New York Giants: Grading all the free agent signings
By Matt Clark
TE Levine Toilolo
On March 9th, Giants tight end Rhett Ellison announced his retirement from football. In doing so, he left New York with a need for a tight end with strong blocking skills. Luckily, the Giants were able to address that need just nine days later when they signed former San Francisco 49er Levine Toilolo to a two-year $6.2 million deal.
Toilolo was originally drafted in the 4th round of the 2013 draft by the Atlanta Falcons out of Stanford University. He would play for the Falcons from 2013-2017 before joining the Detroit Lions in 2018 and San Francisco 49ers in 2019.
While he has 97 receptions for 996 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in his seven-year career, Toilolo is primarily known for his blocking skills. At 6’8″ and 275-pounds, Toilolo is a mountain of a man who is perfect for jumbo packages, as an extra offensive lineman, and as a giant red zone target.
Kyle Shanahan, who is regarded as one the great offensive minds in the National Football League valued Toilolo so much from his time as the offensive coordinator with the Falcons that when he took over as the head coach of the 49ers, he signed him as a free agent.
With San Francisco, the massive Tiololo became an integral part of one of the league’s best rushing attacks, using his massive size to seal off the edge for San Francisco’s running backs. The Giants hope that they can utilize him in the same manner while blocking for dynamic running back Saquon Barkley.