New York Giants: Nate Solder free agent signing grade
The New York Giants are reportedly signing free agent offensive tackle Nate Solder away from the New England Patriots. We grade the move…
The New York Giants had one of the worst offensive lines in football last season, and they’ve made a huge move toward improving it early on in free agency.
The Giants have reportedly signed Nate Solder away from the New England Patriots to be their new left tackle, shoring up a problem position.
Solder’s contract details are not fully known yet, but it’s been reported he will become the highest paid offensive tackle in the NFL.
Nate Solder is going to be the new highest-paid left tackle in the league with this deal from the Giants. Waiting on exact numbers.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 14, 2018
The highest paid tackle in the NFL on an average per year basis is Los Angeles Chargers offensive tackle Russell Okung at $13.25 million per season. He’s actually tied with Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Joe Thomas in that regard.
Signing Grade: C
This signing is a good move only for the fact that it fills a huge need for the Giants.
Solder is better than what the Giants had at the left tackle position, but he has not played like a top 10 tackle, and he’s going to be paid like he’s the best player at his position in the league.
Welcome to free agency.
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This year’s offensive line class is horrendous in free agency, so the Giants are overpaying based on supply and demand here, and those deals are rarely good ones in free agency.
I can’t blame New York for going out and doing this, which is why I decided to give them an average grade.
Solder’s play has dipped over the past few years and some of his deficiencies in pass protection have been masked by Tom Brady’s lightning quick release. Paying Solder $14 million per season isn’t going to necessarily change who he is as a player.
This is just a decent move for the Giants, and it seems to me they are preparing for a title run sooner than later, which could impact their plans to take a quarterback with the second overall pick in the draft.