New York Giants will regret letting Landon Collins walk
By Erik Lambert
Dave Gettleman again proved that he is a man of his principals and the New York Giants found that out when he willingly let Landon Collins go.
The three-time Pro Bowl safety will reach the open market despite constant rumors the team would franchise tag him. Gettleman has already proven in the past that he is not a fan of such decisions. He willingly let All-Pro cornerback go in 2016 after he helped the Carolina Panthers to a Super Bowl. Why would this time be any different? The GM has stated time and again that he believes great defenses are all about the front seven.
Sure, that might’ve been true 20 years ago but the NFL isn’t the league it once was. The passing game is more prevalent than ever and great defensive backs are a must. Look at the Patriots. They had over $37 million invested in their secondary in 2018 and people saw what that did for them in the Super Bowl. What makes all of this worse for the Giants isn’t just that Collins was allowed to leave. It’s that Gettleman hasn’t exactly shown an affinity for finding good ones.
The #Giants are viewed as unlikely to franchise tag safety Landon Collins, sources tell @KimJonesSports and me. They love the player but view the tag number as too high. If this holds, he’s expected to be free.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 4, 2019
New York Giants may struggle to find good DBs with Gettleman
Prior to coming to New York, Gettleman spent four seasons as GM in Carolina. During that time he drafted a total of five defensive backs. Of those five, only one of them is still with the team in cornerback James Bradberry. Tre Boston has played for multiple teams. Daryl Worley left for Oakland. Zack Sanchez is in the AAF and Corn Elder lasted one season. In three years, Bradberry has just five interceptions.
Suffice to say Gettleman doesn’t exactly have the magic touch with defensive backs when he bothers to invest in those positions. So he better score some big hits up front because that back end could turn out to be a constant vulnerability in the seasons to come. Never a good thing when opponents are rolling receivers like Amari Cooper and Alshon Jeffery at them twice a year.