Will Hernandez

How the New York Giants can shake up the offensive line this offseason

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New York Giants, Nate Solder, Jon Halapio, Mike Remmers

The New York Giants must prioritize several positions this offseason, especially with $80+ million in cap space and valuable draft capital. New head coach Joe Judge made it apparent that he will seek tough, disciplined players who go 100% on every play, even if they’re down by 30 points.

Finding mentally tough players isn’t an easy task in the NFL when your franchise has been scolded by a lack of effort and negative criticism for years on end. However, the Giants have an opportunity to re-write their legacy in the coming months, and it starts with protecting their franchise quarterback, Daniel Jones.

Jones, who endured his first season in the NFL in 2019, suffered at the likes of LT Nate Solder and center Jon Halapio (38 sacks in 12 games started). Both LG Will Hernandez and RT Mike Remmers struggled in their own ways, primarily due to a lack of cohesion on the line. Offensive line coach Hal Hunter did a poor job developing their chemistry and allowing them to play to the best of their ability. Judge will be on the lookout for a new OL coach, preferably Bill Callahan.

The journey forward will undoubtedly include the injection of better talent on the line. The draft offers ample options in the first two rounds, especially Andrew Thomas, Jedrick Wills Jr., and Tristan Wirfs. All three would cost GM Dave Gettleman a first-round selection, but it could also open up the idea of trading back and collecting more draft capital to use later on.

With the trading of Leonard Williams last season, Gettleman forfeited a third-round selection. If he elects to let him walk in free agency, he will recoup the pick through the compensatory algorithm. However, it will be a later third-round pick than the earlier selection he forfeited for Williams. This opens the door for trading back and adding value in the second round. With several quarterback hungry teams sitting being Big Blue, there are plenty of options to choose from.

Who can the New York Giants target in free agency?

Pending free agents include Jack Conklin, Andrew Whitworth, Anthony Castonzo, Bryan Baluga, and more. This offseason holds plenty of tackle targets for the Giants, but it boils down to price and need. Are the Giants keen on bringing on a cheap player via the draft, or are they confident in reserve OL Nick Gates?

One way or another, Gettleman will bring in an offensive lineman, the method he uses is the big question.

 

 

Evidence That The New York Giants’ Offensive Line Problems Stem From Coaching

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New York Giants, Kevin Zeitler

The New York Giants‘ offensive line has been the team’s biggest problem for years now. The unit let up 47 sacks in 2018 and has already allowed 28 sacks in 2019, putting them on pace to allow 49 sacks on the season. The Giants are often criticized for not placing enough talent on the offensive line.

But this year, New York made sure to bring in two key pieces that should have solidified its offensive line as at least an average unit. So far, that has not been the outcome. The additions of Kevin Zeitler and Mike Remmers have not been enough to improve the Giants’ offensive line so far.

Every year, the Giants’ offensive line makes the same mistakes. Whether it be an offensive tackle not understanding how far the quarterback is dropping back, or the interior linemen not understanding how to pick up a stunt. These mistakes frequently occur, year after year. These repeated mistakes beg the essential question: is there a coaching problem?

Much of the “hot-seat” talk in New York has been centered around the Giants’ and Jets’ head coaches Pat Shurmur and Adam Gase. But maybe the conversation should be centered around a position coach. The Giants’ offensive line coach, Hal Hunter, should be on the hot seat.

Hal Hunter’s Career History

The Giants’ decision to hire Hal Hunter in 2018 was a bit of a confusing decision. Hal had been out of the league for a year after two “one-and-done” stints with the Indianapolis Colts, then the Cleveland Browns. As the Colts’ offensive line coach in 2015, he coached an average unit that allowed 37 sacks (ranked 17th). Still, Indianapolis was not entirely pleased with this outcome and decided to go a different direction in 2016.

Hal Hunter was then hired by the Cleveland Browns for the 2016 season in which he coached a historically bad offensive line. In 2016, the Browns’ offensive line allowed 66 sacks and 140 quarterback hits. Hal was fired after that season and did not have a job in the NFL in 2017. The Giants then hired them to help fix their atrocious offensive line in 2018.

So far, the offensive line has not been fixed. It does not even look close to being fixed. And there is evidence that the reason it is not fixed could be directly coordinated to a poor coaching-job.

Coachable Mistakes That The Giants Continue To Make

Below I will provide a few video clips and breakdowns of some of the mistakes that the Giants’ offensive line has been making. These are mistakes that should be coached out but have not been. These mistakes also happen more than once per game and were happening last season, as well.

Here is a breakdown by Bobby Skinner of the Talkin’ Giants podcast. Bobby breaks down an error that the Giants’ offensive line makes frequently. On this play, the Giants got confused by the stunt that the Cowboys’ defense ran. They failed to recognize it and did not pick it up, allowing their rookie quarterback to be pressured from three different angles and hit by two defenders:

Here is another example. Nate Solder, a nine-year veteran, is seen demonstrating bad footwork and letting the pressure get right to Daniel Jones. This is a simple technique issue Solder has been struggling with all year. It should be coached out by now, but Giants linemen have been making these same mistakes repeatedly this season.

Here are a couple more clips where the Giants’ offensive line is simply not on the same page:

Yes, the Giants’ offensive line lacks talent. But they are also making the same, fixable mistakes over and over. Offensive line coach Hal Hunter has not done his job and has not coached these mistakes out of his unit’s players. At the very least, the offensive line should be on the same page, but they are not.

While it is highly unlikely that the Giants would make a change at this position during the 2019 season, they should strongly consider making a change in the offseason.

The New York Giants could solidify the right tackle position with a monster draft pick

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Will the New york Giants consider right tackle, Andrew Thomas, in the 2020 NFL Draft?

The New York Giants need to allocate draft capital and salary-cap space towards several positions on both sides of the ball. However, the most detrimental position is offensive tackle, where Nate Solder and Mike Remmers protect both edges.

Remmers, who was signed this off-season to replace Ereck Flowers who started at right tackle last year, is tied for ninth in the league with four sacks allowed. He has been abysmal through nine weeks and forced Daniel Jones to run for his life at times.

Head coach Pat Shurmur is familiar with Remmers who played for him with the Minnesota Vikings. Back then, he was a bit more refined in his abilities and hadn’t succumbed to back surgery. Clearly, signing him was a desperation move and a plug-in player until the organization was able to find a better starter.

What does the 2020 NFL Draft offer the New York Giants?

The 2020 NFL draft offers several solutions for the Giants at the position. The top option is Giorgia tackle, Andrew Thomas. Thomas has been very good for Georgia this year as a shut down past protector and overall contributor in the ground game. He has faced off against top edge rushers and held them in check, protecting Jake Fromm from any further damage.

The most enticing aspect of Thomas is that he is capable of holding his own in the past and run game. This would benefit Jones in the pocket and star running back Saquon Barkley on the ground. Despite playing left tackle at the college level this season, moving over to the right side might make his life easier, considering he would be on Jones’ vision side. He played right tackle as a true freshman, starting there all season and helped the Bulldogs produce a fantastic rushing attack.

The Giants would benefit greatly from his skillset and mauling attitude. Injecting him into an offensive line consisting of Kevin Zeitler, Will Hernandez, Nate Solder, and Jon Halapio would be extremely beneficial. We can imagine general manager Dave Gettleman will also address the center position, especially after witnessing Halapio‘s regression this season. If he can bolster the offensive front with a fresh center and right tackle, Jones will be in a good place moving forward. They can also utilize Barkley and a more efficient way, opening up holes and running through the scheme.

While the Giants do you need help at the tackle position, an expected top five draft choice holds a lot of value. They could elect to bring in a new linebacker to solidify the middle of the defense. It all depends on what position Gettleman sees the most value in and if there are free agent players available.

 

New York Giants: Ranking each offensive lineman through eight weeks

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New York Giants, Kevin Zeitler

After eight weeks of regular season play, the New York Giants have seen plenty of ups and downs in regards to the offensive line. Left tackle Nate Solder has been inconsistent and a liability at times to rookie quarterback Daniel Jones’ blindside. Finding a way to supplement Solder’s deficiencies this season has been a challenge, and it has led to 15 total turnovers for Jones, who leads the league in the category.

However, while Solder has been lackluster, others have shown resiliency and promise.

Ranking the New York Giants offensive linemen:

1.) Kevin Zeitler

Zeitler, who was acquired in the Olivier Vernon trade with the Cleveland Browns, has earned a grade of over 70.0 through eight weeks, as per PFF. The tackles have been struggling for Big Blue, but their guards have been fantastic. Zeitler has been nursing a shoulder injury since the beginning of the season, but he has fought through it to become the Giants’ best offensive lineman.

The Giants own the rights to Zeitler for the next two seasons, and his cap hit is very team-friendly. His cap hit will be $12.5 million next season and $14.5 million in 2021. Compare that deal to Andrew Norwell, who’s averaging $15 million per season, and you can see what great value Zeitler provides.

2.) Will Hernandez

The second-year guard out of UTEP has been stellar for the Giants. Not hearing an offensive lineman’s name is usually a great thing, and Hernandez has been a ghost so far this season. He’s been on a rock next to the unreliable Solder and has saved Jones’ butt on numerous occasions.

Hernandez is only in the second year of his rookie deal, which provides value in of itself. He’s the future at left guard for the Giants and will likely be paid accordingly in the future, but the Giants must take advantage of his low cap-hit now.

3.) Nate Solder

Solder has been anything but good this season, allowing seven sacks through the first eight weeks. Jones has been blindsided frequently at the expense of Solder, and he realizes how poor his play has been. Solder and Remmers have combined to allow 58 quarterback pressures this season, which is a severe issue for Big Blue and has many scratching their heads.

The Giants will likely stick with Solder moving forward due to the lack of quality left tackles in the NFL, but they will need more from him to be a competitive team.

4.) Mike Remmers

The plug-in right tackle has hurt the Giants at times and saved them at others. I don’t expect Remmers to remain with the team beyond the 2019 season. Allocating draft capital or cap space to sign a quality right tackle is the plan for Gettleman, who desperately needs to upgrade the position. Remmers has a PFF grade of 61.6.

5.) Jon Halapio

Halapio has been plain bad this season, and general manager Dave Gettleman will undoubtedly look to upgrade the center position next offseason. He sits in last place with a PFF grade of 52.1, ranking in the bottom tier of starters in the NFL. Halapio might be an even more significant liability than Solder and Remmers at the tackle position. The Giants currently rank as the 17th best unit in the NFL.

The New York Giants Offensive Line Rebuild Is NOT Complete

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New York Giants, Nate Solder

The New York Giants are coming off of a crushing loss to the Arizona Cardinals in week seven. The Giants gave up 8 sacks to the Cardinals’ defense. The most notable sacks came on crucial third and fourth downs late in the game to officially hand the Giants their third loss in a row.

I admit it, I was wrong. I was really hopeful for the Giants’ offensive line heading into this season. In the offseason, I wrote an article stating that the rebuild was in fact complete. Kudos to all those who thought otherwise. Unfortunately, you were right. The Giants’ offensive line is not finished being rebuilt. In fact, it is far from it.

Left Tackle Liability

The Giants shocked the league in the 2018 offseason when they decided to make Nate Solder the highest-paid offensive lineman of all time. Solder was certainly an upgrade over Ereck Flowers, so many fans were fine with the signing. The Giants were simply filling a position of need with the best player available.

But many fans were quick to point out the potential risk of the Nate Solder signing. Solder was an average left tackle being paid like a world-class player. Sure, he was an improvement. But how big of an improvement was he really? Well, this season, Solder has not looked anything close to the player the Giants are paying for.

So far, through 7 weeks of the 2019 NFL season, Nate Solder has allowed 5 sacks and a whopping 26 pressures. That means that Nate Solder is letting his man get to the quarterback at an average around 4 times per game. To put this in perspective, Nate Solder allowed a total of 33 pressures through the entire 2018 season. Nate Solder is clearly regressing to a below-average left tackle and quickly becoming a liability on offense. Unfortunately, Solder and the Giants are tied to the hip with no real out in his contract until 2021 when the dead cap number drops to $6.5 million, which is still a hefty cap burden to bear.

In this video, you can see Nate Solder was beaten badly multiple times against the Arizona Cardinals.

Rocky Right Tackle Play

On the other side of the offensive line, it has not been much better. Newly-signed right tackle Mike Remmers has been a disappointment so far. Remmers has allowed 24 pressures and 2 sacks through 7 games.

To put this in perspective, Mike Remmers is averaging about 3.43 pressures per game. If he keeps at this rate, he would end the season with roughly 54 total pressures allowed. Last year, the Giants’ biggest offensive line liability, Chad Wheeler, allowed only 43 total pressures.

The Giants pass protection did not receive an upgrade at right tackle this offseason. Luckily, the Giants are not stuck with Remmers in the long-run like they are with Solder. The Giants signed Mike Remmers to a one-year deal this offseason and can easily move on from him either through the draft or free agency (where New York is set to have lots of money to spend). Fans should just hope that Dave Gettleman does not tie up too much money to an average offensive tackle again this offseason.

A Hole In The Center

The Giants were excited to get their center Jon Halapio back from injury this season. Jon suffered a broken leg in week two of the 2018 season. To that point, the Giants’ offensive line was atrocious, but Halapio was performing the best out of any of the players in the unit.

In week one of the 2018 season, Jon Halapio had Pro Football Focus’s third-best pass blocking grade (85.2) among centers with at least 50 offensive snaps. Dave Gettleman himself said that Halapio was playing the best out of anyone on the offensive line before he got injured.

This led the Giants to feel content with their talent at center and roll with Jon Halapio in 2019. Halapio has struggled so far this season. So far this season, Halapio has posted a Pro Football Focus grade of 51.6, ranking him 26th in the league at his position.

While Halapio is not the worst center option, and he is on a cap-friendly deal, there is certainly room for improvement. Halapio is an inconsistent center who has flashed great potential as a pass-blocker but seems to be making too many mental mistakes in 2019. Such as this play against the Minnesota Vikings:

The Part That The Giants Have Right

The Giants have their hands tied at left tackle and could use a major upgrades at right tackle and center. But there are two other positions on the offensive line that they seem to have right.

Much of the pressure that the Giants have let up this season has come off the edge, which is why we can place blame on Mike Remmers and Nate Solder. But the Giants’ guards, as expected, have been the strength of the offensive line so far.

Kevin Zeitler is still playing like a top-ten player at his position. He has allowed only one sack so far this season, committed only one penalty, and has done a nice job keeping pressure away from the quarterback. The Giants are paying big money for Kevin Zeitler, too, but at least they are getting high-level production from their right guard.

Will Hernandez is in his second season and has been quietly building off of his strong rookie campaign. He has had his fair share of mistakes (3 penalties), but the sophomore left guard has not allowed a single sack so far this season. Big Will also boasts one of PFF’s highest pass-blocking grades at his position with a grade of 79.5.

So, unfortunately, the Giants’ offensive line rebuild is not complete. It is, disappointingly, far from it. Sure, they have two strong pieces in place at both guard positions. But the Giants’ lack of talent at the tackle positions is proving to be killer this season. New York will need to address this in the offseason and continue working towards a long-term plan for their offensive line rebuild.

New York Giants: Will Hernandez Reveals Barkley’s Desire To Make A Comeback

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New York Giants, Saquon Barkley

Losing Saquon Barkley is one of the worst case scenarios for the New York Giants, but the team has been without the top running back since week three after Barkley sprained his ankle in the first half against Tampa. Since then, the team’s results have taken a dip with backup running back Wayne Gallman also going out of action not too long after Barkley himself was injured, and fans have been left to wonder when Barkley will come back.

Barkley’s recovery has been quicker than normal and the running back was close to making a return against either Minnesota or New England, but the team held Barkley back to avoid risking such an important player by pushing him back onto the field early during a season where it doesn’t seem like the team is doing much contending regardless of his presence.

However, just because the Giants kept Barkley out doesn’t mean that Barkley himself wants to stay out of action. In fact, all signs point to the opposite being true – rather than take this as a time to relax while the rest of the team continues to play, Barkley has shown a desire to make it back onto the field as soon as possible. That was further proven by one of Barkley’s main blockers, Will Hernandez.

“He’s kind of like a caged lion. When you cage them up and you don’t feed them, they get antsy, and as soon as you let them out of that cage they go crazy and they eat more than they would have had they not been caged in the first place. Saquon feels like he wants to be out there, he wants to play, but he can’t,” Hernandez said to Newsday. “But the minute he gets a chance to run free he’s going to take advantage of it and he’s going to make it worth watching for everybody.”

“I hope he comes back 10 times better. That would be cool to see, fun to see,” Hernandez added.

Barkley is currently a full participant in practice, which makes it look like Sunday’s clash with the Arizona Cardinals could be his return. With a 2-4 record, the Giants will need all the help they can get in clawing their way back to .500, and having a competent running game that relies on having their star player healthy would definitely help the team in that.

Still, there hasn’t been an official confirmation yet that Barkley will appear in Sunday’s game – fans will just have to wait and see what happens further in the week as practices continue and it becomes clear who will play and who won’t. Barkley, after all, may very well end up a game time decision.

New York Giants: There’s a real problem on the offensive line

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New York Giants, Nate Solder

General manager Dave Gettleman of the New York Giants made it a priority to find the puzzle pieces on the offensive line when he was hired two years ago.

After years of lackluster play in the trenches, the Giants finally had what seemed to be a serviceable front five. However, against the Minnesota Vikings, the line was torn apart by a superior defensive front. The unit allowed four sacks on the night and gave up far too many quarterback hits on rookie passer, Daniel Jones.

Jones has had bouts of good offensive line play, but the reality is, much improvement is needed for them to enabled the rookie‘s peak potential.

The real problem on the line has been Nate Solder; the starting left tackle for the Giants who signed a four year, $62 million deal with Big Blue last season.

After the 2019 campaign the New York Giants have a decision to make:

They have a potential out in his contract, which would count $13 million in dead cap; otherwise, they will pay him an average of $20 million per season over the next two years. With his performance the past few weeks, having Solder as the starting left tackle might not be worth the monetary investment.

They can probably find someone equally as talented for half the price considering how poorly he’s played. There have been no injury designations to Solder which have limited him in the past, which is the most concerning part of his porous season.

Aside from solder’s deficiencies, the rest of the line has been solid, apart from Mike Remmers at right tackle periodically. Will Hernandez and Kevin Zeitler have both been quality guards so far this year and will remain Giants for the foreseeable future.

The tackles have been the most concerning part and will need to be reevaluated after the 2019 season. Putting Jones under immense pressure will only stunt his growth and force unnecessary turnovers, something we have seen plenty of with Eli Manning over the last half a decade. This is a serious issue and must be solved one way or another, whether it means Solder elevating his game or the Giants finding someone to replace him.

New York Giants: New Offensive Line Needs To Shut Down Bills Rookie Defender In Week Two

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The New York Giants suffered an embarrassing loss on opening weekend against the Dallas Cowboys. Almost everyone on the team underperformed. The Giants’ defense allowed the Cowboys’ offense to gain a total of 494 yards of offense. They also allowed Dak Prescott to have a career day with a perfect passer rating of 158.3.

But one position group did not underperform. In fact, the Giants’ new offensive line actually played an excellent game and exceeded expectations. General Manager Dave Gettleman has made it a point to rebuild the offensive line over the last two years, and in week one, it seemed like the rebuild is finally coming to fruition.

The Giants’ offensive line allowed only 1 sack and 6 quarterback hits on 44 dropbacks against the Cowboys. According to Pro Football Focus, the offensive line had a 70.9 overall grade in pass blocking and a grade of 82.6 in run blocking that lead the league in week one.

The Giants’ offensive line had a tough matchup last week and performed well. The Cowboys’ defensive line featured DeMarcus Lawrence, one of the NFL’s better arrogant pass-rushers. In week two, the Giants will have another tough matchup in the trenches. This week, they will need to focus on a rookie.

Shutting Down Ed Oliver

The Buffalo Bills selected an impact defender with the ninth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Ed Oliver’s draft stock slid from a potential top-three pick to the back end of the top-ten. Oliver ended up falling right into Buffalo’s lap.

Ed Oliver was impressive in week one. His impact was felt instantly as he applied pressure to Jets second-year quarterback Sam Darnold. Ed Oliver did not record a sack, but he came close a couple of times and did total two tackles.

In week one, Oliver took 47 defensive snaps, which was 65 percent of the team’s total and led all defensive tackle. Pro Football Focus was very impressed with Oliver in week one, giving him an overall grade of 80.3. PFF also noted that Ed Oliver graded north of 75.0 as both a pass-rusher and a run defender, and ended the game with a defensive stop against the run and five total pressures.

Ed Oliver will be a handful for the Giants’ offensive line in week two. The Giants, fortunately, have the men to match up with the rookie. New York’s interior offensive line is full of strong talent with Kevin Zeitler, Will Hernandez, and Jon Halapio. If the Giants’ offensive line performs as it did in week one, the Giants should be able to shut down Ed Oliver and find more success on offense.

The 3 keys to the New York Giants beating the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday

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New York Giants, Saquon Barkley

With Ezekiel Elliott securing a $90 million extension on Wednesday morning, the New York Giants will gear up to face one of the league’s premier running backs. He is a catalyst for the Dallas Cowboys offense and is one of the more difficult runners to bring down. Having a strong defensive front will be a priority for the Giants, and they will need to supplement the loss of Damon Harrison early last season when the two teams first collided.

Here are the three keys for the New York Giants to beat the Cowboys:

1.) Dexter Lawrence

With the Giants trading away “Snacks” last year, first-round draft pick Dexter Lawrence will be asked to fill a significant role in the defensive line this season.

He will be expected to draw double teams and put pressure on Dak Prescott during the Giants week one matchup against the Cowboys. He will be a catalyst in forcing bad decisions by Prescott and putting pressure on the pocket. Additionally, the Giants need him to be active in the run game and stop Ezekiel Elliott at the line of scrimmage. They will likely have issues dealing with him early on, but they will need to find a way to contain him and his brute style of running.

Aside from just Lawrence, the entire defensive line needs to perform well. Both Dalvin Tomlinson and BJ Hill will be expected to elevate their game, but having previously played against the Cowboys and Elliot before.

2.) Saquon Barkley

The Giants star running back, one of three players at the position to record over 2,000 all-purpose yards in their rookie season, will once again be the focal point of the offense.

Ensuring they feed him early and often, Saquon can take over any game, and he will need to do it again against Dallas. With their defense being a strong point, head coach Pat Shurmur must rely on his star player to crank out yards and get into the end zone.

Last season, Shurmur tended to feed Barkley a lot in the first half of games and then taper off in the second half to not overwork him. In his sophomore season, the Giants cannot be cautious with his workload, as he will be the reason they win most games.

Ensuring he gets a healthy balanced of touches in both the first and second half will allow the Giants to operate at a high-level and compete against better teams in the league. They enter Sunday’s matchup as 7.0 underdog’s, which means they will need to feed Barkley as much as possible, especially with Golden Tate serving a four-game suspension to start the season.

3.) The offensive line

General manager Dave Gettleman has made it a priority to bolster the offense of line the past two seasons. Signing Nate Solder, drafting Will Hernandez, and trading for Kevin Zeitler this off-season makes them a remarkably improved unit. Also, they brought in right tackle Mike Remmers, who is an upgrade over Chad wheeler. They will also return Jon Halapio, their starting center who broke his leg last year early on in the 2018 campaign. This grouping of players will allow Eli Manning to stand tall in the pocket and operate at a more efficient level.

Manning has lacked time to throw the ball in recent seasons, and some of that pressure will likely be alleviated this year.

Cowboys have a daunting defense of line, which will not only put pressure on Manning but Barkley as well. I anticipate Hernandez and Remmers being their focus, as those seem to be the two weak links at this point. Hernandez had an up-and-down preseason, which the Cowboys shortly noticed. They will need strong performance is across the board to dominate the trenches and allow the offense to be productive.

New York Giants could be without starting offensive lineman on Sunday

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New York Giants, Eli Manning

The New York Giants and general manager Dave Gettleman made it a priority to bolster the offensive line the past two years. This off-season, they traded for right guard Kevin Zeitler and signed right tackle Mike Remmers.

This time last year, Ereck Flowers was still starting on the Giants’ offensive front, not to mention the Patrick Omameh experiment. Finding their way to the current unit required trial and error, but ultimately it took time.

The Giants didn’t have the cap space to go out and sign multiple top free agents, so they were forced to utilize the NFL draft, and the time it took to rebuild the offense.

During the process, they managed to secure second-round pick Will Hernandez as their starting left guard. He is expected to be an influential player this upcoming season and dominate in the trenches. However, he did struggle at times and cost protection this preseason. While I likely could be him shaking the rust off, he was concerned with his performance and will look to bounce back during the regular season. An enticing matchup against the Dallas Cowboys is the perfect opportunity for him to prove his worth once again.

Should the New York Giants be concerned over this new injury?

While the offensive line looks like it’s coming together, the Giants could be without their starting right tackle on Sunday. Remmers missed practice during the week with an illness and back-related issues. The veteran endured surgery on his back this off-season before signing with the Giants. It could be a cautionary resting before the game, or it could be something to be concerned over.

Behind Remmers on the depth chart, the Giants host Eric Smith, Chad Slade, and Nick Gates. Slade looked solid during the preseason and could be the player of choice to fill in if needed.

Releasing Chad Wheeler could cause issues for head coach Pat Shurmur if Remmers isn’t able to play a majority of the season. While the injury does not indicate he will miss any time at all, it is better to be cautious with players coming off major surgery and time lost in the past. This is certainly something to keep your eye on moving forward.