New York Giants: Don’t worry about lack of free agent moves
By Sean Dyer
The New York Giants seemingly sat out the first wave of NFL free agency but that isn’t such a bad thing.
The New York Giants were not big participants in the first wave of NFL free agency as top players like Kirk Cousins, Andrew Norwell, Malcolm Butler, and Sammy Watkins inked new deals. Big Blue’s “big splash” was signing Jonathan Stewart, a soon-to-be 31-year-old running back whose best days are likely behind him.
Now, the reasons for signing Stewart are obvious. He is familiar with Giants general manager Dave Gettleman and offensive coordinator Mike Shula from Carolina and will bring veteran leadership to the Giants locker room. But Giants fans want more! They want the excitement of the 2016 offseason when Big Blue signed Olivier Vernon, Damon Harrison, and Janoris Jenkins to big-time contracts.
Stewart? That signing barely makes me stop scrolling through my Twitter feed.
Speaking of Twitter, that’s where many Giants fans are voicing their displeasure of New York’s lack of activity.
The start of NFL free agency has been slow for the New York Giants. There’s no doubt about that. But limited activity and few contracts being handed out is not necessarily a bad thing.
Remember, championship teams, especially those that want to be competitive for the long haul, are built through the NFL Draft. That’s where the value is!
The value is Gettleman signing Norwell as an undrafted free agent in 2014 and having him play for about $500K a year for three years before becoming an All-Pro in 2017 for $2.746M. The value is NOT paying Norwell $13.3M per year in free agency. Norwell is a phenomenal player and earned the contract that the Jaguars gave him. However, it will be hard for Jacksonville to get $66.5M worth of value over the next five seasons.
Jerry Reese seemingly hit a home run in 2016 when he signed Vernon, Harrison, and Jenkins. But without being able to supplement those signings with solid draft classes, the Giants were one-and-done in the playoffs in 2016 and went 3-13 in 2017.
The Giants drafted 35 players from 2011-15. If Pugh, Bromley and Berhe leave in FA, only three of them will remain on the roster: Odell Beckham Jr., Ereck Flowers and Landon Collins.
— Tom Rock (@TomRock_Newsday) March 13, 2018
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No matter how well Reese did in free agency, he couldn’t build sustainable success because of his miserable draft classes. In the salary cap era, with ever-rising player contracts, you must draft well, bringing in talent at a reasonable price, to build a championship caliber team.
So while yes, it’s disappointing and a bit boring to watch the top free agents sign elsewhere, there’s no need to panic. With about $20.5M in cap space, according to spotrac, free agency was never going to be where the New York Giants turned this team around.
Don’t forget that the Giants did acquire Alec Ogletree last week which brought along a $10M cap hit. New York also, whether you like it or not, has to save money down the road to lock up Odell Beckham Jr. long-term.
Next: New York Giants: 2018 NFL Free Agency Tracker
In order for Dave Gettleman and Pat Shurmur to bring Big Blue back to the playoffs, they are going to have to draft well. So although they haven’t made a big splash in free agency, don’t go calling for their heads until we see what they do in the NFL Draft.