New York Giants: 4 Biggest in-House Questions They Must Address Post-Lockout

Today has been absolutely insane in terms of news reported with all of the undrafted free agents finding homes and several veteran players being informed of their release.

Several players have also started to find new homes or re-sign with their original teams this evening, and the Giants need to get on that train.

With the most recent news coming out that the Giants will likely be without Rich Seubert, Shaun O'Hara AND Shawn Andrews, they obviously have their hands full with their offensive line questions.

There are also some questions that may have been addressed via the signing of LB Mark Herzlich and FB Henry Hynoski, but they could still use the presence of a veteran linebacker.

The cutting of O'Hara, Andrews and Seubert did a lot for the cap room, but they still have a lot of work to do if they want to sign their free agents and any others out there.

So what are the biggest questions entering the 2011 season? Let's take a look.

Who Is the Starting Center?

With the cutting of O'Hara and Seubert, the Giants lost two-thirds of the guys that played center during the 2010 season.

Adam Koets just became a very important Giant.

He played center in a few games last year in place of O'Hara, and the Giants running game took off in those games.

In those four contests against Tennessee, Chicago, Houston and Seattle, the Giants averaged 152.5 yards per game.

He also entered the game against Dallas when O'Hara re-injured himself, and the Giants had 200 yards rushing.

Needless to say, the rushing game drastically improved with the addition of Koets in the starting lineup, so he will definitely be a candidate to start.

If it's not Koets, it will either be O'Hara coming back at a cheaper price or a free agent out there, such as David Bass or Chris Spencer, who are still free agents as far as I know.

Who Is the Starting Left Guard?

With Andrews and Seubert out the door, perhaps the way is paved for Mitch Petrus or rookie James Brewer to crack the starting lineup.

Jerry Reese hinted before the draft that he liked the situation at offensive line and particularly on the interior, so maybe that means they are prepared to transition Petrus, 2010 fifth-round pick, to the starting lineup.

David Diehl, who has been a Pro Bowler and also a fifth-round pick, could also move inside and the Giants could start James Brewer, who was thought of as a better value than his eventual fourth-round selection.

What's clear is that if the Giants end up not bringing back either Seubert, O'Hara or Andrews, they will have some serious shuffling on the left side of the line to do.

Who Is the Starting Strong Outside Linebacker?

The Giants are frantically trying to get under the cap before they start signing their own and other free agents, and maybe those signing will start with a free agent linebacker.

They have one that's been on the team the previous four years in Mathias Kiwanuka. He played linebacker in the past, and with a bulging disc in his neck he could come at a cheap price.

There are also many free agent names out there, such as James Anderson, Paul Posluzsny, or Kawika Mitchell, who told me personally on Twitter he was interested in a return to the Giants.

This was thought of as the most important part of the Giants post lockout plans, but, of course, we were wrong, and the Giants created two huge holes on the offensive line.

Can They Cut Down on the Turnovers?

The biggest problem with the 2010 New York Giants was the uncanny amount of turnovers they gave up, particularly by Eli Manning (and his receivers).

Manning accounted for 30 turnovers on his own—25 interceptions and five fumbles lost. That number is more than 19 other teams had total in 2010. 

However, it's not accurate to think this is the norm for the Giants. Over the years with Coughlin, they've averaged 26 turnovers per season until 2010.

Even adding the 42 they had in 2010, they still only average 28 per year. With Perry Fewell coming in and turning the Giants defense into a turnover creating machine, if the Giants just cut that number down to 30 they will be golden.

The Giants were in the top 10 in almost all categories—in both offense and defense—so it would seem turnovers is the only issue keeping them from a playoff berth.