NFL Trade Rumors: New York Giants Must Trade Osi Umenyiora

It was clear that Osi Umenyiora's future as a New York Giant would be a question mark past this upcoming season, but now it appears he might not even last that long.

And that's a good thing for the Giants. 

According to the Star-Ledger's Mike Garafolo, Umenyiora is unsure who his "employer" will be by the end of the week.

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"If they make me play out the seventh year of a seven-year deal, that's going to be rough right there," the two-time Pro Bowl selection, who had nine sacks in nine regular-season games and 3½ more in the postseason, said today at the NFL's "Play 60" event at Chelsea Waterside Park, while making an appearance for Kinect for Xbox. "I don't even know if that's a possibility at this point, but you can never say never. Hopefully something will be done here. If I have to come back and play (under his current deal), I really don't know how I'm going to react to that situation."

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On the one hand, keeping Umenyiora is incredibly enticing.

The talented defensive end is an absolute menace to opposing quarterbacks. During his eight seasons with the Giants, he has recorded 69 career sacks and probably tallied about a million-and-a-half hurries.

He's been a big part of New York's two Super Bowl runs, and he provides depth at the position, which the Giants love. Being able to constantly rotate pass-rushers in and out has been very successful for Tom Coughlin's squad.

Their love for depth at the position is evidenced by the recent extension of Mathias Kiwanuka.

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DE Mathias Kiwanuka has apparently signed a three-year contract extension with the Giants, keeping him signed through the 2015 season. #NYG

— Ralph Vacchiano (@TheBlueScreen) April 27, 2012"

Nonetheless, the Kiwanuka signing not only means depth at the position is important, but it is also probably a sign that Umenyiora's days in New York are numbered.

Again, good thing.

Umenyiora has one more year on his contract, and it is pretty apparent that the Giants aren't ready to extend him.

That means two things.

First, Umenyiora, who desperately wants an extension, is going to be grumpy throughout the season.

Second, the Giants probably won't re-sign him when he becomes a free-agent after this season. So, why not trade him now and get something for him while you can?

Umenyiora himself puts it perfectly:

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"This is the last year of my deal and, given the current circumstances, I think maybe the Giants would probably think I wouldn't be back after this year. So if they're going to get something, now would be the time to do it."

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With Jason Pierre-Paul, Justin Tuck, Kiwanuka, and others, the Giants are in a position where they can say, "OK, getting a third or fourth pick now is much better than getting absolutely nothing next year."

It's hard to give up Osi because of what he has meant for this team, but at this point it just makes too much sense to pull the trigger. 

Umenyiora is ready for it, New York is ready for it. It's time to make it happen. 

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