On the other side of the trenches, the Giants bolstered the offensive line in free agency with Jon Runyan, son of Michael Strahan’s old nemesis, and Jermaine Eluemunor. Shortly after, team president John Mara did not mince words at the NFL Annual Meeting when he was asked about the offensive line being a topic of conversation around the Giants for the past decade.
“You’re right it’s ridiculous,” Mara responded, “and it’s a continuing source of frustration for me. It’s time to get it fixed. We’ve invested in a couple of No. 1 draft picks on offensive tackles. We have a No. 2 draft pick playing at center, and now we have spent some money in free agency. We have a new offensive line coach. I expect us to be a hell of a lot better this year.”
The first-round picks are Andrew Thomas and Evan Neal. The second-round center is John Michael Schmitz Jr. The new position coach is Carmen Bricillo, formerly with the Raiders, along with new assistant offensive line coach James Ferentz, who recently retired as a player after an eight-year career with the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots.
“Certainly a priority going into this offseason was to get the offensive line fixed,” Mara said. “I mean, you can’t win in this league unless you have a good productive, consistent offensive line. It’s what we had years ago when we were winning, and we have to get back to that. I think we have the right pieces in there now. We have a new offensive line coach. We’ll see. Life in football starts on the offensive line. If you can’t block them, you’re not going to win.”
That line will now be blocking for, among others, newcomer Devin Singletary instead of Saquon Barkley, who climbed to No. 4 on the Giants’ all-time rushing list before signing with the rival Eagles in free agency. Barkley was one of five captains from 2023 who are no longer on the team. The others are safety Xavier McKinney (signed with Green Bay), tight end Darren Waller (retired), cornerback Adoree’ Jackson (currently a free agent), and defensive lineman Leonard Williams (traded to Seattle in the middle of last season).
Their departures created opportunities on the roster, which has now gone through three cycles of the draft and free agency under general manager Joe Schoen and coach Brian Daboll. Their latest draft class was headlined by Malik Nabers, who became the highest drafted wide receiver in franchise history at No. 6. Joining LSU’s all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards in the six-man draft class was Minnesota safety Tyler Nubin, Kentucky cornerback Dru Phillips, Penn State tight end Theo Johnson, Purdue wide receiver-turned-running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., and UCLA linebacker Darius Muasau