New York Giants should remake offensive line this offseason
The New York Giants should use their resources this offseason to drastically improve their offensive line situation.
If you squint a little, you can see some real long-term upside for the New York Giants on the offensive side of the ball. A lot of that depends on the progression of second-year quarterback Daniel Jones, but there are some offensive pieces in place to be excited about on this team.
Jones was undoubtedly inconsistent as a rookie in 2019, but he showed flashes of being a legitimate franchise quarterback that the Giants can build around. On top of that, the Giants have a nice combination of skill position players who can help take Jones to the next level.
Saquon Barkley, Evan Engram, Sterling Shepard, Golden Tate and Darius Slayton are all extremely gifted players who can turn this offense into a dynamic unit. However, if the New York Giants are going to take that next step, they simply must work to improve their offensive line this offseason.
From left to right, the Giants started Nate Solder, Will Hernandez, Jon Halapio, Kevin Zeitler and Mike Remmers in 2019. Zeitler is one of the premier offensive guards in the NFL. He is not the problem. Hernandez is still a young enough player who is worth giving him more of a chance to prove himself. That being said, he had struggles in run blocking in 2019 that cannot be ignored.
In particular, I would like to see the Giants work to improve at least one offensive tackle spot and the center position this offseason. It begins with free agency.
Two years ago, the Giants signed Solder to a massive four-year, $62 million contract. Unfortunately, that deal has blown up in their face as Solder has done nothing but regress since the contract was signed. That being said, the New York Giants should not be afraid to spend big on the offensive line again this offseason. With nearly $74 million in cap space to work with, the Giants can look to swing big in free agency.
Joe Thuney and Jack Conklin stand out as the big fish on the offensive line in free agency this offseason. Thuney has shined at left guard for the New England Patriots for the last four years and was named a second-team All-Pro for the team in 2019. While I do not see the New York Giants bringing in Thuney to replace Hernandez at left guard, they should at least consider bringing him in as a potential replacement for Halapio at center.
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Thuney is an extremely smart player who shows impressive on-field awareness. He should be able to easily handle a full-time move to the center position and if he is up to the challenge, the Giants should not hesitate to bring him into the mix.
Conklin is a rock-solid NFL right tackle who is particularly impressive as a run blocker. He is not one of the elite offensive tackles in the NFL, but he is a good player who the Giants could stick at right tackle and not have to worry about.
The Giants would be wise to attack the top of the free-agent market at the offensive line this offseason, with Thuney and Conklin standing out as the most obvious choices. I like the idea of them targeting Thuney as their starting center better, but either player would be a strong addition to the mix.
After free agency, the New York Giants should aggressively look to add offensive line talent in the 2020 NFL Draft. In particular, snagging an offensive tackle early in the first round of the draft makes a ton of sense for this team.
As of right now, there are four offensive tackles who would all be worthy of being top 10 picks in the 2020 NFL Draft. Jedrick Wills Jr. is commonly considered the best offensive lineman in the class, but Andrew Thomas, Tristan Wirfs and Mekhi Becton are all also incredible players who could immediately help the Giants.
New York holds the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and simply snagging Wills there makes a ton of sense. Wills shined at right tackle for Alabama in 2019, showing incredible natural power at the point of attack and impressive overall athleticism for such a big man. If they stand pat at four, Wills should be the pick.
That being said, with so much high-end offensive tackle talent available, the New York Giants would be wise to at least consider trade-down options. I could see the Giants trading down with a quarterback-needy team like the Los Angeles Chargers (who hold the sixth overall pick) or the Carolina Panthers (who pick at No. 7).
In this trade-down scenario, the Giants would still be able to snag a high-level offensive tackle in the 2020 NFL Draft (perhaps still even Wills), while also picking up some extra draft capital. I could also see the Giants looking to make an offensive line addition in the middle rounds of the 2020 NFL Draft. Someone like powerful offensive guard Robert Hunt or athletic center prospect Nick Harris could certainly make some sense for this team.
The best-case offensive line scenario for the New York Giants this offseason would be signing Thuney in free agency to take over the center position. If the Giants could trade down a couple of spots and still snag Wills on top of adding Thuney to the mix, their offensive line suddenly looks even better.
A starting offensive line of Solder, Hernandez, Thuney, Zeitler and Wills would give this team a strong combination of short-term stability and long-term upside up front. Putting together a strong offensive line like this would be great for the growth of the entire Giants’ offense, but it would particularly help Jones become a better player.
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Nothing is more important for the Giants than helping Jones progress into a legitimate franchise quarterback. The best way that they can help him take the next step is to improve the offensive line and there is undoubtedly a strong path to make significant improvements up front this offseason.