New York Giants: Latest Combine News and Rumors

Welcome to combine week, or the NFL’s annual “job fair” where more than 300 college prospects will look to impress general managers, player personnel directors and coaches from around the NFL.  

The combine is also a hotbed for rumors, given that it presents an opportunity for teams to not only meet with potential draft picks but also with the contract representatives of veterans who are being considered for a contract restructuring, extension or termination.

As the combine is about to unfold, let's look at some of the hottest pre-combine rumors and theories swirling around the New York Giants. 

Looking for a Change-of-Pace Running Back

Last week, the Giants officially parted ways with running back David Wilson, their 2013 first-round pick.

The move unfortunately came out of concern for the young man's future after a chronic neck issue made it unsafe for him to continue playing football.

It's easy to wonder what might have been for the Giants running game had Wilson been able to join Rashad Jennings and Andre Williams in the backfield.

Charlie Campbell of WalterFootball.com reported last month that the Giants haven't given up on the idea of adding a speedy slasher in the mold of Wilson to their offensive backfield, perhaps at some point on Day 3 (either a late-round pick or an undrafted free agent).

If it happens, it won’t be a surprise. Williams and Jennings are virtually carbon copies as far as their running styles are concerned, though Jennings is more accomplished at pass blocking and as a receiver out of the backfield at this point. 

So who might be a potential Day 3 prospect at running back whom the Giants might be eyeing to compete with Orleans Darkwa this summer?

Northern Iowa’s David Johnson (6’1”, 224 lbs), whom Campbell reported met with the Giants during Senior Bowl week, is of interest, given his versatility.

Rob Rang of NFL Draft Scout cited Johnson, who had a 19-yard touchdown run in the Senior Bowl, as one of 10 players who stood out in that game:

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The most impressive overall was Johnson, whose combination of size, sharp-cutting and terrific hands out of the backfield made him a mismatch in the running and receiving game. The vision, balance and determination Johnson demonstrated in the 19-yard touchdown to spark the game's scoring ranks among the most impressive individual plays.

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Besides his size making him a mismatch, Johnson can also line up at H-back and fullback, though he might be a little light by NFL standards for the latter role.

He can also return kickoffs, which is an added bonus for a player who is potentially looking at becoming a Day 3 pick/undrafted free agent.

Quarterback Eli Manning's Contract Situation?

Al Bello/Getty Images

The combine is a hot spot for NFL general managers to meet with agents. Oftentimes, this is where the foundation of new player contracts begins.

Under current NFL rules, teams are only supposed to discuss their own free agents, gauging the opening parameters for a player they want back or might be planning to extend.

They also often lay the groundwork for a contract termination, restructuring or pay cut with existing players under contract.

One such existing contract that is likely to be discussed is that of quarterback Eli Manning, who is due to count for $19.75 million in this, the final year of the six-year, $97 million contract extension he signed in 2009, according to Over the Cap.

If the Giants can reach an agreement with Tom Condon, Manning’s agent, to both extend and lower Manning’s $17 million base salary for 2015, that could open up a significant chunk of salary-cap space for New York, whom Over the Cap currently projects as having $17.558 million in cap space based on a $140 million salary cap.

So what about Manning and his possible contract extension being done ahead of the March 10 start date of free agency?

At the end of the 2014 season, Manning told reporters that he would be open to discussing his contract with the team, saying, “If the Giants want to discuss it, we’ll discuss it, but it’s not a focus of mine.” 

Former player agent Joel Corry, now a salary cap and contracts analyst for CBSSports.com, recently told Paul Schwartz of the New York Post that he would be “shocked” if Manning agreed to give the Giants a hometown discount like Tom Brady did with the New England Patriots:

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Nobody’s gonna do what Tom Brady did, for a couple of reasons. One, and maybe not so much for Eli but generally, in the locker room, money is a measuring stick. Richard Sherman kind of said it best when he got his deal, he said money is a way teams show you respect. Two, agents are self-motivated not to do anything like that because they’re paid on a commission.

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In that same article, Corry noted that Manning’s agent isn’t in the business of giving teams discounts on his clients, estimating that Condon could seek $20 million per year for Manning on what is likely going to be the 34-year-old quarterback’s final NFL contract from the Giants.

However, Corry also told Schwartz that the decision to help the Giants put a better team around him lies strictly with Manning. 

The Giants and Condon are sure to cross paths at the combine and might even have a discussion if they haven’t already commenced that process. Whether it results in any progress on a new deal remains to be seen; though if it doesn’t, the Giants will certainly have other ways of creating additional cap space.

OT Brandon Scherff to Giants in Round 1

Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press

The Giants need offensive line help—that much everyone who follows the sport and the team in particular knows.

The question, though, is how they are going to acquire that help.

Will it be through the draft or free agency? Will it be a guard or a tackle? And will an offensive lineman be the Giants’ first-round draft pick if they do decide to draft one?

The answers to those questions will be made clear in the coming weeks, but a popular consensus among NFL draft analysts seems to be that the Giants will look to snag Iowa offensive tackle Brandon Scherff (6’4”, 320 lbs) at No. 9 in the first round.

Count ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. as one who believes that the Giants and Scherff are a match:

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Scherff is what I'd call a high-floor addition on the offensive line, because even if he doesn't profile as a blindside tackle, I think he can be an immediate force in the run game and at a minimum becomes a dominant guard. … I think the Giants can count on immediate dividends from Scherff as either a right tackle or a guard right of the gate. He's one of the more dominant run-blocking linemen we've seen in the draft in the last few years, and he brings experience, and the ability to take on the job like a professional right away.

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The phrase in that analysis that should get Giants fans excited is “one of the more dominant run-blocking linemen.”

That is exactly what the NFL’s 22nd-ranked run-blocking offensive line, per Football Outsiders, needs to help jump-start a running game that finished 23rd in the NFL with 101.9 yards per game, according to StatMilk.

Another thing to get excited about is Scherff's versatility.

Both head coach Tom Coughlin and general manager Jerry Reese, in separate interviews with WFAN’s Mike Francesa (h/t CBS New York), acknowledged that current starting right tackle Justin Pugh has the ability to move inside to guard if the Giants are able to unearth a right tackle to replace him.

Even if Scherff can’t cut it as an NFL tackle, he would move inside to guard, which would allow Pugh to stay at right tackle.

That kind of versatility makes a draft prospect a legitimate value, which is why it would not be surprising if the Giants strongly consider Scherff if he’s sitting there at No. 9.

Franchising Defensive End Jason Pierre-Paul

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

With the two-week window for the application of the franchise tag underway as of Monday, the Giants will have to decide whether to tag Jason Pierre-Paul—a move that, based on CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora, would cost nearly $15 million.

Count ESPN’s Dan Graziano among those who believe the Giants will use the franchise tag on Pierre-Paul barring a miraculous arrival at a new multiyear contract. 

The question, though, is if the move actually makes financial sense for the Giants to devote such a large chunk of change to one player who isn’t a franchise quarterback, especially for a team coming off a 6-10 season that has many holes it still needs to fill.

Before arriving at a conclusion as to whether the Giants should tag Pierre-Paul, let’s first look at the positives.

First, he is only 26 years old and finally seems to be completely over an assortment of injuries (back and shoulder) that have made many people wonder if his breakout 2011 season was just a one-hit wonder.

In looking at Pierre-Paul’s game-by-game breakdown, yes, one can argue that nine of his 12.5 sacks came against non-playoff contenders in the last five weeks of the season.

While sacks carry a lot of weight, they shouldn’t be the only statistic used in determining a defensive end’s value.

He was as consistent against the run as any of the Giants defenders, finishing with an 8.4 percent run stoppage (number of tackles made divided by the number of run-support snaps played), according to Pro Football Focus, which was the sixth-best percentage among 4-3 defensive ends.

That’s not bad considering Pierre-Paul also led that same group of 4-3 defensive ends with seven missed tackles in run support.

Now, let’s go beyond the sacks. Per PFF, Pierre-Paul tied for 10th, with Mario Williams of the Buffalo Bills, with 60 total quarterback pressures.

In breaking down Pierre-Paul’s pressures even further, he fell within the top 10 at his position in sacks (12.5) and hurries (38) but came up short in the quarterback-hits department with just nine, three more than teammate Mathias Kiwanuka.

With all that said, the franchise tag, which probably won’t be applied until the last possible minute, might be the only choice the Giants have if defensive end Robert Ayers’ return date continues to be clouded in mystery, as Jordan Raanan of NJ Advance Media reported. 

Ayers’ ongoing recovery from a torn pectoral—combined with the likelihood that Kiwanuka will be released/retired and the inexperience of Kerry Wynn and Damontre Moore—would leave the Giants with a gaping hole at defensive end if they were to lose Pierre-Paul, which is why all the speculation about him being tagged is likely to become a reality.

OL Ali Marpet on the Giants' Radar

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

The Giants, who last week signed CFL Offensive Lineman of the Year Brett Jones to what NJ Advance Media’s Jordan Raanan reports is a three-year contract, could be looking at another young prospect to develop into serviceable depth.

That would be guard Ali Marpet (6’4”, 307 lbs) out of Hobart College, whom Charlie Campbell of WalterFootball.com reported impressed the Giants during the Senior Bowl so much so that Campbell advises his readers to “keep an eye on the Hobart product landing with the Giants on Day 3 of the draft.”

Marpet is another left tackle—a starter since his sophomore season—who projects as a guard at the next level.

Eric Edholm of Yahoo praised Marpet for his showing during Senior Bowl week, noting that once he moved inside to left guard—an open position as of right now for the Giants—he dominated his competition, specifically Washington defensive tackle Danny Shelton.

The Giants could be planning to move on from James Brewer, an unrestricted free agent, and perhaps even Brandon Mosley—both fourth-round picks from the dismal 2011 and 2012 draft respectively.

That would pave the way for players like Jones. And if he does end up with the Giants, Marpet could finally give the coaching staff the depth this team really hasn’t had on the offensive line for a couple of years.  

Unless otherwise noted, all advanced statistics are via Pro Football Focus, and all salary information is via Over the Cap.  

Patricia Traina covers the Giants for Inside Football, the Journal Inquirer and Sports Xchange. All quotes and information obtained firsthand unless otherwise sourced. Follow me on Twitter @Patricia_Traina.