Joe Schoen can’t afford to make another mistake with key defensive leader

During the 2024 season, the running joke of the New York Giants was they were the team that let good players go to new teams to become better ones.

Aside from the downright disaster of letting Saquon Barkley walk in free agency to win a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles, the current Giants regime has had a history of letting their good players go either in trades or free agency and watching them become even better on other teams.

They did it with Leonard Williams, who is doing well with the Seattle Seahawks. They also did it with Julian Love, who joined Williams in Seattle and has turned into a tremendous player. And then there was Xavier McKinney, who joined the Green Bay Packers in free agency and was excellent for them in his first season. The list goes on. It's too much.

Could another defensive player be leaving? Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reported that Giants brass doesn't think too highly of Bobby Okereke and the value he brings to the team.

Okereke is entering the third year of a four-year deal he signed before the 2023 season. If the Giants really are considering moving Okereke, they would have to do so soon, considering he is owed a $3 million roster bonus on March 14. So whether the Giants decide to either trade or keep Okereke remains to be seen, but hopefully, Schoen keeps him in New York.

A season ago, Okereke had one of the best seasons from a Giants linebacker. He totaled 149 tackles, two interceptions, and 2.5 sacks, plus 11 tackles for a loss. Okereke was a tackling machine for the Giants, and many felt the team had found their future linebacker. In 2024, his numbers plummeted. He had 93 tackles, two sacks, and only six tackles for a loss. Injuries undoubtedly played a role in the counting stats. He ended the season on injured reserve, missing the last five games.

Another reason for the drop could be attributed to the change of defensive coordinators. The Giants exchanged Wink Martindale for Shane Bowen.

The Giants need to continue building around Okereke. He could be a core piece of the defense, allowing him to develop within Bowen’s system rather than stripping away a key contributor and making an already shaky unit even weaker. The other linebacker options are Micah McFadden and Darius Muasau. McFadden is a good player who plays alongside Okereke in the 3-4 defense. But McFadden isn’t quite the defender Okereke is. Neither is Muasau.

Could the Giants turn to free agency for a replacement? Sure. But can they find someone as good as Okereke—who not only produces on the field but also commands respect as a team captain? That’s a different story, and this is exactly where the Giants could set themselves up for yet another mistake, just like they have in recent years.

Allowing leaders to go while still in the prime of their career can send a bad message to the locker room. The Giants ultimately decided not to pay Barkley long-term and some felt the locker room took a hit as a result from the leadership loss. The same could be said about Williams, Love, and McKinney.

Does general manager Joe Schoen really want that message sent to his players? Especially when some feel he could be on the hot seat if he doesn’t put together a team that's heading in the right direction? What Schoen needs to do is show everyone that he can put together a roster that is not only trending in the right direction but one that can eventually be competitive enough to get back into the playoffs.

Getting rid of Okereke without a proper replacement would be a terrible call for the G-Men. It would send the wrong message, just like it did when all of their other stars left.

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