Daniel Faalele stands 6-foot-8, 370 pounds, and, in the most literal sense, acts as an immovable object up front, but he falls short just about everywhere else, which makes his signing with the New York Giants a bit underwhelming.
Yes, the Giants have a Greg Van Roten-sized hole on the right side of the line, and Faalele does play right guard, but it’s becoming clearer by the day that these uninspiring offensive line moves are pointing toward a guard being drafted in the first two rounds of the 2026 Draft.
In a move I called a month too soon, on Wednesday, NFL insider Ian Rapoport broke the news that New York came to a one-year agreement with the 26-year-old, reuniting the former Raven with the only head coach he's ever played under, John Harbaugh. This comes just two days after the Giants signed veteran interior lineman Lucas Patrick, and a couple of weeks after, surprisingly running it back with Evan Neal and Joshua Ezeudu.
With how underwhelming these moves have been, I just don’t see a world where Joe Schoen and Co. don’t target a high-end guard come draft weekend. It feels inevitable at this point.
Daniel Faalele signing makes New York Giants draft plans obvious
The Ravens selected the Australian with the 110th pick of the 2022 Draft. The former Minnesota Gopher left college as a tackle, but moved inside to keep his pro dreams alive. And while you could argue he technically has, that probably has a lot more to do with Harby's blind trust and belief in him than anything else.
Feels a lot like a ‘who you know’ situation.
Advanced analytics are only half the equation, but here's a breakdown of his four years in the league from Pro Football Focus:
Run-block grade | Pass-block grade | Overall grade | |
|---|---|---|---|
2022 | 47.9 | 49.6 | 50.2 |
2023 | 51.7 | 42.6 | 49.0 |
2024 | 58.5 | 63.2 | 60.5 |
2025 | 53.5 | 60.1 | 56.8 |
That's tough. And we've reached the point where none of these one-year, 'let's hope it works out this time' signings are enough to move me off the idea that drafting a stud in the first two rounds to protect second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart is more important than ever. Don't think for a second they're done working on the line.
Luckily for the G-Men, there are several draft-worthy options to fill the need. Francis Mauigoa (Miami), Emmanuel Pregnon (Oregon), Chase Bisontis (Texas A&M), and Keylan Rutledge (Georgia Tech) are just a few players whose names could be called when the Giants are on the clock.