We've been saying it for weeks and don't want to sound like a broken record, but the NY Giants could never have enough offensive linemen. The G-Men suffered several injuries to the offensive line last year, which affected their offensive scheme and the health of their quarterbacks. That's why so many people were thrilled to see the team bring in guard Greg Van Roten for a visit.
Van Roten is a Long Island native and recently played for the Las Vegas Raiders under the Giants' new offensive line coach, Carmen Bricillo. He started every game at right guard and played 1,024 snaps last season and earned a 75.3 overall grade by Pro Football Focus. So, could a signing with the Giants be on the way?
Veteran guard Greg Van Roten is making a free agent visit to the #Giants, per source. Van Roten played well as a starter for the Raiders last year.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) July 22, 2024
Van Roten has experience at guard and backing up the center, which would give the Giants much-needed depth up front this campaign. While the Giants have improved their offensive line this offseason, they can continue bolstering their line with the 34-year-old lineman. With that said, let's look at the projected Giants' offensive line should Van Roten put the pen to paper.
Will the NY Giants end up signing Greg Van Roten?
Obviously, Andrew Thomas will be the Week 1 starter at left tackle. The 2020 first-round pick had a rough start to his career, allowing 10 sacks in his rookie campaign, but his play from the 2021 season snowballed him into the player he is today. Thomas is a former All-Pro LT and he's hoping to bounce back from his tough 2023.
The Giants upgraded tremendously at the guard positions with the additions of Jon Runyan Jr., Jermaine Eluemunor and Aaron Stinnie. Right now, Runyan is slated to be the starting right guard, while Eluemunor would be the go-to guy at left guard. At center, John Michael Schmitz is your starter, while Evan Neal, assuming he's healthy, will be the starting right tackle.
At that RT spot, though, Neal and Elumenor could end up battling it out for the job, should Van Roten indeed sign. Elumenor has made 45 regular season starts throughout his career, with 32 at right tackle. Neal had an ugly rookie year in 2022, which exposed his pass protection. Last year, he played even worse as one of Big Blue's worst pass blockers. In 309 pass-blocking reps, he gave up two sacks, five hits, 22 scrambles in the pocket, and 29 total pressures and was penalized five times.
A lot of fans are calling for Joe Schoen to sign Van Roten, let him start at right guard (Runyan would move to LG) and then have Brian Daboll let Neal or Eluemunor win the job opposite of Thomas. We'll all be waiting to see if Van Roten inks, but if he does, him starting from Day 1 would be ideal, but if the Giants are still focused on letting Neal keep trying to improve, then he might have to start on the bench. We'll see how things play out here. If he does join, a starting line of, from left to right, Thomas, Runyan, Schmitz, Van Roten and Eluemunor could be ideal for Daniel Jones.