Several key players might be entering their final weeks as a member of the NY Giants, including tight end Evan Engram and safety Jabrill Peppers, as the organization faces difficult questions this offseason
The NY Giants, whether the organization will admit it or not, is far closer to the beginning of a rebuild than to competing for a championship.
That’s what made this offseason’s big splashes in free agency; signing wide receiver Kenny Golladay, cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, and making Leonard Williams one of the highest-paid players at his position so puzzling, when viewed in the scope of how far away this team is from pushing for the postseason.
After seven weeks, the Giants are 2-5, with wins over the New Orleans Saints and woebegone Carolina Panthers, but are just about to enter the teeth of a remaining schedule that has a winning percentage of .485.
General manager Dave Gettleman’s future is very much uncertain.
But, it would appear barring some sort of dramatic on the field turnaround over the final 10 weeks of this season, the NY Giants will look very different next September than they will at the end of this campaign.
Who stays and who goes remains to be seen, but it would seem that several players are entering the home stretch of their NY Giants tenures …
Here’s a look at five NY Giants players who won’t be back in 2022:
NY Giants LT Nate Solder
At this stage, the NY Giants can’t even rely on Nate Solder to be a reliable swing offensive tackle.
That has become more evident with each game he’s been pressed into action after left tackle Andrew Thomas landed on injured reserve.
Through six games, Solder has allowed four sacks, 22 pressures, and six quarterback hits. Not the kind of performance that any franchise would expect from a veteran presence, especially along an offensive line that has otherwise been thrown into a state of tumult.
The NY Giants can create $14 million in cap space by releasing Solder prior to June 1, while absorbing $4 million dead-money. Expect releasing Solder with a June 1 designation to be among the NY Giants’ general manager’s first orders of business this offseason, whomever that might be.
NY Giants TE Evan Engram
There might not be a player more needing of a change of scenery than Evan Engram.
Expect the NY Giants to shop Engram at the trade deadline, but after the Arizona Cardinals acquired Zach Ertz in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles, league sources tell FanSided they would expect Engram’s market to be limited.
There just aren’t enough competitive teams that are in dire need of a tight end and have the cap room to absorb the final year of Engram’s contract.
Engram has gotten off to a disappointing start to this season, the final year of his contract, catching only 20 of his 26 targets through seven games, for 171 yards. He has yet to reach the end zone.
Due to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, the NY Giants will undoubtedly look in a different direction at tight end.
NY Giants S Jabrill Peppers
Peppers’ stark decline in usage has been one of the more underrated storylines of the NY Giants’ 2021 season.
Last season, Peppers appeared in 88 percent of the NY Giants’ defensive snaps, down to just 58 percent through the first six games of the 2021 campaign.
One reason for Peppers’ diminished role would appear to be the fact that he continues to be a liability in coverage. According to Pro Football Focus, who gives Peppers a 53.2 coverage grade, opposing quarterbacks have a walloping 121.9 passer rating when targeting Peppers, and receivers are averaging 11.8 yards per reception against him.
The NY Giants are encouraged by Xavier McKinney’s development, in his second season, and in all likelihood it would appear McKinney and veteran Logan Ryan are New York’s safety tandem of the future.
There’s a chance that the NY Giants could move Peppers at the trade deadline, but the fact that he is in the final year of his contract would make any trade problematic.
Peppers is set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and it would be surprising if he saw a strong market for anything more than a one-year “prove it” deal from another team shopping for safety and special teams help.
NY Giants LG Will Hernandez
Will Hernandez might be the NY Giants’ best offensive lineman this season. But, that doesn’t mean that he should be part of the organization’s long-term rebuild of the offensive line.
Four years into his career, Hernandez still struggles mightily against stunts, as illustrated by the Panthers ambushing him and Solder for a sack Sunday. Likewise, Hernandez is oft-penalized and seems to commit penalties in untimely moments.
There’s a chance that the NY Giants bring Hernandez back, who is in the final year of his rookie contract, on some sort of prove-it deal or low-money contract if a strong market doesn’t develop. However, more likely than not, the organization will look to invest in offensive line help in next spring’s NFL Draft.
NY Giants C Billy Price
The NY Giants acquired Billy Price in a preseason trade with the Cincinnati Bengals, that hasn’t exactly worked out the way the organization had hoped.
B.J. Hill, dispatched to Cincinnati, currently has seven sacks for the Bengals.
Meanwhile, since his arrival, and subsequent insertion into the starting lineup following Nick Gates’ gruesome leg injury, Price has allowed one sack, 12 pressures, and has an overall grade from Pro Football Focus of just 50.5. Price’s pass-protection mark is 39.4.
Next season, the NY Giants will likely turn the keys of the center position over to Gates, if healthy, or go shopping for the position during the draft. It’s difficult to envision Price returning as anything more than a swing interior lineman.