Cut down day is never an easy one in the NFL. On Tuesday, it was no exception for the NY Giants and especially for head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen, as they were given the task of getting the roster down to 53 players before the league’s mandated 4 p.m. ET deadline.
Coaches develop relationships and bonds with the players, which is why Daboll said making cuts was something he didn’t look forward to. Yet, it’s part of the job as an NFL head coach, and the same goes with Schoen as an NFL general manager.
It’s also tough for a fan base. On Tuesday, Big Blue supporters were on the edge of their seat with every single roster cut, with some decisions definitely being tough to swallow. When the smoke and dust was cleared on Tuesday night, the Giants had a 53-man roster announced. So, what were the biggest surprises from all of the moves made?
5. OT Tyre Phillips
When the Giants were making the cuts needed on Tuesday, most of them weren’t real shockers. Most made sense. Then came the Tyre Phillips news. That was the first surprise.
Why? Because everyone who saw the Giants play in the preseason knew the lack of depth at the tackle position behind Andrew Thomas and Evan Neal. Korey Cunningham was bad enough to where he got waived. Matt Peart survived the roster purge, but he had his struggles.
And just like that the dream dies. Tyre Phillips cut per @Schultz_Report
— Ryan Dunleavy (@rydunleavy) August 29, 2023
He was the swing OT last year before Matt Peart was healthy. Peart is OT3 for now but he really struggled in live action this summer #Giants https://t.co/WySwEm5rMg
The struggles of Peart, plus Cunningham, was why it was a bit of a shock to see Phillips, with three years of pro experience and had started a few games in his career, be given the boot like he did. Several experts had Phillips being predicted to make the final roster to start the season.
The only explanation for it is if the Giants look on the waiver wire for other swing tackles and add depth from the other 31 team’s roster cuts as well. Phillips is back with the G-Men on the practice squad, but a lot of thought he'd be on the initial 53.