New York Giants Training Camp Preview: Defensive Line

As the month of July nears a close, that means one thing in the NFL; the beginning of training camps. For a team like the New York Giants, it will be another important training camp. Last season it was the offense receiving an overhaul, this time it will be the defense. They brought back a familiar face in Steve Spagnuolo to be the defensive coordinator, replacing Perry Fewell. Also, there are still some kinks to be worked out offensively, as second year offensive coordinator had a good rookie campaign last season in which he will look to build upon.

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This could be a make or break season for the Giants from a franchise era standpoint. If they miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year, we could see a real overhaul not only on the roster, but coaching staff as well. Tom Coughlin has overseen two Super Bowl titles as his time as head coach with the Giants, but very little success outside of that, missing the playoffs six times and being one and done in the playoffs the other four times they made the postseason.

Could the Giants break their streak of missing the playoffs, and continue their trend of winning the Super Bowl every four seasons? Training camp will give a lot of insight to where the Giants are at, as there are plenty of questions to be answered once the Giants open camp July 29th. We will have you covered on the storylines to follow here at Empire Writes Back, giving a position by position preview heading up to that date. The sixth position we will take a look at will be defensive end.

Sep 25, 2014; New York, NY, USA; New York Giants defensive end Robert Ayers (91) sacks San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) during the first half at Metlife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Munson/NJ Advance Media for NJ.com via USA TODAY Sports

Depth Chart:

Starters: DE Robert Ayers, DT Johnathan Hankins, DT Cullen Jenkins, DE George Selvie
Backups: Damontre Moore, Owa Odighizuwa, Kenrick Ellis, Jay Bromley, Kerry Wynn
Potential Cuts: Markus Kuhn, Jordan Stanton, Brad Harrah, Dominique Hamilton, Carlif Taylor
Up In The Air: Jason Pierre-Paul

Jason Pierre-Paul has dominated talks of the Giants’ defensive end this offseason and for none of the right reasons. Pierre-Paul was involved in an accident on the Fourth of July, badly injuring his right hand. He needed extensive surgery, involving skin grafts, the amputation of his index finger and a fractured thumb. The Giants have no idea when the expect Pierre-Paul in camp, but hopefully he is there sooner than later. This whole situation has been difficult to navigate as Pierre-Paul has been shutting the Giants out for the most part, leaving them with very few answers to a lot of questions.

With training camp now under way, it is time to see who will be replacing Pierre-Paul in the lineup. It will take a team effort to replace that production, as Pierre-Paul is one of the premier pass rushers in the NFL. Who will have the first chance? Probably his former teammate at South Florida, George Selvie.

Selvie was signed away from the rival Dallas Cowboys this offseason to help give the Giants some pass rushing help on the edge. He is now arguably the best pass rusher available to them with Pierre-Paul sidelined. Across from him should be Robert Ayers, but he is surrounded by questions of his own, as he is recovering from a torn pectoral muscle.

What the Giants are hoping for is that Damontre Moore finally takes that big step in his production. The third round pick from 2013 has made strides during his NFL career, but is still leaving something to be desired for Tom Coughlin and the coaching staff. He has immense potential as a pass rusher, but needs to refine the rest of his skills and repertoire before the Giants can hand him a prominent role in their defense.

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Another player to keep an eye on his rookie Owa Odighizuwa. He should step right into the role being vacated by the released Mathias Kiwanuka along the defensive line. Odighizuwa right now is strong against the run, which will get him on the field for the Giants right away as their run defense was putrid last season. He has the intangibles and skill set to become a strong pass rusher, but he is not there yet.

The only sure thing along the defensive line right now is Johnathan Hankins. Hankins has quickly become one the most disruptive defensive tackles in the NFL, racking up seven sacks and 51 tackles in his first full season as a starter in the NFL. Can he continue to get those numbers without a vaunted pass rusher such as Pierre-Paul bookending him? It will be something to keep an eye on as he is probably the most talented player the Giants have in this unit currently with Pierre-Paul’s situation up in the air.

New defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo will have his hands full with this unit. If his last stint as defensive coordinator with the Giants is any indication, there will be a lot of shuffling around the defensive line during games. Does he have the horses to make that happen?

This unit is a far cry from what he had the last time here when he could deploy Hall of Famer Michael Strahan, star pass rusher Osi Umenyiora, budding star Justin Tuck and reliable Kiwanuka to form their NASCAR unit. While this unit may lack star and name power, it is a unit with some guys looking to prove something with a chip on their shoulder. Will that be enough to make up for what is a lack of talent in the group from the first time Spagnuolo was around?

Next: Who was the best Giant of 2014?

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