NY Giants: 5 Players who need to step up in 2021

Lorenzo Carter & Oshane Ximines, Outside Linebackers/EDGE Rushers

The NY Giants need a lot more from their edge players to get a pass rush going and create some pressure.

New York expected to greatly upon Lorenzo Carter and Oshane Ximines to lead the defense off both edges this season. But, that plan went awry and neither player took the hopeful jump or continued development from 2019.

Carter and Ximines went down with season-ending injuries in Weeks 4 and 5 which completely changed the outlook of the depth chart at outside linebacker.

In their four and five-game performances, both players looked like and played like much of the same we saw in 2019.

Ximines was a bit disappointing as he failed to rack up any sacks and only three QB hits through four games. Carter showed a little more impact all-around and he got a sack along with four QB hits and two tackles for a loss.

Carter suffered a torn Achilles injury that puts his role in 2021 in question. Ximines hurt his shoulder and was expected to return until it worsened and he ended up tearing his rotator cuff and requiring surgery.

As both players recover, they need to realize how fragile this league is and how little time they can have playing in the NFL. Entering 2021, you can expect both players will face a bevy of competition to ensure the team doesn’t have a lifeless pass rush again to start the season.

At this point, Carter may not ever reach the potential the team envisioned for him back in 2018. Carter has developed into a solid role player but his starting status is a question mark. Ximines still has potential and pass-rushing prowess but he needs to start showing that talent more on Sundays.

Once both players went down, the team totally revamped their EDGE group and actually got far more production once guys such as Jabaal Sheard, Niko Lalos, and the young rookies saw all the snaps.

With any luck, both Carter and Ximines make full recoveries and get back to where they were pre-injury and can help form the group into a dynamic, versatile group with a variety of options. They need to step up big this year or both may find themselves as free agents to come in 2022.