5 Offseason moves to fix the 2020 NY Giants defense

5. Let Leonard Williams walk in free agency

The NY Giants will need to allocate a lot of money to upgrade their defense this offseason. However, that money should not be wasted on the likes of Leonard Williams. It is bad enough that general manager Dave Gettleman inexplicably wasted a third-round and a fifth-round pick on Williams, with the third-rounder likely being a top 70 pick in the draft.  However, simply throwing stupid money at what has proven to be a horrible move would make matters worse.

The Giants are already flush with young talent on the interior portion of the defensive line with Dexter Lawrence, BJ Hill, and Dalvin Tomlinson, making Williams expendable (and unnecessary for a 2-6 team to trade for to begin with). Williams has been essentially non-existent in all but one game since the New York Jets fleeced Gettleman and sent the underperforming first-round draft pick to their cross-town rivals.

Williams has zero sacks on the year and has produced a measly 17 sacks in five seasons as a pro.  Despite the lack of production in the pass rush, Williams is expecting to receive a massive contract in the offseason. Currently, he is on a franchise tag contract making $14.5 million this season.

It is anticipated that Williams will make $18-20 million annually when he signs in the offseason. The Giants would be wise to use that money on someone like Barrett or Ngakoue who possess elite pass-rushing abilities, rather than an older and less productive version of the interior defensive linemen they currently have on the roster. This is especially true because signing Williams to an extension would give the Jets the fourth-round pick of the Giants in 2021 instead of their 5th round pick, per the terms of the deal.

It is important that the Giants recognize that just because they made an awful decision in trading for Williams, they should not double down on stupidity by signing him to a lucrative contract. Signing the underwhelming lineman would set the franchise back even further than trading their valuable third and fifth-round picks has already done.