Three burning questions as G-Men report to camp
The Giants report to training camp Tuesday, which means the second season of the Joe Judge era is upon us.
Team president John Mara said in the offseason that he was “tired of the losing.” That’s one reason the front office spent about $200 million on free agents.
Will it translate to the Giants’ first winning season since 2016?
Here are three burning questions as the Giants prepare for the 2021 campaign.
Will we see Saquon Barkley?
Running back Saquon Barkley is one of six players opening camp on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, which is no surprise given that he is recovering from ACL surgery.
Players on the PUP list can be activated at any time, but it’s unlikely that Barkley suits up until later in the summer. He turned heads last week when asked at his football camp in North Caldwell if he would be ready for Week 1 of the season and Barkley responded, “I don’t know, we’ll see.”
The Giants don’t open the season until Sept. 12 against the Broncos, which will be 11 months removed from the surgery on Barkley’s right knee. The idea that he wouldn’t be ready for that game — barring a setback — can’t be anything more than gamesmanship on the Giants’ part.
Still, don’t expect to see Barkley in any of the team’s three preseason games as the team prioritizes its star’s health.
In his first three seasons (two games last year), Barkley has totaled 2,344 rushing yards, 1,219 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns.
Is the offensive line going to hold up?
In order for the return of Barkley or any of the Giants’ big additions at receiver (free agent Kenny Golliday, first-round pick Kadarius Toney) to matter, the young offensive line has to take the next step and
keep quarterback Daniel Jones upright in his third season.
That’s questionable at this point. The Giants have some veteran depth, but they undoubtedly got weaker at right guard by cutting Kevin Zeitler for COVID-19 salary cap relief. His replacement projects to be Will Hernandez, who hasn’t played the position in the NFL and was a disappointment at left guard.
Left tackle Andrew Thomas, left guard Shane Lemieux and center Nick Gates all return for their second seasons as starters. Each showed promise but also inconsistencies in 2020, so the Giants are banking on their improvement. Matt Peart, a thirdround pick out of UConn last year, will likely replace Cam Fleming, who left for the Broncos in free agency, at right guard. That could end up being an upgrade, but it’s difficult to forecast. Peart showed upside in limited snaps last year after being viewed as more of a long-term project coming out of college.
There’s danger in assuming that younger players will get better. The Giants did that with tackles Ereck Flowers and Bobby Hart in 2017, and it backfired disastrously. But if the coaching staff is evaluating correctly and continuity pays off, the Giants have a chance to win the NFC East this year.
What will the Giants get out of their edge rushers?
The Giants made few changes on the edge. They drafted Azeez Ojulari in the second round out of Georgia, but expectations must be tempered for a rookie who faced injury concerns with his knee in college.
Elerson Smith, a fourthround pick out of Northern Iowa, should also be in the mix for a starting job. Oshane Ximines and Ryan Anderson will also compete for a spot next to fourth-year pro Lorenzo Carter, who had potential for a breakout 2020 before rupturing his Achilles in Week 5.
Overall, the Giants tied for 12th in sacks (40) last year despite not featuring any marquee pass-rushers. They’ll need Leonard Williams (11.5 sacks) to have another strong season on the defensive line.
For the front seven, it can only help that the Giants’ secondary appears even stronger with the additions of free-agent cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, third-round cornerback Aaron Robinson and safety Xavier McKinney back after an injury-riddled rookie season.
With more versatility and reliability in his personnel, defensive coordinator James Bettcher should have a deeper playbook in 2021. Bettcher had to make adjustments last year to mask the Giants’ glaring hole at the No. 2 corner spot.