Giants Team Overview: What We Know And Don’t Know for Every Position

Training camp is going to be here eventually, so let's see where each position unit on the Giants stands.

With the scheduled start of the 2020 regular season less than two months away, we know a decent amount about what the Giants’ roster is going to look like. However, there are still some unknown factors in each position group. With that in mind, here’s a breakdown of each one of those groups.

Quarterback

What We Know: Daniel Jones is going to be the starting quarterback this season. Although new head coach Joe Judge was initially hesitant to speak about Jones specifically during his introductory press conference, he has since praised his starting quarterback for his work ethic and leadership.

Unlike last year’s training camp, when there was plenty of buzz about the Giants’ starting quarterback situation, things are now a lot more straightforward. Jones will look to build off a strong rookie season in which he threw for 3,027 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in 13 games.

What We Don’t Know: Right now, it’s unclear who will be named Jones’ backup. The most logical candidate is veteran Colt McCoy, who signed a one-year contract with the Giants this offseason. McCoy has been a backup for most of his 10-year career but has occasionally stepped in and started when asked.

The Giants also brought in former Dallas Cowboys backup quarterback Cooper Rush. One advantage that Rush has is that he knows new Giants’ offensive coordinator Jason Garrett.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that Garrett will favor him over McCoy, but Rush is familiar with his old head coach’s offensive system. The Giants also have journeyman backup Alex Tanney, who is probably the least likely out of these three players to win the job in training camp.

Running Back

What We Know: As long as he stays healthy, Saquon Barkley will get a majority of the carries this season. Despite missing three games in 2019 due to a high ankle sprain, he still rushed for over 1,000 yards and six touchdowns and had 438 receiving yards.

Barkley’s sophomore campaign was somewhat disappointing compared to his explosive rookie season. Now that he’s fully healthy again, you can expect him to be once again one of the top running backs in the league.

We also know that Dion Lewis will serve as Barkley’s primary backup. The seven-year veteran had 59-year receptions for the Tennessee Titans in 2018. When he’s on the field, Lewis will be someone to whom Jones can dump the ball off.

What We Don’t Know: It’s unclear how involved Wayne Gallman is going to be in the Giants’ offense this season. After Barkley’s injury last year, Gallman had the opportunity to be the lead back.

He got off to a good start, scoring a touchdown on the ground and through the air in the Giants’ Week 4 victory over Washington. However, he did not get a lot of playing time for the rest of the season.

Garrett might find a way to get Gallman involved occasionally, but barring an injury to either Lewis or Barkley, he’s going to get minimal carries in 2020.

Wide Receiver

What We Know: Golden Tate, Darius Slayton, and Sterling Shepard are going to be the Giants’ three leading receivers this season. After serving a four-game suspension at the beginning of 2019, Tate finished second on the team in receiving yards with 676. Slayton started to emerge once Jones took over as the starting quarterback.

He led the Giants in receiving yards (740) and touchdowns (8) last year. Even though Shepard only played in 10 games last season, he still had a team-high 57 receptions. You could make a legitimate argument for any of these three players being considered the Giants’ No. 1 receiver.

With these three decent weapons to utilize in the passing game (in addition to having Barkley and Evan Engram), Jones could be in line for a big sophomore season.

What We Don’t Know: The Giants’ fourth receiver spot is currently up for grabs. The speedy Corey Coleman probably has the best chance of securing this spot. It’s been almost exactly one year since he suffered a torn ACL on the first day of training camp. Once selected by the Cleveland Browns with the 15th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Coleman has never been able to live up to expectations.

However, he could have an impact this season on special teams as a kick returner. Another option the Giants have to be their fourth receiver is Cody Core. Although he played in 16 games in 2019, Core only had three receptions for 28 yards.

Throughout his four-year career, he has mainly been deployed as a special teams players. Former undrafted wideout Da’Mari Scott is another player who could compete for the fourth receiver spot.

Tight End

What We Know: Evan Engram figures to be a significant part of the offense this season, especially considering that his new offensive coordinator likes to utilize tight ends in the passing game heavily. A foot injury forced Engram to miss the Giants’ final seven games last year.

Although he got off to a fast start in 2019, it ended being the most disappointing season of his young NFL career. After Engram got hurt, rookie Kaden Smith stepped in and played well. Smith was an effective blocker for the Giants, and also caught 31 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns.

Speaking of blocking, the Giants signed former San Francisco 49ers and Atlanta Falcons tight end Levine Toilolo. While Engram and Smith should both be involved in the passing game, expect the Giants to mainly utilize Toilolo as a blocker.

What We Don’t Know:

It’s unclear whether Smith or Toilolo will be considered the Giants’ No. 2 tight end. Because of Smith’s success, while starting in Engram’s place last year, Garrett is probably going to find ways to get him involved in the passing game. Another unknown is Engram’s health.

He appears to be on track to be ready for the start of the regular season, but his health is still a concern. Engram has missed 13 games over the past two years. However, if he can stay healthy, expect him to be one of Jones’ top targets in 2020. Garett will want to make him one of the focal points of the Giants’ offense.

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Offensive Line

What We Know: The Giants’ situation at guard is relatively solidified. Will Hernandez is set to start at left guard, while Kevin Zeitler will start on the right side. Rookie tackle out of UConn Matt Peart will most likely be a backup this season. Peart will benefit from working with new Giants’ offensive line coach Mark Colombo. If all goes well with his development, he could be in line for a starting spot in 2021.

What We Don’t Know:

Fourth overall pick in this year’s draft Andrew Thomas is going to start this season, but we do not yet know if it will be at right tackle or left tackle. Thomas played both positions in college and proved that he could be effective at either one. Where he plays will largely depend on the situation with Nate Solder.

Solder will likely get the chance to start at left tackle when the season begins, but if he struggles, he and Thomas could switch positions. One of the biggest unknowns with the Giants right now is who will be their starting center. Veteran Spencer Pulley is the most likely candidate to start there right now.

Another option the Giants have is Nick Gates, who will be getting snaps at center during training camp. Rookie Shane Lemieux made 52 consecutive starts at left guard at Oregon. He’s undoubtedly someone else that the Giants could try out at center in training camp. Lemieux could even be considered the dark horse candidate to start at center for the Giants.

EDGE Rusher

What We Know: Earlier this offseason, the Giants placed the franchise tag on Leonard Williams. Although they were unable to work out a long-term with the veteran defensive lineman, he will be on the team in 2020.

After being traded by the New York Jets in the middle of last season, Williams had 26 total tackles. 0.5 sacks and a forced fumble in eight games played for the Giants. Throughout his NFL career, he has been a solid run-stopper.

Williams has never been able to live up to the high expectations as a pass-rusher that he had coming out of USC. Dexter Lawrence is another guy who can line up at EDGE rusher or play on the defensive line. He had 2.5 sacks as a rookie last year. Someone who could have a significant impact on the Giants’ pass rush this season is Kyler Fackrell.

The former Green Bay Packer had a somewhat disappointing 2019 season. Two years ago, however, he recorded 10.5 sacks for the Packers. That was the same season that new Giants’ defensive coordinator Patrick Graham was the linebackers coach in Green Bay. With Graham as his coach again, Fackrell could be in a position to have another big year as a pass rusher.

What We Don’t Know: We will soon find out if Markus Golden will be a Giant in 2020. Back in May, the Giants placed the unrestricted free agent tender on Golden, which means that if he does sign with another team by July 22, he will play for the Giants this season.

The former Cardinal is coming off of the best season of his NFL career, a year in which he had 72 total tackles and ten sacks. Since the Giants did not acquire a dominant pass rusher this offseason, they’re going to need to rely on Golden if he comes back.

Another unknown is how big of an impact Lorenzo Carter will have on the Giants’ pass rush. The third-year linebacker out of Georgia had 4.5 sacks in 2019. After recording 5.5 sacks during his rookie season in 2018, B.J. Hill had just one sack last year.

It will be interesting to see if he will be able to step up and be one of the Giants’ main EDGE rushers in 2020. Graham might decide to use Hill as a defensive tackle mainly.

Defensive Line

What We Know: Dalvin Tomlinson has been very solid up the middle for the Giants over the last three years. Last season, he had 49 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

Although it’s unclear where Graham will position everyone on defense, Tomlinson will be the Giants’ starting nose tackle. Like Williams, he is a good run-stopper.

What We Don’t Know: How the Giants are positioned on the defensive line will largely depend on which defensive scheme Graham decides to use. When he was the defensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins last season, Graham mainly went with a 3-4 defense in early-down situations.

However, he has not yet committed himself to a particular defensive scheme. Graham will most likely end up using the 4-3 defense, depending on the situation and who the Giants are playing that week.

When this is the case, what is unclear right now is who will flank Tomlinson. Graham could position Williams next to Tomlinson on the defensive line, giving the Giants two solid run-stoppers up the middle. He could also use Hill or Lawrence as the other defensive tackle.

Linebackers

What We Know: Giants general manager Dave Gettleman used free agency and the draft to bolster this unit. The most significant move he made at linebacker was to sign former Green Bay Packer Blake Martinez.

A guy who’s recorded over 140 total tackles in each of the last three seasons, Martinez figures to be one of the Giants’ leaders on defense this season. In situations where Graham goes with a 3-4 defense, either David Mayo or Ryan Connelly will line up next to Martinez as the other inside linebacker.

The recently re-signed Mayo is coming off of the best season of his career, a year in which he had 82 total tackles and two sacks. Connelly only played in four games during his rookie season in 2019 because he suffered a torn ACL in Week 4 against Washington.

Before getting hurt, he had two interceptions. Carter should start at strong-side linebacker for the Giants. He has a chance to be a crucial part of the pass-rush in 2020.

What We Don’t Know: If Golden does not end up signing with another team before July 22, Graham is going to want to get him as involved as possible in the defense. However, Fackrell currently has the best chance to start at weakside linebacker for the Giants.

His familiarity with Graham and past success with him as a coach give Fackrell a leg up over Golden. There will still be opportunities for Golden to play outside linebacker as part of a rotation. However, we might see Graham use him more as a defensive end. Considering that the Giants are thin at this position, that would probably make the most sense.

Additionally, it is unclear what kind of impact the rookie linebackers are going to have on the Giants’ defense. Back in April, Gettleman drafted Cam Brown, T.J. Brunson, Carter Coughlin, and Tae Crowder.

Although none of these four players are expected to start in 2020, it will be interesting to see how Graham utilizes them as part of the rotation at linebacker.

Defensive Backs

What We Know: The Giants’ situation at safety is mostly solidified. Gettleman got a steal in the second round of this year’s draft when he selected Alabama safety Xavier McKinney.

A guy who can line up at multiple positions in the secondary, McKinney is a Swiss-army knife on defense. He will start at free safety for the Giants and has a chance to be one of their key players on defense. Jabrill Peppers struggled somewhat early last season but ended up playing a lot better as the season progressed. His season was cut short after suffering an injury in Week 11.

Peppers finished the year with 76 total tackles, five passes defended, three forced fumbles, and an interception (a pick-six). With Peppers and McKinney, the Giants have a dynamic safety duo.

The situation at cornerback is a little less solidified. We know for sure that newly-acquired James Bradberry will be one of the Giants’ two starting corners. Last season while with the Carolina Panthers, Bradberry recorded 65 total tackles, 12 passes defended, and a career-high three interceptions.

What We Don’t Know: The situation with DeAndre Baker is still very uncertain. The latest accusation against him and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar is that they allegedly paid off the victims of their alleged robbery in exchange for those people changing their stories. Right now, no one has any idea when this matter is going to get resolved.

If Baker is unable to play for the Giants in 2020, either Sam Beal or Corey Ballentine will likely take his place. Although the Giants selected Beal in the third round of the 2018 Supplemental Draft, injuries have been a problem for the past two years. Depending on the situation with Baker, Beal could be stepping right into a starting role. Ballentine did not get a lot of playing time during his rookie season, but he has a chance to take on a much more significant role in 2020.

We also don’t know who is going to be the Giants’ primary slot cornerback in 2020. When the Giants drafted Julian Love last year, some thought that he was primarily going to be used in this role. However, Love started being used more at safety as the season went on.

With McKinney now starting at free safety, Love could be moved back to slot cornerback. Graham could also utilize rookie Darnay Holmes in this role. A standout at UCLA, Holmes is slightly undersized to be an outside corner in the NFL. However, his excellent sped and good coverage skills make him an ideal candidate for the slot cornerback position.

Special Teams

What We Know: Even though he was recently charged with three misdemeanors related to a June car accident in California, Aldrick Rosas is set to return as the Giants’ kicker in 2020, at least for now.

Additionally, Riley Dixon will again serve as the team’s punter. With a new head coach that was formally a special teams coordinator, you can guarantee that there will be a greater emphasis on this unit than we’ve seen in years past with the Giants. Earlier in the offseason, the Giants signed former New England Patriots’ special teams ace Nate Ebner.

Judge will now have one of his best special teams players from New England with him in East Rutherford. There’s a good chance that Tate will be returning punts for the Giants again in 2020. One notable change on special teams involves the long snapper position.

The Giants decided not to bring back their longtime long snapper Zak DeOssie, the last remaining player from the 2007 and 2011 Super Bowl Champion teams. He will be replaced by Casey Kreiter, a Pro Bowler in 2018, while with the Denver Broncos.

What We Don’t Know: The main thing that is somewhat unclear on special teams is who the Giants will have return kicks this year. With Coleman missing the entire 2019 season, Ballentine and Slayton both got opportunities to return kicks.

When Coleman was healthy in 2018, he gained 598 yards on 23 kick return attempts. Given his good speed, Holmes is another player who the Giants will probably consider to be their kick returner.