You can learn a lot about a new head coach by looking at the roster they build. John Harbaugh wasn’t cutting Jaxson Dart or Brian Burns on Sunday, but deciding whether to keep a sixth receiver or a fourth tight end (or running back) is where things get interesting.
That’s what makes the New York Giants’ initial 53-man roster worth looking into beyond the obvious cuts. Harbaugh and general manager Joe Schoen made some decisions that gave fans a much better idea of where this team is going.
We’ve spent the entire offseason hearing about the desire to get bigger, stronger, more physical, and to build the team in Harbaugh’s image. Well, we finally have 53 names to put back up the talk. After spending way too much time trying to figure out what will happen, we finally know. Here are the three things that stuck out most after Sunday's roster cuts.
Giants’ final 53 says plenty about where John Harbaugh is taking this team
3. The Giants are asking an awful lot from their rookie class
Talk about putting some faith in the kids. The G-Men made seven total selections in the 2026 Draft, and every single one of them survived roster cuts.
Arvell Reese will start alongside Tremaine Edmunds after spending the summer looking every bit like the No. 5 overall pick. Francis “Sisi” Mauigoa already has the starting right guard job locked down, and second-round corner Colton Hood should get plenty of opportunities to work his way into the starting lineup with the uncertainty surrounding the cornerback room.
Then there’s Malachi Fields, who looks like he could be the perfect complement to Malik Nabers as Big Blue's WR2. He started impressing at minicamp and hasn't stopped since. He has a real "steal of the draft" in him.
Even the sixth-round trio -- defensive lineman Bobby Jamison-Travis, offensive lineman J.C. Davis, and linebacker Jack Kelly -- survived.
Throw in undrafted rookies Dominic Zvada and Ben Mann winning the kicker and long snapper spots, respectively, and Harbaugh is putting an awful lot on the shoulders of players who were playing college football less than a year ago. Welcome to the league, fellas. Hope you’re ready.
2. Draft status means next to nothing under Harbaugh
Someone might want to hide Joe Schoen’s 2022 and 2023 draft boards.
Schoen made 18 selections across the two classes. Following Sunday’s cuts of Evan Neal, Jalin Hyatt, and Eric Gray, only Kayvon Thibodeaux, Micah McFadden, Deonte Banks, and John Michael Schmitz remain. Four players. Less than 25 percent of the two classes are still around, only four years later.
Even the survivors have plenty to prove. Banks fought his way back into the cornerback picture this summer, Schmitz needs a strong season in a contract year, and McFadden -- coming off a season-ending Lisfranc injury -- watched New York add Edmunds and spend the No. 5 pick on Reese.
Harbaugh inherited plenty of Schoen’s old draft picks. His first cut day showed how little he cares about their draft status now.
1. John Harbaugh’s Giants are going to be big as hell
Harby apparently looked at his roster and decided he’d like another tight end, please.
Big Blue kept four of them: Isaiah Likely, Theo Johnson, Chris Manhertz, and Thomas Fidone II. The 63-year-old also kept four running backs and brought six-time Pro Bowl fullback Patrick Ricard with him from Baltimore.
Meanwhile, only five wide receivers made the team.
The Giants have spent the offseason preaching about getting bigger and more physical, and their roster certainly looks the part. Ricard is a 6-foot-3, 300-pound human battering ram. Cam Skattebo is built like a fire hydrant. Najee Harris checks in at 240 pounds. And first-round offensive lineman Mauigoa is a casual 6-foot-6, 330 pounds.
Not to mention, on Friday, the G-Men swung a trade with the Ravens for defensive lineman C.J. Okoye, who's a modest 6-foot-6, 365 pounds.
Subtle.
Everywhere you look, this roster has mass. Harbaugh is putting the 'Giant' back in Giants.
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