Make-or-break 2024 for Giants RT Evan Neal officially starting with PUP setback
Is this going to force the hand of NY Giants general manager Joe Schoen to sign a new offensive lineman? That could be the case, as the Evan Neal news that some of us were expecting, though we were in denial about, has arrived.
With veterans reporting for camp and the first practice session of the summer almost here, the G-Men dropped their initial injury report. Unfortunately, Neal has been placed on the PUP list to kick things off. The former No. 7 overall pick is still working his way back from winter ankle surgery and he's clearly not ready to be a full-go at practice:
Giants place two players on PUP at the start of camp:
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) July 23, 2024
RT Evan Neal (ankle)
CB Aaron Robinson (knee)
Neal is definitely one to monitor closely moving forward. Had a fracture last season that eventually required surgery. Didn’t do much in spring. Big year for third-year tackle.
Evan Neal starting training camp on the PUP list is brutal news for the young OT
There's really no way to sugarcoat this for Neal. He has been a first-round bust through his first two seasons in the NFL. However, with new offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo now in East Rutherford, the hope is that he'd be able to help develop Neal, a job Bobby Johnson couldn't get done.
Neal struggled immensely once again in 2023, and then things were made worse for him when he suffered a serious ankle injury that required surgery. He was off the field during minicamp, with Brian Daboll saying they were keeping him out of action so he could get himself ready for the summer.
In a perfect world he'd be good to go for the start of camp, but we now know that won't be the case. With Jermaine Eluemunor having the versatility to play either guard or right tackle, this news could lead to the veteran making the switch to the outside. Could this end up leading to a Greg Van Roten signing too?
Even before this PUP news dropped, there was speculation that perhaps the Giants could move on from Neal as their starting RT. Could you imagine if Eluemunor takes that spot and Van Roten is signed and then starts at right guard, allowing Jon Runyan Jr. to play at left guard next to Andrew Thomas? We'd be all for that. Neal is going to have to work his way back from this injury, but there's no guarantee his starting spot will even be there for him once he's at 100 percent.
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