The New York Giants had a busy first day of NFL free agency. They signed seven players, lost five, and missed out on guard Alijah Vera-Tucker. I already offered my thoughts on Day 1. What did others think? Let’s check the Day 1 NFL free agency grades to find out.
What do our polls say?
We polled the Big Blue View community on three of the seven signings. Here are the results:
LB Tremaine Edmunds
Most Giants fans seem to like it. Of 2,080 respondents, 1,110 (53.7%) gave the signing a B grade. The signing received an A from 786 voters (37.79%). Ten curmudgeons (.48%) gave the deal an F.
P Jordan Stout
The Giants gave the former Baltimore Ravens All-Pro a record contract for a punter. Voters loved it. Of 1,748 votes, 43.19% (755) graded the move an A. Another 38.4% (665) gave it a B. There were 51 voters (2.48%) who don’t appreciate excellent punting and gave the signing an F.
TE Isaiah Likely
Only 946 votes came in for the Likely signing. Does that mean Giants fans likely don’t care? Anyway, 470 (49.68%) of voters graded the move a B. The move got an A from 329 voters (34.78%). There were 12 F votes, 1.27%.
How others graded the Giants
Eluemunor | Above average
Likely | Above average
Eluemunor | A+
Eluemunor is a well-above-average right tackle, and the Giants got him back on one of the best value deals of free agency. His 98 percent pass blocking efficiency ranked sixth among all tackles last season, according to PFF. He uses his core strength, his superpower, to sink onto his heels and smother bull rushers. Eluemunor is also a very crafty run blocker. It was a thin tackle group in this year’s free agent class. As a result, I figured Eluemunor would approach the $20 million range. This feels like a potential hometown discount.
Likely | B
The Ravens allowed Likely to depart after extending Mark Andrews, and they just might have parted with the younger, more effective tight end. John Harbaugh pounced, bringing the fifth-year pro to New York with him, hoping that Likely can build on the potential that he has displayed while averaging 11.6 yards per reception and 15 touchdown catches while serving as the No. 2 tight end in Baltimore.
Likely | A-
Likely, a 6-foot-4, 245-pounder, has plenty of untapped potential, and no one knows that better than new Giants coach John Harbaugh. Likely’s production was always capped in Baltimore, mostly because of the prominence of Ravens TE Mark Andrews. But in limited opportunities, Likely always showed he had reliable hands and could stretch the field.
Tremaine Edmunds | B
If there was one position the Giants were desperate to upgrade on defense, it was linebacker. And when they cut veteran Bobby Okereke, it was clear they wanted to get younger, too.
The 27-year-old Edmunds fills that need and gives the Giants a strong leader in the middle, who still has the sideline-to-sideline speed to help against the run. He may not be a Pro Bowler anymore, but he’s topped 100 tackles in each of his eight NFL seasons. Also, at three years and $36 million, he’s affordable and came cheaper than he would have in a trade.
Likely | A
Likely will given the New York passing game a great option over the middle and underneath, and Likely does have the athleticism to stretch defenses a bit from a tight end alignment.
This looks like a great move to help develop [Jaxson] Dart, which is a priority this offseason in New York.
Likely | B-
Edmunds | C
Eluemunor | B+
Ar’Darius Washington | C
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