to be an early favorite for the role.

Schlottman will likely have to compete with another free-agent signee, Jimmy Morrissey, to be John Michael Schmitz's backup center. The 6-6 lineman is light for his position, which raises questions about his ability to anchor.

While Sikkema could have gone with the acquisition via trade of edge Brian Burns, the Giants offensive line was clearly the biggest problem on last year’s team and one that thanks to Schoen’s attention, will hopefully be fortified moving forward. 

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