As we approach the 2025 season, several players on the New York Giants are up for potential contract extensions, some of which could be handled and signed before the start of training camp if the team chooses to.
Two years ago, one of those players was Andrew Thomas, who was rewarded with a five-year, $117.5 million contract extension before the 2023 season. A few months earlier, the Giants also locked up Dexter Lawrence to a four-year, $90 million contract extension.
Two years later, it is another one of the Giants' draft picks who is up for a potential extension in linebacker Micah McFadden, who Moe Moton of Bleacher Report was listed as the Giants' most important contract extension candidate.
The Giants need to reach an agreement with Micah McFadden sooner rather than later
Given the numerous holdouts across the league, it would be wise for the Giants to consider this when evaluating players on their roster to extend before the start of the upcoming season. In an effort to avoid that, Moton believes it would be wise to finalize a deal with McFadden, as he is a significant part of their defense now and in the future.
“McFadden has become one of the league's most promising young linebackers, registering 267 tackles, 26 for loss, six sacks, six pass breakups and an interception. The Giants should be intrigued by his development and potential to be a long-term starter. Bobby Okereke, 28, has been a solid pickup from two years ago, but McFadden is the present and future at linebacker, and he's going into the final year of his deal.”
The last time the Giants had several of their own players up for potential contract extensions, they ended up letting them leave in free agency in Saquon Barkley and Xavier McKinney. They did give Daniel Jones a four-year, $160 million deal a few months before Thomas and Lawrence both received their extensions, but Jones was also released less than two years into that contract.
McFadden has slowly become one of the better parts of the Giants' defense and has been one of the team’s consistent tacklers, as he was the team’s third-highest tackler in 2023 with 101 and led the Giants in total tackles in 2024 with 107.
The linebacker also has been a key part of the Giants' pass rush as well, as he had three sacks in 2024 and had a 79.6 pass rushing grade from Pro Football Focus, which was the 10th best out of the 189 linebackers in the league in 2024.
A lot has been mentioned about the Giants' defense heading into the 2025 season, in particular, the pass rush and players like Dexter Lawrence and Brian Burns. Kayvon Thibodeaux and Abdul Carter. But the middle of the Giants' front seven seems to be a bit overlooked, with McFadden and Bobby Okereke patrolling the middle of it.
Not only would locking up McFadden long-term to the defense provide some security for both him and the team, but it would give the team some salary cap relief as well, which is something the Giants could use at the moment heading into training camp, as the Giants are listed as having $3.8 million in cap space, according to Over the Cap.
The Giants could choose to restructure other players' contracts before training camp if they decide that they need to create extra cap space, as they already did earlier in the off-season with Brian Burns before they signed Abdul Carter to their rookie contract. They could choose that avenue and wait to see whether McFadden decides to sign a long-term extension with them.
What the Giants decide to do remains to be seen, and all eyes will be on McFadden heading into what could be a crucial season for him and his career.