NY Giants defense will run through promising young defensive line
The defensive front of the NY Giants, helped by the draft class of 2019, saw modest improvements last season. That’s good news; the team is at its best with a destructive front line.
Whether it was either of the incredible Super Bowl runs from 2008 and 2012, the NY Giants runs to the pinnacle of NFL success were dependant on incredibly strong defensive lines. But the team has been unable or unwilling to keep promising talent and has suffered as a result.
Linval Joseph, who was on the team that 2012 season, was deemed to be inconsequential. The Giants let the run-stopper go after the 2013 season; since then, he’s appeared in two Pro Bowls and has been a staple of the Minnesota Vikings defensive front.
Next went Jonathan Hankins, who, like Joseph, was let go after four productive seasons. His numbers have not dissipated since he left New York. In fact, his 2019 campaign for the Oakland Raiders was one of his most productive years. His 50 tackles were one short of his career-high from 2014 with the Giants, according to profootballreference.com.
Those linemen, among others, left a sizable hole when they left New York.
NY Giants were run (All Over) this town the last few years
In 2018 the Giants’ defense led the NFC East in rush yards allowed, giving up on average 118.6 yards per game, according to data collected from NFL.com. Equally troubling, that year the team gave up 1.1 rushing touchdown per game – the only team in the division with a total higher than one, making it a virtual certainty that an opposing running back would get a touchdown against the Giants.
Three of the 2019 draft picks that went to defense were to help the porous rush defense: Dexter Lawrence was taken in the first round, Oshane Ximines was taken in the third, and Chris Slayton was taken in the seventh. Also drafted to help was linebacker Ryan Connelly in the fifth round.
The 2019 draft additions appeared to help, as the NY Giants allowed 113.3 per game, a slight decrease from the year before, according to data from NFL.com.
Further, opposing teams converted 40% on 3rd down against the NY Giants in 2019, down from 42% from 2019, according to data from NFL.com.
But 4th down conversions were a drastic improvement. Despite still allowing 57% of 4th down conversions in 2019, the number was far below 2018’s conversion rate of 82%, which was the highest within the NFC East for the past five years.
The defensive breakout star from the 2019 draft class has been Lawrence, who started all 16 games and led defensive rookies in tackles with 38, according to data from ESPN.com
But Ximines, who was drafted as a DE but played as a hybrid LB (similar in the vein of previous great role player Mathias Kiwanuka) is the player to watch. Though he only started two games, he appeared in all 16. He racked up 25 tackles and led rookies in sacks with 4.5 and tackles for loss with 5.5, according to ESPN.com
Connelly racked up 20 tackles and one sack in his 10 games played. Slayton did not see the field.
Molding NY Giants sack masters
The NY Giants muscle has traditionally been it’s the defensive line, and it appears that they’re well on their way to once again flex it. Though the NY Giants were once again at the bottom of the division in sacks per year (for the fourth time in five years) they hit a five-year high in the category with 36 sacks, according to data from NFL.com.
This is a sign that the defensive line is one to build around. But the trend seems to have been let talent go. The problem has been that they haven’t found replacements, at least not anyone promising.
The last big-name signing was Olivier Vernon, who had a decent first year with the NY Giants. But he played in fewer games as each season went on, consequently collecting fewer tackles. And the sack production increased after his departure.
With the line being established, with Leonard Williams as Lawrence’s opposite end, and Dalvin Tomlinson as the big body in the middle, the Giants’ best bet to continue its improvement is keeping this unit together.
Next. Here's what the best version of the NY Giants' offensive line should look like. dark
But Consistency matters. Both Williams and Tomlinson will become unrestricted free agents after this season, which makes it even more important that they show the front office this defensive line could become dominant.