The New York Giants entered the offseason with a long to-do list and not enough money to check off every box. Quarterback remains the franchise’s biggest question mark, but even beyond that, they need reinforcements at wide receiver, cornerback, the offensive line, and defensive line. Not exactly a short list.
At the start of the offseason, New York’s financial outlook looked… fine. Not terrible, but certainly not great. They were projected to have around $43 million in cap space, a number that felt like a handcuff given the number of roster holes that needed filling. Sure, cap restructures and cuts could help, but not by much.
Then, everything changed.
How much cap space do the Giants have in 2025?
In a stunning development, the NFL salary cap for 2025 is set to be significantly higher than expected. And the Giants? According to Over the Cap, they just saw their available cap space balloon to $48.4 million—a near $5 million jump that gives general manager Joe Schoen much-needed flexibility. ESPN's Dan Graziano relayed the news on X:
The NFL today informed teams that the 2025 per-team salary cap will fall in the range of $277.5 million to $281.5 million, way up from last year's $255.4 million. Cap will have increased by more than $53 million over the last two years.
— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) February 19, 2025
This isn’t just a small bump. This is a game-changer. The Giants now sit 14th in the league in available cap space. And the best part? That number isn’t set in stone. New York has multiple ways to push that figure even higher. The most obvious? Making a few calculated cap casualties to free up additional room.
Top Potential Cap Casualties
The Giants aren’t exactly cash-strapped, but if they want to go big-game hunting in free agency, they’ll need to make some tough calls. Two names jump out as potential cap casualties off the bat:
- K Graham Gano – $5.7 million: New York made Gano the highest-paid kicker in football in 2024, but now he’s set to be the fifth-highest-paid kicker in 2025 at age 38. With injuries piling up, cutting Gano after June 1 would clear $4.1 million in cap space—money that could be better spent elsewhere.
- DL Rakeem Nunez-Roches – $5 million: A solid veteran, but at 32 years old, he’s a rotational run-stuffer at best. If the Giants move on, they’d free up $3.6 million in cap space, which could go toward signing a younger, more impactful defensive lineman.
That's an additional $7.7 million, putting the Giants in the realm of $56 million in cap space.
Beyond these moves, the Giants can create even more space by restructuring key contracts. Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence, Bobby Okereke, and Andrew Thomas are all candidates for restructures. Kicking money down the road isn’t ideal, but with a rookie quarterback likely coming in, New York can afford to inflate their cap later while their signal-caller is still on a cheap deal.
If New York chooses to restructure the maximum value allowed, it could save an additional $42.6 million, placing their total cap space number closer to $98 million. That's quite the door of possibility.
What This Means for the Giants' Offseason
This financial boost changes everything. The Giants now have the flexibility to make aggressive moves in free agency, whether it’s targeting a quarterback like Justin Fields, adding a big-time receiver like Chris Godwin, or shoring up their secondary with someone like Byron Murphy Jr.
Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll now have a golden opportunity to reshape this roster. The question is: Will they take advantage?