NY Giants final 53-man roster projection
By Zak Musso
The 2022 preseason wrapped up on Sunday afternoon, which means we are rapidly approaching the deadline for all NFL teams to announce their final 53-man rosters for the 2022 season.
The deadline frenzy won’t end on Tuesday, though. NFL general managers, especially Giants general manager Joe Schoen, will be scouring the wavier wire to add players who did not make other teams’ rosters to help upgrade their own roster. There’s going to be plenty of movement in East Rutherford and some questions need to be answered:
Will the Giants keep three quarterbacks?
Will Darius Slayton be a cap casualty?
How many running backs and wide receivers will the team keep?
How does Schoen deal with the banged up offensive line?
How bad do the coaches feel the cornerback position is?
This week will help determine and give an indication into the direction the Giants are headed. Here is the Giants’ final 53-man roster projection before the big decisions are made.
Quarterback
In: Daniel Jones, Tyrod Taylor, Davis Webb
Out: None
The pecking order is pretty clear between the three quarterbacks. Jones is by far the best and most talented on the roster, and this is his last year to prove he is a franchise quarterback. Taylor is a quality NFL quarterback, who will provide a great insurance policy should Jones continue to deal with injuries like he has in his first three seasons.
Webb, the 2022 NFL preseason MVP, will make the roster. Webb turned down a coaching job with the Buffalo Bills in February to come back to the Giants, something he would not likely have done unless he thought he would be on the roster this season. Webb’s coaching pedigree will be a great asset for Jones during games this season.
Running backs
In: Saquon Barkley, Matt Breida, Antonio Williams, Gary Brightwell
Out: Jashuan Corbin, Sandro Platzgummer
This is a change from my last roster projection. While Barkley is locked in an as the every down running back, Breida, Williams, Brightwell, and Corbin are rather interchangeable. Breida battled injury all throughout training camp, but he is familiar with Daboll’s offense and ran with the second unit during Sunday’s preseason game against the Jets.
Williams is also familiar with Daboll’s offense and he has been running with the 3’s all offseason. Williams also plays special teams as does Brightwell, who seems to be the team’s starting kick returner. It would not be surprising to see the Giants keep Corbin and go young at the position, and frankly I think they should, but Corbin played in the fourth quarter of the last preseason game, which is generally not a good sign for making an NFL roster. With Barkley’s durability concerns, it’s likely the Giants keep four running backs.
Wide receivers
In: Kenny Golladay, Sterling Shepard, Kadarius Toney, Wan’Dale Robinson, David Sills, Richie James
Out: CJ Board, Darius Slayton, Alex Bachman, Keelan Doss, Jaylon Moore
Kenny Golladay is not getting cut. The Giants would lose approximately $4.3 million in cap space if they cut Golladay, and with their wide receiver depth, and Golladay’s undeniable talent, there is no reason to do that. Shepard, Toney, and Robinson are locks on the roster. With Collin Johnson suffering his torn Achilles, David Sills seems poised to finally make the Giants roster after years of being a preseason superstar, and will likely play meaningful snaps this season.
CJ Board’s rib injury and preseason fumble could knock him off the roster, with James taking his spot as a proven veteran. The Giants will likely cut Slayton to save $2.5 million in cap space, but with such question marks at receiver, the Giants may opt to keep the proven veteran who has 1,830 receiving yards in his three-year career. This could be a position group the Giants add to through the wavier wire.