Key Players the Giants Are Getting Back from Injured Reserve in 2020

The Giants had a lot of players lose games due to injuries in 2019 (again). While many of those who who ended up on Injured Reserve likely won't be back with the team in 2020, here is a look at three players who will be and who are key to helping to turn the team's misfortunes around.

The Giants had another rough season regarding injuries.

According to the website ManGamesLost.com, injured Giants players combined to lose over 250 games because of injuries, making them one of the most injured teams in the NFL last season.

NFL end of regular season injury plot. Games missed to injuries versus team wins. Bubble size represents cumulative quality of players lost (Lost-av metric) https://t.co/C6QQXA8jke pic.twitter.com/IV27DIey1U

— Man Games Lost NFL (@ManGamesLostNFL) January 2, 2020

By season’s end, the Giants had 14 players on injured reserve (not including Sam Beal and Kareem Martin, both of whom were activated off IR before the end of the year and not counting anyone who was on IR but who was waived with an injury settlement).

As has been the case in the past, the Giants appeared to have injury clusters at positions, finishing the year with linebacker and tight end leading the way with four players apiece on IT as of Week 17, and three receivers.

It will be interesting to see if the incoming coaching staff figures out a way to reduce injuries and games lost while still figuring out how to practice so the team is physical on game days. But more importantly, the Giants need to get the following players who finished the year on IR back at 100% strength by training camp.

S Jabrill Peppers (back)

Peppers was one f the key acquisitions in the Odell Beckham Jr trade last year. Not only did he play on defense where he was the starting box safety, but he was also a contributor on special teams. And despite missing the final five games of the year with a back injury, he still managed to finish fourth on the defense in total tackles (76), four shy of linebackers Alec Ogletree and David mayo and one solo tackle better (51) than Mayo’s total of 50.

In coverage, Peppers turned out to be a lot better than people thought he’d be, finishing with a 74.1 NFL rating, which beat former strong safety Landon Collins’ 104.0. Peppers didn’t allow a touchdown in 33 pass targets but did have one interception and three passes defensed. He also had three fewer missed tackles than Collins in the snaps played, though Collins topped Peppers in stops, 41 to 27.

Stats aside, Peppers has a lot he can build off of from his first season as a Giant. Peppers is expected to make a full recovery from his back injury, though it’s not known where he is in his rehab process.

And like tight end Evan Engram, the team will need to decide whether to pick up the option year in his rookie contract, and it’s anticipated they will do so. If the Giants can put a more effective free safety alongside Peppers, there’s no telling how much more effective he’ll end up being out there.

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LB Ryan Connelly (ACL team)

All injuries hurt, but perhaps none on the Giants hurt more than the one suffered by rookie inside linebacker Ryan Connelly. Connelly was inserted into the starting lineup after Week 1, and in three games, he racked up 20 total tackles, 10 of which were solo, 1 sack, two tackles for a loss, one quarterback hit, and two interceptions in just 187 defensive snaps.

The impressive rookie not only showed that he belonged on the field as a starter, but he also took a crack at running the defenses when Alec Ogletree was sidelined with a hamstring strain. Unfortunately for Connelly, he tore his ACL in Week 4, ending what was otherwise a very impressive rookie campaign, but not before showing that he is part of this team’s future.

The timing of ACL surgery is everything, and by having his early in the year, Connelly will be almost a year removed from the injury by the time he next takes the field for a meaningful football game. At year’s end, he was already walking around without any visible aids and was optimistic about getting back to running early in 2020 as he continues his quest back to the field.

Given his football IQ and his instincts, it’s hard not to imagine that Connelly won’t be a part of new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham’s defense moving forward.

TE Evan Engram (Foot)

It’s been a bumpy ride for tight end Evan Engram since his selection by the Giants in 2017. Engram has yet to make it through an entire 16-game season, coming close in his rookie year. But how much of those struggles with staying healthy are a result of how he’s been used is undoubtedly worth considering.

According to snap counts as kept by Pro Football Focus, Engram has lined up inline on 62.6% of his snaps. And of those 633 snaps in which he wasn’t inline (across from heavier players), Engram was only targeted in the passing game on 37.2% of those snaps, meaning he was used far too often as a decoy or to block.

The good news for Engram, who lost the last seven games of 2019 with a foot injury for which he had surgery, is that new offensive coordinator Jason Garrett runs more of a vertical offensive system that could see a change in how Engram is deployed. If the successes of the Cowboys tight ends in the past—and not just Hall of Famer Jason Witten—is any indication, Engram will likely be getting more opportunities to run routes and fewer assignments involving squaring up against guys who have 20-30 points on him.

As of late January, Engram, who remember had his surgery in late December, was still using a scooter to get around, though at times he was spotted walking without it. Engram will likely have to sit by during the spring as he continues his rehab, but the expectation is that he should be ready to go by training camp. 

If he keeps up with the install of the new offense, the hope is he’ll not only hit the ground running but become a significant contributor in what is hopefully going to be a potent scoring attack.