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NY Giants keep or dump? Who has to go after missing NFL Playoffs … Again

By Matt Lombardo

Dallas Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson (37) intercepts a pass intended for New York Giants tight end Evan Engram (88) in the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Dallas Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson (37) intercepts a pass intended for New York Giants tight end Evan Engram (88) in the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports /
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The NY Giants’ roster will look much different in 2021, and the organization has plenty of tough decisions to make as the rebuild continues this offseason after once again missing the NFL Playoffs.

Despite toppling the Dallas Cowboys 23-19 on Sunday afternoon, the NY Giants’ bid for an NFC East championship and its accompanying berth in the NFL Playoffs came up just short.

Because the Washington Football Team held on to beat the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night, the Giants are left out in the cold, extending its postseason drought to four straight years and eight of the last nine seasons.

After going 6-10 in head coach Joe Judge’s first season, this offseason promises to bring many changes.

The Giants will face several difficult decisions this offseason, but here’s a look at where things should stand with every player currently on the roster:

Defensive line

Leonard Williams: STAY

Williams was among the Giants’ most disruptive defenders this season, producing 57 tackles and a career-high 11.5 sacks. Williams saved his most dominant performance for last, a three-sack effort against the Cowboys on Sunday afternoon. Set to be an unrestricted free agent, Williams could command upwards of $20 million per season on a new four-year deal, but as contending teams across the league have shown, and the fact that the Giants’ defense was at its best when the line played its best, the Giants should make a concerted effort to keep him.

Dalvin Tomlinson: STAY

Another difficult, and expensive, decision that the Giants will face will be whether to retain Dalvin Tomlinson. Tomlinson is coming off the most productive season of his career with 49 tackles and 3.5 sacks. He’s also a home grown talent and the type of player that a defense can be built around. Sources around the league believe Tomlinson’s price tag could fall between $10-15 million annually, and if that’s the case, the Giants need to keep their two disruptive linemen together.

Dexter Lawrence: STAY

A foundational centerpiece of the NY Giants’ defense, and one of the most productive players drafted during GM Dave Gettleman’s tenure, Lawrence nearly doubled his sack total from his dominant rookie campaign, added 53 tackles, and proved to be the type of ascending player that offensive coordinators must game plan against.

Austin Johnson: GO

Johnson signed a one-year contract with the Giants this summer, but rarely cracked the defensive line rotation, playing just 21 percent of defensive snaps.

B.J. Hill: STAY

Hill is the type of player the Giants could explore trading this offseason, but short of finding a suitor, he proved to be a capable rotational player in the 33 percent of defensive snaps he appeared in in his third NFL season.

R.J. McIntosh: GO

Chosen by the Giants in the fifth-round of the 2015 NFL Draft, McIntosh has never really carved out a role for himself. McIntosh produced just six tackles in his first two seasons and did not play a snap in 2020.

Niko Lalos: STAY

Lalos, above all else, is cheap. The undrafted free agent out of Dartmouth produced a critical fumble recovery against the Seattle Seahawks and intercepted a pass against the Bengals. Depending on what the Giants do in the NFL Draft, Lalos could carve out a nice niche for himself in the defensive end rotation next season.

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