Should the New York Giants Add This Veteran to 90-man Training Camp Roster?

Aaron Schatz of ESPN makes a case for the Giants to add to their defensive line ahead of next month's training camp.

Jul 27, 2023; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots defensive end Lawrence Guy (93) speaks to the media after training camp at Gillette Stadium. / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Giants brass is about to start its annual summer break in another week, but before that happens, ESPN’s Aaron Schatz has a roster suggestion for general manager Joe Schoen to consider.

That would be adding another defensive lineman, defensive tackle Lawrence Guy, to the mix that currently includes veterans Dexter Lawrence II,  Rakeem Nunez-Roches, Boogie Basham, and Jordon Phillips, and youngsters Jordon Riley, D.J. Davidson, and Ryder Anderson. 

“The Giants have several places on their defense where they could add veteran depth," Schatz said in support of his recommendation. "Guy spent the past seven seasons with the Patriots and can play against the pass and the run. He had an 83% stop rate last season on his run tackles, meaning that they stopped a successful offensive play 83% of the time.

"The Giants don't want to be rotating out Dexter Lawrence very much, but Guy would give them more depth along with Jordan Phillips and Rakeem Nunez-Roches.”

Guy, who has position versatility,  can certainly help a team, but the Giants seem to be leaning more toward their younger depth and their confidence in defensive line coach Andre Patterson to develop that depth. Lawrence is the nose tackle, and right now, it’s projected that Riley, last year’s seventh-round pick, will be his backup.

The team also likes what it has in Anderson, who will get a chance to compete for the 3-technique this summer. Anderson, who made the Giants as an undrafted free agent out of Ole Miss in 2022, spent last season on the practice squad as he wasn’t really a fit for what the previous defensive coordinator ran.

But the Giants saw enough in him as a potential situational pass rusher to give him another chance to come in to compete for a roster spot.

As a rookie, Anderson played 193 total snaps, 81 as a pass rusher, and recorded five quarterback pressures. 

Basham is another guy to watch for defensive line depth. The Giants traded for Basham, whom general manager Joe Schoen scouted when he was in Buffalo last summer. 

Like Anderson, Basham never quite fit in with what Wink Martindale was running. The former defensive coordinator favored the older and more experienced Jihad Ward for the defense, who, unlike Basham, had more of a quick-twitch and better movement skills in space.   

The bottom line is that the Giants have other pressing needs they’ll no doubt be watching the wire for, namely tight end, where they might want to add another healthy body to provide competition in camp and possibly a power running back.

Unless there is a rash of injuries at a specific position, the 90-man training camp roster should be pretty much set at this point.

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