Odell Beckham Jr.

New York Giants: Players Loved Beckham, Claims Landon Collins

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The departure of Landon Collins made waves during this offseason for the New York Giants, and that departure is something that Collins recently spoke to NJ Advance Media about. However, it didn’t end up being the biggest departure of the offseason. That title would have to go to the Odell Beckham Jr. trade which sent the Giants’ top receiver to Cleveland in exchange for Jabrill Peppers and two draft picks, both of which would be spent improving the defense in the draft.

There’s still a hot debate around the exact reason why the Giants moved on from Beckham, whether that’s character concerns or a lack of confidence in Beckham’s ability on the field or something else. There’s been an ongoing argument about whether Beckham’s character is a good thing or a bad thing for the Giants, but it’s hard to tell which side has the truth without having hard evidence in either direction.

Collins, however, would naturally be knowledgeable about the Giants locker room, and that locker room’s opinion of Beckham is something that he spoke about with NJ Advance Media.

“We loved him. Odell is my brother. He is not that kind of guy, or what people think he is about or what the organization did. I don’t know why,” Collins said about Beckham.

But while Collins did say that Beckham was loved by the players, he also stated that the team felt like Beckham was a problem.

“Was I shocked with Odell? No, honestly, not. They felt like he was a problem the whole time. Ever since Odell stepped into the league with them, they felt like he was a problem, I felt like from the outside.”

It’s impossible to know completely whether or not Collins is right with his assumption, but a player like Collins who is no longer connected to the organization has less motivation to offer false but non controversial statements.

But it’s also too late for Collins’ statements to change anything, with both players being on other teams now and the Giants heading in a completely different direction that involves replacing Beckham with three new defensive additions that came about as a result of his trade.

Will Jabrill Peppers, Dexter Lawrence, and Oshane Ximines be able to make up for the lost production from Beckham? That’s just something we’ll have to wait for this season to see.

What The New York Giants Got In Return From The Odell Beckham Jr. Trade

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The New York Giants shocked the NFL world in March when they traded away their star player days before free agency began. The Giants traded wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. after five impressive, yet controversial seasons with the team.

The New York Giants traded Odell in exchange for safety Jabrill Peppers and two draft picks (17th overall and 95th overall). Now that the 2019 NFL Draft has concluded, we know exactly what the Giants got in return for Odell. In reality, the Giants got quite a defensive haul.

Jabrill Peppers

The Cleveland Browns drafted safety Jabrill Peppers with the 25th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. Peppers had an up and down career with the Browns before being traded to the Giants in 2019.

Jabrill played 29 games in two seasons with the Browns. Peppers is a great safety in run support. He totaled 139 tackles in his two seasons with Cleveland. However, he is not just a run defender.

Peppers snagged 1 interception in each of his 2 seasons with the Cleveland Browns. He was poor in coverage in his rookie season, however, in his second season, Peppers improved greatly. He recorded 5 passes defended in 2018. According to Pro Football Focus, Peppers’s coverage grade jumped to a 77.3 in 2018 after posting a poor coverage grade of 61.7 in his rookie season.

Jabrill Peppers is an extremely versatile safety. In 2018, Peppers played just about every position on defense. He provided the most of his snaps at the free safety position (281 snaps), but he also contributed 172 snaps at linebacker, 133 snaps at edge, and 108 snaps at slot cornerback.

The Giants filled a big hole by trading for Jabrill Peppers. In the 2019 NFL offseason, the Giants saw their star safety Landon Collins walk away in free agency. Collins signed with the division rival Washington Redskins. The Giants replaced Collins with Peppers. Time will tell whether or not this was a good move for Big Blue.

Dexter Lawrence

With the 17th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, the New York Giants selected Dexter Lawrence, an interior defensive lineman from Clemson. Lawrence is a mammoth of a human being. he stands tall at 6 feet 4 inches and weighs a whopping 342 pounds.

In 50 career games at Clemson, Dexter Lawrence totaled 131 tackles. He also had 18 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. Dexter is a powerful lineman who excels in stuffing the run. He demonstrated his strength at the Combine with 36 bench reps.

Lawrence has also flashed the ability to push the pocket and apply interior pressure. If he can slim down a little bit, Dexter could become a versatile, pass-rushing and run-stuffing defensive lineman.

Oshane Ximines

The Giants defense lacks pass rusher, but with the 95th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, they finally got one. Oshane Ximines is the first NFL player to ever be drafted from Old Dominion.

Oshane is a solid pass-rusher with tons of potential. He played 50 games in college and recorded impressive numbers. In 50 games, Oshane totaled 32.5 sacks, 51 tackles for loss, and 176 total tackles. He was productive against the run and as a pass-rusher.

The reason Oshane Ximines fell all the way to the 95th pick is his lack of size. He weighs in at 253 pounds and is listed at 6 feet and 3 inches. This is considered undersized in the NFL at the edge rusher position. Regardless of size, Ximines has the strength and talent to succeed at the next level. If Oshane Ximinez can fill out his frame a bit, he has the potential to be a stud pass-rusher for the Giants over the next decade.

Each of these players’ careers will always be put under a microscope because of their connection to the Odell trade. It will be interesting to look back at the end of these players’ careers and see who won the Odell Beckham trade.

New York Giants: Why Eli Manning Does Not Deserve Any Public Disrespect From Odell Beckham Jr.

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The New York Giants began a new era in 2019. In March, the Giants traded away their biggest superstar, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. Since then, the two sides have remained mostly quiet. However, that recently changed.

Odell Beckham Jr. decided on Monday night that he wanted to let his Twitter fingers loose. Odell went on an honest tirade discussing his time in New York and his relationships with his former coaches, general managers, and teammates.

Unfortunately, Beckham could not do this without taking it a step too far for some fans. In the midst of his Twitter frenzy, Odell decided to take a shot at Eli Manning. Manning, a 16-year veteran, future Hall Of Fame quarterback for the Giants, does not deserve Odell’s disrespect for a couple of reasons.

Manning’s Spring Workouts

Odell Beckham’s shot at Eli Manning came in response to a new video of Manning working out this offseason. Manning linked up with teammates Saquon Barkley, Sterling Shepard, Corey Coleman, and former teammate Hakeem Nicks. Manning looked sharp in the video and received praise on social media.

This gathering should come as no surprise to most fans of Eli Manning and/or the New York Giants. Manning conducts spring workouts with his teammates every year. Most notably, Eli gets his teammates together for some training at Duke University every offseason.

Manning has a good group of receivers turn out for the Duke workout every year. However, one receiver who was absent for most of those workouts was Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham showed up in 2015, but that is it. He made it to one workout in five years.

During Monday’s Twitter rant, Beckham responded to a fan’s tweet criticizing Eli Manning for never having workout videos when Odell was on the team. That fan was terribly misinformed. Manning has workout videos and pictures with his teammates surface every year. It is Odell who chose not to be a part of them.

Odell responded to this tweet, claiming that he was “taking the high road” by keeping his mouth shut on this topic. Odell has no reason to open his mouth and respond to this comment. The opportunities for these workout videos were present while Odell was in New York. It was Odell who was absent. Odell’s petty tweet was far from the high road.

These Duke workouts are one example of Eli’s commitment to practicing with his teammates, however, they are not the only example. Eli Manning and Odell Beckham Jr. were spotted multiple times last offseason spending extra time working out together after practices. Knowing this, it is hard to understand how Beckham could feel like Eli did not try to put enough work in with Beckham during his five years in Big Blue.

Manning’s Public Respect For Beckham

When asked about the recent Odell Beckham Jr. trade, Manning gave nothing but compliments to Odell. Eli referred to Odell as a “good friend” for the last five years.

Eli was asked what his first reaction was to the Odell Beckham trade. Being the great teammate he is, Manning’s first reaction was that he “wanted to reach out to him.”  He referred to Odell as “more than just a player” and showed concern for Beckham as a person and wanted to make sure he was doing OK and see how he was handling the trade.

Last month, Eli also publically complimented Odell. Eli was asked who was the most gifted athlete he ever played with. His response was: “Probably Odell.” Eli never had anything bad to say about Odell, despite Odell going public in an ESPN interview with rapper Lil Wayne and admitting that he thinks Eli Manning might be the Giants’ problems.

This was a move that Odell received heavy criticism for. It was considered a distraction and described as a disrespectful way of discussing his teammates. Despite this, Eli Manning remained true to himself. He remained a classy, respectful man who never has anything bad to say about his current or former teammates.

Odell Beckham Jr. is a full grown adult and is free to do or say whatever he wants. However, just because he can does not always mean he should. And most people would agree, Odell should not publically disrespect his former quarterback who showed him nothing but love and appreciation over the last five years.

New York Giants: Why The Giants’ Offense Will Improve In 2019

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New York Giants, Sterling Shepard, Saquon Barkley

The New York Giants went a pitiful 5-11 in the 2018 NFL season. They started the season 1-7 but had a decent second half of the year. This was because of the offensive improvement.

The Giants’ offense showed signs off life in the second half of the 2018 season, scoring 20+ points in seven of their final eight games, including three games with 30+ points and one game with 40 points. It finally looked like the Giants had a good thing going and were going to build on this offensive success this offseason.

That was until the Giants traded away their best offensive player. Superstar wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was traded to the Cleveland Browns, causing many fans to lose hope in the Giants and predict that the offense will be abysmal in 2019.

However, there are reasons to believe that this is not true. The Giants’ offense will not be worse in 2019. In fact, the Giants’ offense will improve in 2019.

Saquon Barkley Unleashed

Saquon Barkley had an absolutely spectacular rookie season in 2018. The rookie running back ran for 1,307 yards and 11 touchdowns en route to winning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year. On top of that, Barkley was a force as a receiver, too. Saquon caught 91 passes for 721 yards and 4 touchdowns. That is a total of 2,028 yards from scrimmage. He is only the third rookie running back in history to accomplish this feat.

Saquon accomplished all of this despite being held back in the first half of the season. In the first half of the season, Saquon averaged 13.85 rushing attempts per game. The Giants increased his workload in the second half of the season with 18.75 rushing attempts per game. It is no coincidence that once Saquon’s touches increased, the Giants’ offense improved.

In 2019, the Giants will not wait until the second half of the season to unleash Saquon Barkley. He is the real deal. Saquon is arguably the best running back in the NFL and the Giants are well aware of that. Trading away Odell Beckham Jr. proved that the Giants plan on running the offense through Saquon from now on. The offense will improve by leaning on a run-first attack lead by Saquon Barkley.

Evan Engram Can Finally Reach His Full Potential

Evan Engram is one of the most versatile tight ends in the NFL. His rare combination of size and speed allow him to be a matchup nightmare. Engram was impressive in his rookie season and flashed his potential in his sophomore season, too. However, Engram needs to remain healthy and improve his consistency in order to take his game to the next level.

With Odell Beckham Jr. no longer on the field, stats seem to indicate Evan Engram will be a much-improved player. In the past two seasons, Odell missed 16 games. In those 16 games, Evan Engram was a whole nother player.

When Odell was on the field in 2018, Evan averaged only 36.7 receiving yards per game. Without Beckham on the field, Engram averaged 80 receiving yards per game. Expect to see Evan Engram flourish with an expanded role in 2019.

New York Giants: Why Odell Beckham Jr. Became Expendable on Offense

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New York Giants, Odell Beckham Jr.

There’s simply only one reason the New York Giants found it acceptable to trade Odell Beckham Jr., and that’s at the hands of Saquon Barkley.

The production Barkley provided in his rookie season (over 2,000 All-Purpose yards) proves that he can be the focal point of the offense and the future going forward. Most would point to the dynamic duo that Barkley and Beckham could form, but the reality is – it was more about entertainment than winning.

The New York Giants needed to make a difficult decision:

The Giants don’t need both Barkley and Beckham on the offense to succeed. Look at the New England Patriots. They enjoy sustained success with players most have never heard of before. The proof is in the pudding – the Giants averaged more points and yards per game with Beckham off the field and Barkley on it. The sample size is small, but it’s the only information we can use with Barkley as the featured player.

Now, defenses will begin to game-plan around stopping Barkley, which some managed to do in 2018, but the fact of the matter is, he’s capable of bursting a touchdown run on every touch, and it’s only a matter of time before he does. Having two quality receivers in Sterling Shepard and Golden Tate offers more value than Beckham alone.

Something to be aware of:

Here’s an interesting fact – both Shepard and Tate have missed a combined 12 games in 12 total years. Beckham missed 21 games in five years. The best way to produce is to actually be on the field, which is something the Giants’ current duo seems to be good at.

That’s not taking away from the incredible talents that Beckham holds, but rather missing games can be the difference between a playoff appearance or not no matter the number of one-handed catches and breath-taking grabs. I would rather win the boring way than lose the exciting way every single time.

That’s simply a reality of football – talent doesn’t always translate to wins. A good objection would be – the Giants have rebuilt their offensive line and Manning is finally in a position to produce. Beckham would have been a clear benefactor of that. The trade can’t be justified unless the 17th overall pick in the first-round turns into something valuable, but for now, all we can do is wait and see.

 

Did The New York Giants Gain Too Little For Odell Beckham Jr.?

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New York Giants, Odell Beckham Jr.

This isn’t a talk about whether or not the New York Giants should have traded Odell Beckham Jr. The decision is done and Beckham is already in Cleveland. There’s no turning back. It is, however, reasonable to debate whether the team should have gotten more in return for their star receiver, rather than one mid level player and a draft pick that’s from the middle of the round.

The Giants settled on a trade with the Browns but there’s been a lot of talk about how the 49ers could have been a better destination. The 49ers hold the 2nd overall pick in the draft, and one common rumor was that the Giants wanted to second Beckham to San Francisco to acquire that pick for themselves.

ESPN’s Pat McManamon and Jordan Raanan have now reported further on that deal which never came to fruition, claiming that the 49ers were shocked that the Giants went ahead with a deal with Cleveland and didn’t let them increase their own offer. If that’s true, it could mean that the Giants potentially missed out on a better deal than the 17th overall pick.

The 49ers were stunned. Lynch and Gettleman had multiple conversations spanning weeks. Despite the 49ers monitoring the situation closely, they ultimately never heard from the Giants before the trade was made. Gettleman’s contact with Lynch ended the days prior to the conversations with Cleveland. It’s strongly believed the 49ers would have been willing to offer more for a wide receiver of Beckham’s stature, according to a league source.

It may be true that trading Odell Beckham Jr. is a viable strategy, but it doesn’t look like the Giants went about it in the most coordinated way. The ESPN report claims that the 49ers were willing to trade the second overall pick if it included a pick swap with the Giants at number six.

How would they have increased that offer to top Cleveland’s? We might not ever know what they would have offered, but it’s safe to assume they could have offered more value. The 49ers do, after all, hold a higher draft pick than the Giants and making a trade for the second overall pick would give the Giants a wider range of options to begin rebuilding with, opening up chances to improve the defense with a player like Nick Bosa or Kentucky linebacker Josh Allen.

Instead, the Giants ended up with a deal that adds some value to the team but might not be the best that they could have found. Will that come back to bite them this season? We’ll see once fall arrives.

New York Giants: Is A.J. Brown Hinting That The Giants Are Drafting Him?

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The New York Giants brought A.J. Brown in for a top-30 visit.

The New York Giants have holes all over their roster heading into the 2019 NFL Draft. One big hole opened up at wide receiver after the Giants traded Odell Beckham Jr. to the Browns.

After creating this hole in their roster, the Giants were quick to address the position. To start, the Giants signed Golden Tate to be their new primary receiver opposite Sterling Shepard. Then, the Giants met with a few wide receiver prospects, such as Ole Miss wide receiver A.J. Brown.

How Did A.J. Brown Reveal His Desire To Be A New York Giant?

Following his meeting with the New York Giants, A.J. Brown seemed to hint on social media that he will be a Giant come April, or at least that he wants to be a Giant. Brown did this in a similar fashion to what Saquon Barkley did last offseason.

Last year, Saquon was seen wearing a New York Giants hoodie in a barbershop prior to the NFL Draft. This came soon after Barkley met with the Giants and only a few weeks before the Draft.

This could have been Saquon’s way of convincing the Giants to draft him. Barkley showed he wanted to be a part of the New York media and the New York Giants. Saquon also could have been wearing the hoodie because he knew he would be a New York Giant.

On Saturday, A.J. Brown posted videos of himself wearing a Giants t-shirt on social media. The question is, which reason was Brown wearing the Giants gear for? Was he trying to convince them to draft him? Or have the Giants informed him they will be doing all they can to draft him?

Why The Giants Should Draft A.J. Brown:

A.J. Brown would be a great pick by the Giants. The 17th overall pick might be reaching on Brown, but if he falls to the 2nd round (37th overall) pick, he would be an absolute steal for the Giants.

Brown is arguably the most talented receiver in the 2019 NFL Draft class. If he were to be drafted by the Giants, there is a good chance he could step in and be their top receiver for years to come. Brown can play from the slot or outside. He is a versatile receiver with a dependable game style.

At Ole Miss, A.J. Brown was as dependable as they come. In his junior 2018 season of collegiate football, Brown was spectacular. He was Ole Miss’s leading receiver with 85 catches, 1,320 yards, and 6 touchdowns.

A.J. Brown is 6 feet tall and weighs 226 pounds. He has a solid build, allowing him to line up all over the place and reel in contested catches. Brown does not have blazing speed, but he has enough to get the job done with a 4.49 40-yard dash.

If the Giants draft A.J. Brown, their starting receivers would be Golden Tate, Sterling Shepard, and A.J. Brown. At 6 feet tall, Brown would be the tallest of the group. This would give Brown extra targets inside the red zone.

A.J. Brown might be able to make contested catches in the red zone, but that is not where he excels. Brown is a quick receiver with elite route running. His ability to create separation is his best feature. However, his ability to make plays after the catch is a close second. In 2017, A.J. forced 23 missed tackles and in 2018 he forced 17.

New York Giants: Underrated Wide Receiver Prospect Meets With Giants

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The New York Giants traded away Odell Beckham Jr. and instantly opened up another huge hole on their roster. The Giants tried to patch that hole by signing slot receiver Golden Tate, however, Tate is 30 years old. The Giants do not have a ton of young talent at the receiver position, outside of Sterling Shepard.

When the Giants acquired the 17th pick in the 2019 NFL Draft in exchange for Odell, fans instantly began to speculate on whether or not that pick would be used to draft Odell’s replacement. Speculation grew on April 3rd as the Giants decided to bring a wide receiver prospect in for a visit.

Who Visited The Giants?

On April 3rd, Ole Miss wide receiver prospect A.J. Brown visited with the Giants. Brown has interest from other NFC East teams, too. Brown visited the Eagles last month and will be visiting the Redskins this month.

Outside of the NFC East, Brown has received interest from a few wide receiver-needy teams. Last month, A.J. Brown visited with the Packers and Bills. If the Giants want A.J. Brown, they are going to have to be aggressive and get him before any of these other teams have a chance.

A.J. Brown Highlights And Statistics

A.J. Brown has been an underrated and underhyped prospect so far throughout this offseason draft process. His teammate at Ole Miss, D.K. Metcalf, has received all of the hype for wide receiver prospects. Metcalf is a flashy prospect, and Brown is not. However, that should not take away from the fact that Brown is arguably the best receiver in this draft class.

Sure, Brown might not be the huge, physical specimen that Metcalf is. And he may not be near as athletic. But Brown excels in plenty of other areas. Plus, his athletic ability is more than enough to get the job done.

At the 2019 NFL Combine, A.J. Brown tested comparably to plenty of starting NFL wide receivers. The average speed for an NFL wide receiver is 4.48, and A.J. Brown posted a 4.49 40 yard dash time. NFL receivers who ran similar times include A.J. Green (4.48), Alshon Jeffery (4.48), Antonio Brown (4.47), and Hakeem Nicks (4.51).

A.J Brown also posted solid measurements in other athletic tests. He did 19 bench press reps as well as 36.5-inch vertical jump and a 120-inch broad jump.

Brown flashed a lot of this athletic ability during his time at Ole Miss. It was most visible while Brown was running routes and making plays after the catch. He had elite agility, allowing him to create separation on routes and make defenders miss in open space.

In his junior year at Ole Miss, A.J. Brown was incredible. He hauled in 85 receptions for 1,320 yards and 6 touchdowns. Brown was the primary receiver on the Rebels because he was a much more reliable receiver than Metcalf. Brown is a consistent route runner with solid hands. He will be a great player wherever he goes, and the Giants would be lucky to have him.

New York Giants: Odell Beckham Jr. Era Put To Rest Completely

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The Odell Beckham Jr. trade was hard to take in for many, but now, there’s no doubt about it. Beckham is a Cleveland Brown rather than a New York Giant, and that point was driven home by Beckham being introduced to the media yesterday for the first time with the Browns. The deal went down more than a week ago, but seeing Beckham in Browns colors helps to finally cement that it’s a real thing that happened.

And of course, Beckham spoke about his departure from the Giants wile meeting with the media alongside quarterback Baker Mayfield and former college teammate Jarvis Landry.

“It’s such a sudden change. You build relationships with your teammates and those other guys on that team and that’s really the hardest thing. Like seeing Saquon and Shep the other night and like we were all like, ‘Damn, it’s just different.’ It’s really the guys in the locker room, the people you go to war with and you wake up in training camp and go through all those things with,” said Beckham, while praising the opportunity to make new friends on a new team.

“I don’t know how else to describe it. It just was a lot of emotions and a lot of thoughts that run through your mind. They’re all life-changing. They’re all the same, in theory, but it’s changing,” Beckham also said, while speaking about finding out about the trade via phone call from Dave Gettleman.

This is yet another reminder of what could have been, for the Giants. Before last season, the team was praised not just by fans but by analysts in the media for having offensive depth. It was believed that the combination of Beckham, Barkley, and Sterling Shepard could dominate early on and drag the Giants to a better season than the one that led to them drafting Barkley in the first place.

Instead, the team was mediocre at best and the Giants are once again picking in the top ten. The ideas of a one-two punch in the passing and running game with Beckham in Barkley will never be realized, and it remains to be seen how much of Beckham’s production can be replaced by Golden Tate.

Ideal or not, though, it’s the situation the Giants have to live with. Seeing Beckham at a Browns press conference in the flesh just helps to hammer home the point. The Beckham era with the Giants is over. And now, we can see it with our own eyes.

New York Giants: Eyeing The Positives in a Beckham-less Giants Offense

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New York Giants, Saquon Barkley

The New York Giants organization changed drastically the night of March 12th when General Manager Dave Gettleman traded away star player Odell Beckham Jr. Whether that change is positive or negative remains to be seen, the reality of the situation is that it’s simply too early to come to any rational conclusion.

The claims suggesting the Giants will be in a worse position after trading Beckham are premature considering we are still 6 months away from watching the 2019 Giants hit the field on Sunday.

One could argue that the Giants offense will be just fine without Beckham considering that the offense performed better in the four games he missed due to a season-ending quad injury. Despite an abysmal shutout to the Titans in week 15, the Giants still managed to average 26.4ppg. That production came out to over a 4 point increase from their 22.2ppg when Beckham was in the lineup. Erasing the outlier in week 15, the Giants averaged a total of 33ppg in the 4 other games they played without Odell to end the season.

It has been proven time and time again that a star receiver is not a necessity to a championship roster. What’s more important is to distribute that wealth among a variety of solid NFL players, modeling the New England Patriots.

A Look At What’s Left:

For starters, there’s All-Pro running back sensation Saquon Barkley, who is now considered the face of the franchise with Beckham’s absence. There is not much else that needs to be said about the Rookie of the Year and Ground player of the Year… The Giants landed an absolute stud. Now let’s consider the following:

Love it or hate it, what is often forgot about the offense is that former GM Jerry Reese prioritized drafting skill position players during his tenure. Electric tight end Evan Engram (‘17 Rd1) and receiver Sterling Shepard (‘16 Rd2) have both shown tremendous upside while wearing blue. When healthy, Evan Engram is a top tight end in the NFL. For the 2018 season, his grade of 76.5 was the third highest on the offense. Trailing only Odell Beckham (90) and Saquon Barkley (85.9), according to Pro Football Focus.

Engram would have graded much higher had the season been split in two. From weeks 1-8, while plagued with all sorts of injury, Engram’s average PFF grade was a 54.8. After the bye week, a healthier Engram performed at an elite level, earning a 91.7 overall grade for his performance during weeks 9-17.

As for Shepard, he finished 5th on the offense with a PFF grade of 67.3. Aside from his receiving, it is also his effort in blocking which makes him a valuable piece to the offense. Check out his key blocks against the Redskins when the Giants cruised to a 40-17 win in week 14:

The Addition of Golden Tate:

After letting the dust settle the first day of free agency, the Giants made their splash signing established wide receiver Golden Tate to a four-year deal, worth up to $37.5 million with $23 million guaranteed. Tate, who essentially played on a half-season rental for the Eagles, played his previous four seasons with the Detroit Lions. In Detroit, he was a force to be reckoned with tallying over 90 catches in each of those years. Tate finished the 2018 season with 74 catches and 4 touchdowns. While playing in two separate offenses, Tate earned a respectable 71.1 PFF grade.

No wide receiver has accumulated more yards after the catch (1,672) than Tate over the past three seasons, making it obvious why he is widely recognized as the #YACKing.

The Kevin Zeitler Trade:

In perhaps the most successful move of the offseason, the Giants acquired premier right guard Kevin Zeitler from the Cleveland Browns in exchange for edge rusher Olivier Vernon. With trades trending upward in the NFL, this certainly qualified as a win-win for both the Browns and the Giants. The Giants, whom everyone assumed would cut Vernon, got exceptional value from him in Zeitler. The right Guard graded out as PFF’s #1 pass protecting guard in the NFL with a 91.7.

For reference, guards Patrick Omameh and Jamon Brown allowed a combined 39 pressures in only 14 games last year. Zeitler allowed just 11 pressures through 16 starts.

Zeitler brings stability to an offensive line that was already greatly improved from years prior. GM Dave Gettleman has made countless promises to revamp the offensive line, and bringing in an elite guard like Zeitler does just that.

Bottom Line:

While the jury is still out on whether or not the New York Giants need Odell Beckham Jr, it’s more important to understand that the offense is only going to go as far as the offensive line takes them. We have seen over the years that it is not so much the players around Eli, but the ones who protect him that dictate which version of “Eli” we are going to see on a game to game basis.

While a young quarterback is ultimately in the works, the Giants have put themselves in position to have a very respectable supporting cast for whoever is under center in the future.