Empire Writes Back
Fansided

Robert Ayers Grades Out As New York Giants’ Best Defensive Player

By Kenneth Teape

Nov 15, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants defensive end Robert Ayers (91) sacks New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) and causes a fumble during the fourth quarter at MetLife Stadium. New England Patriots defeat the New York Giants 27-26. Mandatory Credit: Jim O
Nov 15, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants defensive end Robert Ayers (91) sacks New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) and causes a fumble during the fourth quarter at MetLife Stadium. New England Patriots defeat the New York Giants 27-26. Mandatory Credit: Jim O /
facebooktwitterreddit

Robert Ayers was one of the few bright spots for the New York Giants in 2015, grading out as their highest rated defensive player.

The New York Giants had a rough 2015 season. They missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season, finishing with a 6-10 record for the second straight year. It resulted in head coach Tom Coughlin stepping down as head coach, as he took responsibility for the Giants struggles.

Right or not, Coughlin went out with as much class and dignity as he carried himself while leading the Giants. It was a trying season, as the Giants roster lacked talent already, but when injuries hit once again they were too much to overcome. There were very few bright spots on the team, but one of them had to have been defensive end Robert Ayers.

Ayers, whom the Giants signed as free agent last season, was brought in to be a rotational player at defensive end. His skill playing the run game was thought to be helpful, while he flashed the talent to be a pass rusher. In his first season he did well, racking up five sacks and 22 tackles in 12 games as a rotational player.

In 2015, Ayers was tasked with more responsibility at defensive end, as the Giants were without Jason Pierre-Paul for most of the season and Mathias Kiwanuka was waived following the 2014 season. He was forced into a starting role, but it ended up being a good thing for the Giants as Ayers was finally looking like the first round pick he was made out to be when the Denver Broncos selected him 18th overall in 2009 out of Tennessee.

More from Empire Writes Back

Ayers missed four games this season as he battled a number of injuries including a troublesome hamstring, toe and neck injury. Despite being nicked up for a large part of the season, Ayers delivered a very productive 2015 for a Giants team that lacked much of a pass rush all season.

Ayers set career-highs across the board despite playing only 12 games, as he received more snaps. His 41 tackles, 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and four passes defended were all career-highs for the seventh year player. The 9.5 sacks led the Giants, as he also paced them in quarterback pressures with 48 according to Pro Football Focus. He recorded multiple pressures in every game that he played in as well, and had only one negative game grade this season also according to Pro Football Focus.

Ayers finished the season extremely strong for the Giants, getting at least one sack in each of the final five games of the season and continuing to play hard despite the Giants playoff hopes being slim.

Next: Osi Umenyiora's Top 5 Moments With Giants

Ayers is an unrestricted free agent this offseason, and has probably played himself into a decent contract with his play this season. The Giants would be smart to bring him back, as they do not have much in the pass rushing department currently and should want to retain the only player that was able to get pressure consistently this season.

Home/New York Giants