Giants Country

New York Giants Mailbag: Darius Slayton, Evan Neal, and More

Checking in with the readers to see what's on their minds this week.

Patricia Traina

New York Giants Mailbag
New York Giants Mailbag / Patricia Traina | New York Giants on SI
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Bijil, relax. Currently, there is no "news"—Slayton isn't getting traded, and there is no conspiracy going on here.

What's up, Kevin? I suspect the ship has sailed on Tyree Phillips. And no, I don't think the Giants will cut Neal this year. He has guaranteed money in his contract this and next year.

If anything, I see them MAYBE trying to trade him. If they do so this year, they will get hit with a $3.758 million dead money hit this year and next year since it will be a post-June 1 transaction.

But first, he has to get healthy and pass a physical, and if anything, I have a hunch he will start the season on inactive/PUP.

Nothing to report as the injuries happened today and the Giants don't give us injury updates until the next day. When I have something I'll let you know. (Giants are off Saturday and back at practice Sunday.)

Hi Kevin, I don't have any information, but I suspect that with them having tomorrow off and then a light practice scheduled for Sunday, they could conceivably hold him out again. Lately, though, I've been taking what the team has said about injured players with a grain of salt.

JMS was supposed to have been back on Thursday after the day off, but that didn't happen. The hope is JMS, who did some of the "air installs" Friday, is back next week, but if he's not, then I think it's really time to worry.

I believe he can audible out of something if he doesn't like the look for what's been called. But I don't think he calls his own plays.

New York Giants offensive tackle Evan Neal
New York Giants offensive tackle Evan Neal talks to reporters after the organized team activities (OTA's) at the Giants training center on Wednesday, May 31, 2023, in East Rutherford. / Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

When did Evan Neal have the surgery done on his ankle? --Derek S.

I believe it was January 2, 2024..

Why, when discussing swing tackle options, does no one ever include Evan Neal in the equation?   I want no part of him as the starting right tackle--please leave Elemeanor there. But if/when healthy, why wouldn’t he be the swing tackle? He’s not earning that starting job back. -- Tyrone P.

Tyrone, let’s just say I would be very surprised if Evan Neal is ready to start the season. As I said previously, I believe he will start the year on the inactive/PUP list, which will cost him at least six games. 

And I’ll take this a step further: I’d be shocked if he plays another down for this team this year. We’ll see what happens, but it’s crystal clear he suffered a setback during the spring which is why he was shut down. And just in watching things unfold at camp, I don’t see Neal being the swing tackle.

The defense against the run was not good last year and they lost Robinson. They haven't been able to stop the run consistently since they lost Delvin Tomlinson in free agency. What have they done to address this. I only see a bunch of band-aids on the roster. – John P.

John, I think the new scheme will help put guys in a better position to succeed. I also think the fact they had 81 missed tackles against the run (up from the prior year’s total) didn’t help matters either.

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Patricia Traina

PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for over three decades for various media outlets. She is the host of the Locked On Giants podcast and the author of "The Big 50: New York Giants: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants" (Triumph Books, September 2020). View Patricia's full bio.

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