The New York Giants have had a busy week since the NFL’s legal tampering window opened Monday. Big Blue signed seven players on day one, but one of the most notable names was their first signing, who has ties to John Harbaugh and will play a significant role in 2026.
The Giants have signed four former Ravens players in free agency, but tight end Isaiah Likely should be the most impactful signing, especially on offense. He will essentially be the team's WR2 from a semi-non-traditional position and serve as a replacement for Wan’dale Robinson.
The veteran tight end is the G-Men’s most expensive offseason addition, signing a three-year contract worth $40 million, but the team believes he'll be worth the cost. Likely will be a key weapon for Jaxson Dart, who happened to recruit him in New York, and will join Theo Johnson in a promising tight end room. This may be the Giants’ best tight end group since the Jeremy Shockey era.
Giants fans should be excited about Big Blue's new-look offense this year
We were all expecting the G-Men to sign a true WR2 in free agency to complement Malik Nabers and replace Wan’Dale on the depth chart, but they may not have to break the bank because, in a way, they already have their WR2 in Likely. The 6-foot-4, 245-pound tight end showed flashes of what he can do as a pass catcher in Baltimore, even playing alongside All-Pro tight end Mark Andrews.
Still, Harbaugh loves using two tight ends, and we’ve seen it several times before. The Ravens used 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends) 35.9% of the time and 22 personnel (two running backs, two tight ends) 8.3% of the time last season. Expect the Giants' offense to feature both Likely and Johnson together at times next season, which makes perfect sense.
Jordan Raanan of ESPN recently highlighted how the 25-year-old will reshape Big Blue's offense, noting that some of the NFL’s best teams featured strong tight end rooms like the Chiefs with Travis Kelce, the Eagles with Zach Ertz, and the Patriots with Rob Gronkowski.
When you hear those names and think about what Likely and Johnson could do together alongside Nabers, it has to have Big Blue fans fired up. Not to mention the G-Men’s backfield will feature Cam Skattebo, Tyrone Tracy Jr., and now former Raven-turned-Giant fullback Pat Ricard, which is plenty of weapons to support Dart and make up for Wan’Dale’s departure.