The New York Giants had an active, interesting first day of free agency with a couple of big wins, one significant loss, and a lot of work remaining to do. Here are some of the ‘things I think’ after the first day of the legal tampering period, which is when most of the big things happen.
1 for 3 … but they got the most important one
Head coach John Harbaugh said at the NFL Scouting Combine that the Giants wanted each member of their free agent Big 3 — right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor, wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson, cornerback Cor’Dale Flott — back. He knew, though, getting that done was unlikely.
“You want the guys back,” Harbaugh said. “Now it’s o we have the wherewithal to bring them back?”
Turned out that the Giants only had the wherewithal to bring back Eluemunor, who agreed to a three-year, $39 million contract with the first two years ($26 million) guaranteed.
The view here is that the Giants got the most important of the three players to sign on the dotted line.
Robinson got a four-year, $70 million deal with incentives that could push the total to $78 million from Tennessee. Flott got a three-year, $45 million contract from the Titans with $32 million guaranteed.
Both are overpays.
If the Giants had to play a game today, they would probably have tight ends Theo Johnson and newly-signed Isaiah Likely splitting time in Robinson’s old spot as a big slot receiver. I can live with that. Losing Flott, especially without a clear replacement lined up, hurts. There is time, though.
Keeping Eluemunor means the bookends of the Giants’ offensive line — Eluemunor and Andrew Thomas — remain in place. Marcus Mbow can handle the swing tackle role, likely taking the right tackle spot off the table for the Giants at No. 5 in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Not to mention that getting Eluemunor for $13 million a year seems like a bargain.
$27 million for a center!
That is the average annual value of the three-year, $81 million contract the Las Vegas Raiders gave free agent center Tyler Linderbaum. That blows away the previous top salary for a center, which had been the $18 million annually the Kansas City Chiefs are paying Creed Humphrey.
No wonder word began to filter out over the weekend that the Giants, thought to be a primary suitor for the former Ravens center, were going to be priced out of the market.
Yes, the salary cap keeps going up. That, though, seems like a crazy number to go to in order to sign Linderbaum. Thankfully, the Giants didn’t go there.
Of course John Harbaugh did this
The Giants could not compete with the outrageous price the Raiders paid for Linderbaum. Of course, though, the Harbaugh Giants would break the banks and reset the punter market, signing Jordan Stout to a three-year, $12.3 million contract that makes him the highest-paid punter in NFL history.
Harbaugh is a former special teams coach, and he is never shy about telling you how important special teams are to him. His Baltimore Ravens teams were annually considered to be excellent on special teams. Harbaugh convinced former Ravens special teams coach Chris Horton to join him with New York.
So, of course, with an opportunity to bring an All-Pro punter he was familiar with from the Ravens Harbaugh made sure that happened. We should have expected it.
Titan trouble
While I was doing a live stream with Tony DelGenio on YouTube Monday night, a viewer commented that it sure seemed like GM Mike Borgonzi and head coach Robert Saleh had put offensive coordinator and former Giants head coach Brian Daboll in charge of free agency.
The Titans signed Robinson, Flott, tight end Daniel Bellinger, and center Austin Schlottmann.
I get it. Kind of. All of those guys are good players. But it is kind of weird for a 3-14 team (Tennessee) to raid the roster of a 4-13 team.
What’s next for the Giants?
There is still A LOT for the Giants to do in order to bolster the roster. Here is some of what has to be done, with a reminder that the draft is coming and that not every need is addressed perfectly each offseason.
Who is at cornerback?
The Giants have Paulson Adebo at one outside cornerback spot, and Dru Phillips in the slot. That’s fine. At the other outside cornerback spot they have Deonte Banks and Korie Black, and maybe Nic Jones or Art Green if they bring those players back. That’s not fine.
Flott leaving is not the end of the world. What hurts is the number of other good cornerbacks who came off the board on Monday. That included Jamel Dean, a veteran who was thought to be a New York target. He signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tariq Woolen, Marshon Lattimore, and Greg Newsome are among the recognizable names available.
Here is a question: If the Giants don’t solve the cornerback puzzle, does that put Mansoor Delane of LSU in play with the fifth overall pick in the draft?
Offensive line on the agenda
The Giants brought back Eluemunor, which was a huge positive step. Center John Michael Schmitz can breath a sigh of relief since he still has his starting job. What, though, is going to happen at the guard spots?
Starting right guard Greg Van Roten remains a free agent. Schlottmann is a Titan. Starting left guard Jon Runyan Jr. may or may not be back with the Giants in 2026.
There was a report Monday that the Giants were signing New York Jets guard Alijah Vera-Tucker. That turned out to be premature, but it might be on Tuesday’s agenda for John Harbaugh, Joe Schoen, and Dawn Aponte. There have also been reports that the Giants are interested in former Cleveland Browns guard Wyatt Teller.
I suspect the interior of the offensive line will be one of Tuesday’s big Giants stories.
Some help for Dexter, please?
Rakeem Nunez-Roches and D.J. Davidson are free agents. Dexter Lawrence needs more help than either of them can provide, anyway.
Dalvin Tomlinson, Calais Campbell, Sebastian Joseph-Day, and a host of other defensive tackles are on the market. Let’s see what the Giants, still in need of more interior beef for their run defense, do at that spot.
It was nice that the Giants re-signed Isaiah Hodgins. That doesn’t make up for the loss of Robinson, and it also doesn’t add anything the Giants didn’t already have.
Darnell Mooney, Romeo Doubs, Tyquan Thornton, Jauan Jennings are among the wide receivers still available.
Would the Giants dangle Kayvon Thibodeaux?
There has been so much chatter about the Giants possibly trading Thibodeaux that we need to put the idea on the table.
There have been reports that the Jacksonville Jaguars would be amenable to trading wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., who had 87 receptions for nearly 1,300 yards as a rookie in 2024.
The Giants need help at cornerback. Could the Giants convince the Baltimore Ravens to swap them two-time first-team All-Pro Marlon Humphrey?
Would a trade involving Thibodeaux get the Jaguars or Ravens to the table. Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post tossed out the idea of Thibodeaux for Cleveland Browns cornerback Tyson Campbell.
Would you use Thibodeaux to try and solve one of those two Giants needs?
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