Resetting the New York Giants' Roster on Offense

What are some of the position battles and expectations for the Giants offense now that free agency and the draft are in the books? Nick Falato breaks all that down.

Nick Falato | May 4, 2021

Resetting the New York Giants' Roster on Offense /

The 2021 NFL Draft has elapsed, and it’s time to turn to rookie minicamps, OTAs, and everything that pertains to the post-NFL Draft world. According to Ourlads.com’s depth chart, the Giants have 90 players on the roster without the undrafted free agents; the signings of Florida OC Brett Heggie, OT from Baylor Jake Barton, and Georgia Southern EDGE Raymond Johnson III put the roster at 93.

By game day in September, the roster needs to be down to 53, with two of the sixteen practice squad players being called up for active duty - this cannot be the same players every week. Obviously, everyone can’t make the team. I want to look at the offensive side of the football and see how the 2021 additions may affect this season’s active roster, play calling, and personnel. Let’s dive into it!

Quarterbacks

It doesn’t matter how much head coach Joe Judge states that everyone needs to earn their spot - the starting quarterback in 2021, barring injury, is Daniel Jones. Joe Judge is the type of coach who wants to maximize every active position on Sunday. Typically, players who don’t start have to have some special teams upside - this doesn’t necessarily pertain to the quarterback position.

For most of the 2020 season, the Giants dressed just Daniel Jones and Colt McCoy at quarterback with Clayton Thorson as their practice squad quarterback. By mid-season, Joe Webb signed with the Giants as Daniel Jones dealt with a hamstring/ankle sprain ailment that head coach Joe Judge admitted was a bit more ruinous than the Giants led on.

After the 2020 season ended, Colt McCoy signed with the Arizona Cardinals. McCoy was the quarterback for the Giants' big 17-12 upset victory in Seattle against the Seahawks. New York replaced McCoy with Mike Glennon, a journeyman quarterback who isn’t as polished as McCoy but does have a much bigger, more lively arm.

As the team is currently constructed, the Giants have Jones, Glennon, Webb, and Thorson. By the time the season commences, I expect only Jones and Glennon to be dressed, with a practice squad allocated to whoever wins between Webb and Thorson.

I see the logic in keeping Webb aboard since he is mobile, which can help the defensive game plan against teams that possess quarterbacks that fit his athletic ability. The Giants have to play the Chargers, Saints (depending on if Taysom Hill starts), Chiefs, and the Cowboys and Eagles twice a year, so Webb can help with preparing for these teams.

Thorson could defeat Webb, or the Giants could locate an undrafted free agent they like; they seemed to appreciate the skill-set of Case Cookus from Northern Arizona last off-season, but he ultimately didn’t make the squad. Jones has yet to finish a season healthy in two seasons, so they must have a competent backup in place. The team feels that Glennon who was adequate for the Jaguars last season. Let’s hope Daniel Jones can play the entire year for the first time in his NFL career.

Running Back

Star running back Saquon Barkley suffered a devastating ACL tear in week two against the Chicago Bears. This affected the Giants' plans in 2020, and it may have had an adverse effect on Jason Garrett’s unimaginative 2020 offense. Running backs Devonta Freeman and Wayne Gallman, and Alfred Morris were solid in Barkley’s absence, albeit Morris was in a bit role and Freeman was injured after a few games.

Gallman proved his worth but ended up signing with the San Francisco 49ers this off-season. Obviously, the Giants weren’t going to retain him after they allocated Devontae Booker $5.5 million over two years on the first day of free agency. Booker is solid in a lot of areas of football.

He can play special teams, which is important to this coaching regime. He’s a physical runner who can catch the football and does a solid job in pass protection. He’d make for a sound fallback option if anything were to happen to Barkley.

I have a slight concern about the change of pace role behind Barkley. I believe rookie first-round pick Kadarius Toney may be able to assist with this concern. Still, I was hoping the Giants would invest in Michael Carter (UNC), Khalili Herbert (Virginia Tech), or Kenneth Gainwell (Memphis).

Big Blue did not neglect the running back position; they invested in Gary Brightwell, an Arizona Wildcat running back with adequate contact balance but good vision, decisiveness, and better athletic ability than his testing would suggest. I wish Brightwell were better as a pass-catcher (had five drops). However, I do believe he can clean up his pass protection and be valuable on special teams.

The running backs on the roster are currently set as Barkley, Booker, Brightwell (the three Bs, what is this the 2016 Pittsburgh Steelers?), and Taquan Mizzell, Sandro Platzgummer (a part of the NFL’s international player pathway program), and Jordan Chunn. Out of this group, I would imagine the three Bs make the roster, with Brightwell earning a role on special teams, but I wouldn’t be shocked to see him relegated to the practice squad.

There will also be a roster spot for either Elijah Penny, who has been with the Giants since 2018, or Cullen Gillaspia, recently signed by the Giants from the Houston Texans. This will be for the fullback role when the Giants decided to go heavier in two running back personnel groupings.

I also believe this could ultimately go to Gillaspia, and he could steal reps as an H-Back in the Giants counter trey play (a role that tight end Kaden Smith executed solidly in 2020). Gillaspia versus Penny will be an interesting camp battle.

Wide Receiver

The Giants revamped this position group in the 2021 off-season. If we are being honest, it was necessary; C.J. Board played 169 offensive snaps, Damion Ratley 126, Austin Mack played 192 snaps, and Golden Tate 424. Mack has promise, but is he someone you want playing almost 200 snaps a year? As for Tate, he was impressive in 2019, but the fit in Garrett’s offense wasn't there.

New York brought in a prototypical “X” type of receiver for Jason Garrett’s offense in Kenny Golladay, one of the best contested-catch receivers in the NFL, and they added speedster John Ross in free agency. Then they went and drafted Kadarius Toney out of the University of Florida, an electric receiver who can also rush the football. They combine these three assets with Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard, and one can see why Giants’ fans are excited.

I’m curious how this roster, and the allocation of snaps, actually materialize. In 11 personnel, who is getting on the field? Golladay will be the “X,” but will Slayton take a back seat to Shepard for the “Z” role while Toney occupies the slot, or will Shepard go back to the slot while Toney is used creatively? Garrett has to have different plans for different situations with this personnel grouping.

New York added Russ Callaway from LSU, and Freddie Kitchens is now an offensive analyst, as Derek Dooley takes over the tight end responsibility. This could help Jason Garrett implement more modern and creative ways to showcase and employ these new weapons. Slayton, Shepard, and Toney should all get a fair amount of snaps, granted that they all perform and bust their tails through the season.

As for the rest of the roster, the Giants have Ross, Alex Bachman, David Sills, Dante Pettis, Austin Mack, Derek Dillion, and C.J. Board. Let’s say six of the receivers make the team; that would mean Golladay, Shepard, Slayton, Toney, John Ross (who is not a given to make the roster), and possibly one more. Injuries may happen, but if I’m taking another receiver, it may be either Board due to his special teams ability. This staff seems to like Pettis, so he has an outside shot at making the roster as well.

Tight ends

The 2020 tight end group was underwhelming, to say the least. Evan Engram’s career obstruction was injuries, and he was healthy--he made a Pro Bowl--but was a problem in the role that Garrett assigned to him. The Y-stick option and Evan Engram do not mix well at all. Engram lacks concentration ability, and he struggles to catch the football. He needs to be used either vertically or horizontally in space, not breaking back to the quarterback.

Engram’s fifth-year option was picked up last spring, so he remains on the roster for now. New York signed recently released tight end Kyle Rudolph from the Minnesota Vikings. His transition into Jason Garrett’s ideal role for a tight end is much more understandable than a player like Engram. Rudolph is a better blocker, has vastly superior hands, and is a much better red-zone threat.

Just because Engram’s snaps may be scaled back if Rudolph is healthy (has a lisfranc injury to recover from) doesn’t mean he shouldn’t see the field. He can be valuable to the offense if used correctly - just don’t ask him to perform tasks that he can’t accomplish. New York loves running 12 personnel, and tipping plays is an issue with personnel, so the Giants have to be creative with how they employ their tight ends.

Levine Toilolo and Kaden Smith are better blockers than Evan Engram, but Garrett can’t trot out the same look and personnel every time he wants to run or pass. He must get creative with this if he’s going to run more heavy personnel packages, which is a staple of his offense. With the number of skilled position players he now possesses, one would hope to see more 11-personnel (three wide receivers), but time will tell.

The current tight ends are Rudolph, Engram, Smith, Toilolo, Cole Hikutini, Rysen John, Nakia Griffin-Stewart, and Nate Wieting. The first two are locks to make the roster unless Engram is traded. I believe Smith is a near-lock, and Toilolo should secure a spot, but it’s not a given. If any of the others have a strong camp, Toilolo could land as a free agent.

Offensive tackles

This season's starting tackles should be both 2020 draft picks: Andrew Thomas on the left side and Matt Peart on the right side. Peart played in 150 snaps, never going over 26 snaps in a game.

He struggled down the stretch against the Baltimore Ravens in week 16 and failed to see the offense in week 17. Peart has a lot of potential, and he is reportedly working very hard in the off-season. The tackles are young, and there’s a lot of upside, but development is not always linear.

Nate Solder took a pay cut to return to the squad after sitting out the 2020 season. Solder surrendered the most pressures of any tackle in 2019, but he was playing through an injury that may have hindered his overall effectiveness.

Solder just turned 33 years of age, but I don’t mind him in this swing tackle role. He’ll bring leadership to a young squad that just lost their veteran leader after the Giants released guard Kevin Zeitler back in March.

Thomas, Peart, and Solder will be the three tackles, with the latter being the swing player; this leaves another tackle to crack the roster. The Giants coaching staff prides itself on versatility, but a lot of these tackles are just tackles. The inside guys on the depth chart are the more versatile ones (Gates, Murphy, and Slade, although Kenny Wiggins falls into this category as well).

The Giants seem to like Jackson Barton, a gigantic seventh-round pick by the Colts in 2019. Barton has a chance to make the roster; he will be battling with an undrafted rookie out of Baylor, Jake Barton (I know, it’s confusing). The neophyte Barton used to play at UCLA and transferred to Baylor last season, and he has significant snaps at both tackle and guard - this may give the elder Barton some trouble since he is strictly a tackle.

New York also has Kenny Wiggins as a player that can play multiple positions. He has 3,205 snaps to his name and is 32 years of age. Wiggins hasn’t seen too much playing time since 2019, where he played both guard positions adequately for the Lions. If he has a good camp, he could compete for a roster spot, but the line may be tight with some of the players we’re about to talk about.

Interior Offensive Line

If there was one position that I wanted the Giants to invest in during the draft, outside of the EDGE position, it was the interior offensive line. Will Hernandez and Shane Lemieux have their issues; the former had a good 2018 but has regressed since, and the latter is a liability in pass protection. Nick Gates, an undrafted tackle out of Nebraska, played very well at center for New York in 2020.

This trio isn’t exactly strong, nor do they have a lot of experience to rely on. The release of Kevin Zeitler leaves a hole on the Giants. In a perfect world, Hernandez and Lemieux progress, and the interior offensive line gives Daniel Jones time to throw the football while also paving quality paths for Saquon Barkley. However, if this fails to happen, should we be shocked?

According to Pro Football Focus, the Giants ranked dead last in pass blocking effectiveness and 23rd in run blocking. The unit, as a whole, surrendered 218 total pressures in 2020, 12 more than 2019 (206). I am cautiously optimistic about the development of these players, but I would have liked to see more young talent infused into the interior offensive line. That didn’t happen, mostly due to circumstance.

Nevertheless, Big Blue looks to enter the season hoping for a strong developmental curve from all five linemen, with the insurance policies being a 33-year-old Nate Solder (a year removed from playing football) and former Texan Zach Fulton, who surrendered 11 sacks last season.

The offensive line may be fine in 2021, but we shouldn’t act like that is a certainty. Let’s just hope the development and coaching stick with players like Hernandez and Lemieux while also really hoping no one gets injured.

The other interior offensive lineman that have not been mentioned are Kyle Murphy, Chad Slade, Spencer Pulley, and Jonotthan Harrison; the former two are at center, albeit Murphy can play there as well. I believe Harrison, the former New York Jet, will make the roster, and Murphy has a chance to as well, but he may actually end up on the practice squad. Pulley has been on the team for a bit too long, and Slade doesn’t have a lot of good tape to rely on.

There’s also undrafted rookie Brett Heggie out of Florida, but I don’t believe he would overtake Murphy or Harrison, but he has more upside than a Pulley, who also struggles with strength at the point of attack (Heggie does as well).

If I had to pick six linemen from this bunch and say we exclude the tackles, I would go with Lemieux, Hernandez, Gates, Fulton, Harrison, and Murphy, but the Giants may look at the younger Barton as someone who could potentially play two roles. It would take a good training camp for that to happen, but crazier things have gone down at final cuts.

Final Thoughts

On paper, this Giants offense has improved drastically. The additions of Golladay, Rudolph, Ross, and a healthy Saquon Barkley, along with the first-round selection of Kadarius Toney, should help Jason Garrett take this 31st ranked offense to greener pastures. The offensive line could still pose a problem if Rob Sale, Pat Flaherty, and company can’t develop and get the most out of players like Hernandez and Lemieux.

The offensive line is very young, and it’s relatively inexperienced. If the 2021 Giants fail to crack .500, it will be due to one of two things (excluding injuries): the offensive line being horrendous and not allowing Daniel Jones or Saquon Barkley breathing room, or Daniel Jones not taking the necessary steps to get this team to where they should be. If the latter happens, and it’s not the offensive line's fault, the Giants will be looking for another quarterback in 2022.

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Published May 4, 2021

NICK FALATO

Nick Falato is co-host of the Big Blue Banter podcast. In addition to Giants Country, his work has appeared on SB Nation.