NY Giants: 3 Free agent backup runningback options

1. Jordan Howard

The sky appeared to be the limit for Jordan Howard after he burst onto the NFL scene as a rookie with the Chicago Bears in 2016. The fifth-round pick out of Indiana looked to be the next successful late-round runningback on a long list of such players. Howard’s rookie year saw him total over 1300 rushing yards on a 5.2 average – picking up 73 first downs – while also chipping in almost 300 receiving yards.

His production ‘dipped’ to 1,122 yards and 9 touchdowns on a 4.1 average in 2017 before he lost the stanglehold on his starting job with the emergence of Tarik Cohen in 2018 where he posted a career-worst 3.7 YPC average. This led the Bears to draft his replacement and deal him to the Philadelphia Eagles prior to the 2019 season.

Standing at 6 feet tall and weighing a massive 225 pounds, Howard is the perfect bruising type of short-yardage back that the NY Giants are sorely lacking. With his stock down following the down 2018 campaign and missing six games to injuries with the Eagles, Gettleman could strike gold and find a way to bring Howard on with a team-friendly contract.

When he was on the field for the Eagles, he was impressive. Howard only received 119 carries in 2019, but he picked up 525 yards (4.4 average) with 6 touchdowns in his limited action. At just 25-years-old, Howard should have plenty left in the tank.