It's go time. On Tuesday, NY Giants general manager Joe Schoen, head man Brian Daboll and Co. worked tirelessly to get the roster down to the 53-man limit. There were some surprising decisions announced, including the release of offensive tackle Tyre Phillips, Darrian Beavers getting cut, plus the trade for pass-rusher Boogie Basham.
In the end, though, Schoen put together the best group possible and now the team's confidence is high leading up to the Week 1 showdown with the Cowboys. While there could still be some additional trades, signings/cuts, here's how the initial 53-man roster is looking right now:
NY Giants quarterbacks
Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor: There's nothing to be surprised about here, as Jones is your starter, while Taylor will once again he his backup this season. Plenty of Giants fans were hoping that preseason standout Tommy DeVito would sneak his way onto the roster, but there was no reason for three QBs to be featured. DeVito, an UDFA out of Illinois, will probably make his way to the practice squad.
Jones didn't see a ton of action in the preseason, but in his lone series of work, he went 8-of-9 for 69 yards and a touchdown against the Panthers. There's a ton of pressure on Jones to live up to the hype of his $160 million extension. He'll look to start the season off with a bang come Week 1 vs. Dallas, a team he's 1-6 against.
NY Giants running backs
Saquon Barkley, Matt Breida, Eric Gray and Gary Brightwell: The main surprise from this group is that Brightwell was able to sneak on to the 53-man roster. Barkley is obviously the go-to guy, as the Pro Bowler is hoping to record yet another memorable campaign. He posted a career-high 1,312 rushing yards and 10 TDs in '22. Breida will be the No. 2 option, but look for Gray to make an impact on special teams.
NY Giants wide receivers
Darius Slayton, Isaiah Hodgins, Parris Campbell, Jalin Hyatt, Sterling Shepard and Wan'Dale Robinson: This unit could have looked a lot different had injuries not gotten in the way for both Collin Johnson (released) and Bryce Ford-Wheaton (torn ACL). Regardless, Slayton will enter as the No. 1 WR for Jones, but expectations are high for Hodgins and Campbell too. Will Hyatt be able to record some incredible plays with his lightning speed in '23? Robinson is coming off his torn ACL, but he's ready to get back out there. The same can be said for Shep. Keep an eye on Cole Beasley too - there could be more news on him in the coming days.
NY Giants tight ends
Darren Waller, Daniel Bellinger and Lawrence Cager: These three have been expected to be the NY TEs on the roster for a while. Chris Myarick was put on IR with a broken hand, and Tommy Sweeney wasn't able to steal a spot either. While Bellinger and Cager can make a difference when on the field, Waller is obviously the headliner here.
Waller is ready to make a giant splash for this offense. On Tuesday afternoon, it was announced that he's one of the team captains for Big Blue. That's a tremendous honor for him. NY supporters have a feeling Waller will become the second tight end in Giants history to post a 1,000-yard season. Mark Bavaro is the only other TE to reach that mark.
NY Giants offensive line
Andrew Thomas, Evan Neal, Ben Bredeson, John Michael Schmitz, Mark Glowinski, Joshua Ezeudu, Matt Peart, Shane Lemieux and Marcus McKethan: This is where the Giants could look to make some changes in terms of depth. A surprise from cut day was that Tyre Phillips was released. A lot of people thought he would have been around this season. The starting unit looks sharp for the Giants, but again, depth is needed, especially after how poor the backups looked in the preseason.
Lemieux is back? That feels like a bit of a stunner, but fans will trust Schoen. Andrew Thomas is the leader of this group, as he's coming off his Second Team All-Pro campaign. It earned him a $117.5 million extension. Neal busted his hump this offseason to improve. A strong, bounce-back season is needed from the young RT.
NY Giants defensive line
Dexter Lawrence, Leonard Williams, A'Shawn Robinson, Rakeem Nunez-Roches, DJ Davidson and Jordon Riley: Speaking of depth, that's what the defensive line has up front thanks to a strong offseason plan from Schoen. Lawrence and Williams are stars, everyone knows that, but adding Nunez-Roches and Robinson was great business from the second-year GM. Also, how about the emergence of Riley? The seventh-round pick played some head-turning football during the preseason. Kudos to him.
NY Giants outside linebackers
Kayvon Thibodeaux, Azeez Ojulari and Jihad Ward: This group formed with a major change on Tuesday morning - the trade with the Bills for Bashan (more below). With that deal being made, it led to Oshane Ximines being released. On top of that, Schoen also decided to let go of Tomon Fox and Habakkuk Baldonado. All three felt like guys who had a shot of making the roster. Thibodeaux and Ojulari will be your starters on the outside and the hype is real for those two.
NOTE: Bashan hasn't officially been named to the 53-man roster, but his trade from Buffalo is expected to be finalized soon. Once things are made official, he'll be locked in as part of the squad.
NY Giants inside linebackers
Bobby Okereke, Micah McFadden, Isaiah Simmons, Cam Brown and Carter Coughlin: After signing his $40 million contract with the G-Men this offseason, Okereke is being looked at as the savior for the ILBs. He was also named a team captain on Tuesday. McFadden and Beavers battled for the starting job next to Okereke, but Schoen bringing in Simmons for a seventh-round pick has been the talk of the town since things went down. Beavers getting cut remains a bit of a stunner, but it's clear he wasn't quite the same following his ACL tear last preseason.
NY Giants cornerbacks
Tre Hawkins III, Deonte Banks, Adoree' Jackson, Darnay Holmes and Cor'Dale Flott: No one would have thought that two rookies would be starting on the outside at CB, but that's what's going to be going down Week 1. Plenty of eyes will be on first-round pick Banks and sixth-rounder Hawkins now that Jackson has moved to the slot. Holmes took his paycut earlier this week. Had he not done that, he'd be a free agent right now.
NY Giants safeties
Xavier McKinney, Jason Pinnock, Dane Belton, Gervarrius Owens, Bobby McCain and Nick McCloud: There was plenty of speculation that McCain would be let go, but he's going to stick around after all. Pinnock was one of the biggest standouts from the summer. His camp/preseason was highlighted by a viral intercetion of Daniel Jones. He followed that up with an interception in the preseason opener vs. the Lions.
Pinnock will start alongside Xavier McKinney. Don't sleep on Belton, though. He also had plenty of solid plays over the past month, including an INT against the Lions. Owens was a late-round pick who showed flashes of strong play too.
NY Giants specialists
K Graham Gano, P Jamie Gillan and LS Casey Kreiter: To close things out, Gano, Gillan and Kreiter are your specialists for the 2023 campaign. Gano has locked in his spot as one of the best kickers in the game. We saw just how fantastic Gano can be in his showing against the Jets on Saturday night. Gano was 3-for-3 in his field-goal attempts, including two 50-yarders. He's been Mr. Reliable for Big Blue.
READ MORE: NY Giants add pass-rush depth in trade with the Buffalo Bills