Ranking New York Giants' Top 5 Sleepers to Watch in Camp
There is little question the New York Giants are going to need some strong performances from some of their big stars such as quarterback Eli Manning, receiver Odell Beckham Jr., defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins and others.
However, let’s not forget about the supporting cast of players—those lesser-recognized names who, when you try to envision how a season will play out, you really don’t give a second thought to.
Well, you probably should and for a variety of reasons at that. So let’s look at five such players, ranked in order of importance, and explore why the Giants need these players to deliver the goods this season.
5. RB Orleans Darkwa
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On paper, the Giants are set to have one of the best running back units this team has had since the days of Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw.
There’s only one problem with the current trio of Rashad Jennings, Andre Williams and Shane Vereen: durability.
A big reason for that, obviously, is the job description. Every time the running back touches the ball, he’s going to hit a brick wall of bodies coming at him at a speed that promises a major hit.
Then there are the players and their injury histories to consider. Jennings, the projected starter, has yet to make it through a 16-game season despite the extra care he takes to train his body and to recover.
Last year Williams, the dynamo out of Boston College, made it through an entire season, but barely, as a late-year shoulder issue took away some of his effectiveness.
Even Vereen, who can pick up both Jennings’ and Williams’ roles, has had his injury issues. Last season was the first of Vereen’s four-year career in which he made it through 16 games, a rarity.
The Giants, who will likely carry a fourth running back, will need a player who can fill all three unique roles that the guys ahead of him are likely to fulfill. These roles include downhill running, third-down pass protector and a receiver out of the backfield.
That candidate to watch is Orleans Darkwa, who was plucked off the Miami Dolphins practice squad last year, when injuries started biting into the Giants’ running back depth.
Although the 6’0”, 215-pound Darkwa played 29 of his 42 snaps for the Giants on offense, in just 42 snaps on offense, he showed signs of being a versatile back who could fill multiple roles as well as contribute on special teams.
Look for Darkwa, if he is healthy, to get a lot of snaps this preseason in order to advance his comfort level in the Giants offense as well as to spare the veterans the wear and tear.
4. DT Jay Bromley
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Despite being a third-round draft pick last year, defensive tackle Jay Bromley out of Syracuse only received 113 snaps on defense, a 65-48 split in favor of passing downs, according to Pro Football Focus.
Why were Bromley’s snaps so limited despite his draft position?
“I guess I wasn’t good enough to really crack into the lineup that was ahead of me,” he told me for Inside Football.
This year, Bromley is looking to make sure he’s good enough to get into the lineup as a rotational defensive tackle and has been hard at work this offseason to make sure he’s ready to answer if his number is called.
“This year, I’m focusing a lot more on my game as far as leverage and understanding how to play the game and slowing the game down in my head,” he said.
“I’m trying to put my best foot forward in those areas so I can put myself in a position to play a lot more this year.”
He also added some upper-body bulk, a move that should allow him to hold up to the grind at both the 3-technique and the plugger spot.
“All I knew, based on last year, is that I’d probably have to play both positions,” he said when I asked him about what goals he set out to accomplish with his offseason training.
“I knew that strength was going to be a big thing for me just period as part of the defensive line. So hopefully by adding strength that helps me out when I do have to play the 1-technique.”
This year he could end up seeing those snaps he craved last season if the Giants coaching staff sticks with the personnel plan they used during the spring in the regular season.
That plan saw defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins, last year’s starter alongside Johnathan Hankins, move to defensive end in place of Jason Pierre-Paul, who could end up missing the start of the regular season, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
If Jenkins is needed at defensive end, Bromley’s only competition for a roster spot appears to be Markus Kuhn, who received many of the first-team reps alongside Hankins during the spring.
With a solid training camp, Bromley should be able to move ahead of Kuhn on the depth chart and be the first man off the bench to relieve both Hankins and projected starting plugger Kenrick Ellis.
3. TE Matt LaCosse
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Don’t look now, but the Giants tight ends, whose best run-blocker, according to Pro Football Focus, last year was Daniel Fells, might have to play an even bigger role this coming season if they are to fix the running game.
The reason for this is that last year, the Giants offensive line was horrible as run-blockers. According to Football Outsiders, the Giants offensive line finished 22nd in the league in run blocking.
This year, the Giants will be without left tackle Will Beatty (pectoral), who graded out as the best of the five starting offensive linemen last year according to Pro Football Focus.
That’s a big concern as is the possibility of projected starting right tackle Marshall Newhouse’s decline in his run-blocking performance from 2013 to 2014, as PFF stats illustrate, as well as the fact that the three interior positions all have new faces.
A solid blocking tight end is going to be the running game’s biggest ally, and that’s why rookie Matt LaCosse out of Illinois becomes someone to keep an eye on this summer.
At Illinois, LaCosse, who can play multiple roles on the offense, contributed to a running game that averaged 3.7 yards per carry (413 rushes on 1,527 yards) and 16 rushing touchdowns.
If LaCosse can transfer and refine those skills at this level, not only will he find himself on the 53-man roster, he could end up as one of the unsung heroes if the running game does in fact rise from its 23rd-place ranking to a top-10 unit for the first time since the 2010 season.
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2. CB Mike Harris
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Besides trying to figure out how to staff the defensive end position, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo told reporters in May he wasn’t sure who the team’s new slot cornerback will be, and the plan was to try a few guys there.
Currently, veteran Trumaine McBride is the incumbent, but, truthfully, Spagnuolo shouldn’t have to look hard for a starting point. Based on production alone last year, four-year veteran Mike Harris should be the incumbent.
According to Pro Football Focus data, last year Harris, who at 5’10” is an inch taller than McBride, allowed just 66 percent of the pass targets thrown his way while he was in the slot to be completed for 88 yards—6.28 yards per reception. He also picked off one pass and did not allow a touchdown.
McBride, meanwhile, per PFF, allowed 80 percent of the pass targets thrown at him to be completed for 123 yards for an average of 10.25 yards per reception. McBride also allowed one touchdown in addition to picking off one pass.
The other factor favoring Harris is that he is four years younger than McBride, who, by the way, is entering his contract's final.
Harris, if he can continue his solid production, could very well emerge as the long-term solution at nickel and will be someone to keep an eye on at camp this summer.
1. DE Kerry Wynn
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Before word came out about defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul’s unfortunate and ill-advised dalliance with fireworks over the long holiday weekend, per the NFL (via Time), I had selected Kerry Wynn as my top sleeper to watch for the simple reason that I thought he might be in line for additional snaps this year now that Mathias Kiwanuka has moved on.
Well, with Pierre-Paul’s status up in the air for the coming season, Wynn’s presence and performance takes on a completely new sense of urgency.
Per Pro Football Focus, Pierre-Paul was the Giants’ second-best run defender, behind defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins, on a unit that finished 30th in the NFL last year.
If you are not sure about PFF’s grades and what they mean, let’s look at some real numbers.
According to the year-end stats the Giants distribute annually to the media, Pierre-Paul alone was responsible for 26.5 percent of the Giants’ sacks, 20 percent of the Giants’ tackles for a loss and 22 percent of the team’s quarterback hits.
That’s quite a bit of production to lose, but that’s what the Giants are potentially facing right now.
Enter Wynn, the second-year player out of Richmond. Last season, Wynn finished with the team’s fourth-best run-defense grade from PFF—linebacker Mark Herzlich finished ahead of him—all while producing the numbers he did in five games.
Putting those numbers into perspective, in 192 snaps, per PFF, the Giants coaches credited Wynn with 16 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two tackles for a loss and three quarterback hits.
No, these aren’t gaudy numbers, but if you consider that eight percent of Wynn’s snaps resulted in tackles, this young prospect was quite solid in showing that he could hold his own against the run, something many young defensive ends have trouble doing early in their career.
If stopping the run is objective No. 1 for the Giants, whose defensive line ranked 28th last year in this department, according to Football Outsiders, then Wynn, who spent most of his offseason in the Giants’ weight room, could very well be the answer at defensive end, regardless of what happens with Pierre-Paul.
Patricia Traina covers the Giants for Inside Football, Journal Inquirer and Sports Xchange. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes, observations and information were obtained firsthand. Follow me on Twitter.
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