New York Giants most important defensive player is… – EWB Roundtable
By Ed Stein
Who is the New York Giants most important defensive player? This week’s EWB Roundtable question is harder than it looks.
New York Giants football has been defined by their tough defense. Maybe its a cold weather city thing, or maybe the G-Men are reflective of their home city, a hard-working group who are not about to let others take advantage of them. Since the team’s 1925 start, some of the greatest defensive players and defensive minds have been part of the club.
The home sidelines at Yankee Stadium, Giants Stadium, and now MetLife Stadium has seen some of the greatest defensive coaches and head coaches in NFL history. Tom Landry, Bill Arnsparger, John Fox, Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, and Andy Robustelli have run the Big Blue defense. Four of them are in the Hall of Fame.
On the field, names such as Lawrence Taylor, Harry Carson, John Mendenhall, Sam Huff, and most recently Landon Collins have led the New York Giants “D.” Pick an era, and there will be a Hall of Fame defensive player out front.
With the departure of so many high profile players in recent years, identifying who the current best defensive player is difficult, to say the least. Jason Pierre-Paul, Olivier Vernon, Jonathan Casillas, Damon Harrison, and Collins are all gone. For the first time, in a long time, the New York Giants defense lacks an established leader. A very un-Giants-like situation.
We asked the members of our panel this week to take a look at the current Big Blue defense and tell our readers who the most important player is. The answers are a bit diverse, but that underlies the current situation. Here is what they have to say.