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New York Giants Make A Change At Safety

By Kenneth Teape

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The New York Giants have had numerous problems at the safety position this summer. It has been a revolving door not because of inefficiency or poor play, but because of injury. The Giants have been ravaged by injury throughout training camp, losing safeties at an alarming rate. They were expected to be players on the waiver wire with the 53-man roster cutdown occurring this past weekend, and that is exactly what they were.

The Giants decided to bring in safety Craig Dahl to help some of their problems. Dahl is someone the new defensive regime is familiar with, as he started his NFL career back with the Giants in 2007. Any Giants fan will remember that was the season they defeated the New England Patriots the first time around. So, this move is clearly one made because of the familiarity the two sides have with each other; Dahl not only played with Steve Spagnuolo that season, but also played with him from 2009-2011 when Spagnuolo was head coach of the St. Louis Rams.

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While some people might not think Dahl is an upgrade, one thing he has going for him is durability. He has appeared in all 16 games of the regular season for the past four years (knock on wood) and at least 14 the past six. The Giants are desperate for healthy bodies, and that is exactly what Dahl is right now.

Dahl should also be able to pick up the system quickly. Playing with Spagnuolo for four seasons in his career definitely helped him land a job with the Giants. He will be able to come up to speed quicker than anyone else the Giants could have signed, and is probably one of the main reasons he was brought aboard; the Giants need immediate help and he should provide it.

That is also the reasoning gave for the release of the player Dahl will be replacing. With the roster already at 53-players, the Giants needed to make a corresponding move to bring Dahl on board. The player to get get was Stevie Brown.

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Brown signed with the Giants just a week ago after being released by the Houston Texans. Many thought his prior experience with the Giants would be enough to get him a job, as he also had an interception in the preseason finale. But, the Giants found a player they thought would be ready to contribute sooner, and made the switch. Had Brown been released even a week or two earlier, he may have been able to stay on the roster but since he was only around one week, he was behind other players in learning the playbook and was looked at as being expendable.

The Giants still have work to do at the safety position after losing Mykkele Thompson, Josh Gordy, Nat Berhe and Bennett Jackson in the preseason. With Dahl now in the fold, he will be joining Landon Collins, Brandon Meriweather and Cooper Taylor as the Giants have one of the weaker safety groups in the NFL.

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