New York Giants Blueprint for Winning Free Agency
In less than a week, the New York Giants will be knee-deep in free-agency discussions with prospects they have targeted for their roster.
While they’re not expecting to go on a massive spending spree as they did last year, there are still a few positions where they could look to add talent from the outside, just as there are some of their own fey free agents whom they’ll look to re-sign at a cap-friendly deal.
Here is a five-step free agency blueprint that can potentially set up a solid foundation ahead of the draft.
Re-Sign Defensive End Jason Pierre-Paul
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All signs are pointing to the Giants applying the non-exclusive franchise tag to defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, a 26-year-old pass-rusher who last year finished second in sacks (12.5) among 4-3 defensive ends, according to Pro Football Focus, behind Buffalo's Mario Williams (14.5).
However, Pierre-Paul topped Williams in two other categories, specifically tackles (77 to 42) and passes defensed (six to two).
Production aside, Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News points out that Pierre-Paul, who has dealt with back and shoulder injuries, has yet to string together consecutive seasons in which his productivity has been worthy of top-tier money.
Samuel argues that it is possible the Giants could let Pierre-Paul play out 2015 on the franchise tag in order to gain a better sense of Pierre-Paul’s upside.
That approach, while practical on the surface, would be expensive. According to CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora, it will cost $14.68 million for the Giants to tag Pierre-Paul with the non-exclusive designation.
Based on the Giants’ cap-space projection of $24,232,638 by Over the Cap, using the franchise tag for Pierre-Paul would leave the Giants with approximately $9.552 million of cap space to re-sign their key free agents and to add some new faces at positions that are thin.
If Pierre-Paul and the Giants work out a long-term deal that would lower the $14.68 million cap hit, that means more money for the Giants to do what they need to do in this, a win-or-else year.
Of course, both sides would need to be creative in how the contract is structured, as Pierre-Paul is likely to want as much guaranteed money as he can get in a new deal.
Sign S Da'Norris Searcy
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With three veteran safeties all set to become unrestricted free agents—Antrel Rolle, Stevie Brown and Quintin Demps—the Giants need to add some depth on a unit that already has the young and inexperienced Cooper Taylor and Nat Berhe.
The free-agent pickings, however, appear slim. New England’s Devin McCourty, regarded as the cream of the crop, according to Thomas Maney of Pro Football Focus, might not hit the open market if the Patriots apply the non-exclusive franchise tag to him, a deal that, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, would cost the Patriots $9.53 million.
Assuming McCourty is tagged, the Giants’ next-best option might be Buffalo’s Da’Norris Searcy, who Maney noted had a career-best 8.6 overall PFF grade.
Searcy established himself as a strong run defender, where he finished with the top run-stop percentage within eight yards of the line of scrimmage (13.2) among safeties who took at least 25 percent of their team’s defensive snaps last year.
Searcy was productive in coverage last season as well, allowing just nine of 19 pass targets to be completed for 89 yards, with three interceptions. Searcy finished with a 21.5 NFL rating.
If the Bills are going to use their franchise tag, Brian Galliford of SB Nation’s Buffalo Rumblings believes that defensive end Jerry Hughes might be the only real possibility for the designation if a long-term deal can’t be worked out.
If Hughes does receive the tag, Searcy would be free to negotiate with other clubs barring a new contract from the Bills.
Want another reason why Searcy might be attractive to the Giants? Over the last two seasons, he has played in 1,418 defensive snaps (666 in 2014 and 753 in 2013).
That’s not a lot of mileage for the Bills’ 2011 fourth-round pick, who turned 26 in December.
According to Michael Ginnitti of Spotrac.com, Searcy’s next contract is projected to be a four-year deal worth $21,189,244 with $8 million guaranteed. That would work out to approximately $5.2 million per year for Searcy, a bargain per year if compared to what Over the Cap listed as an APY of $7.42 million for Rolle.
Speaking of Rolle, head coach Tom Coughlin did not hide his desire to have his defensive co-captain back in 2015. However, he also admitted that the Giants are going to have financial limitations in re-signing the 32-year-old Rolle.
If the Giants are planning to hand out a multi-year contract to a veteran safety, they need to consider if it makes more sense to do so with a younger player who has a little less wear and tear on his body than an older veteran.
Re-Sign CB Walter Thurmond III
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The Giants had high expectations for their defensive secondary last year when they signed slot cornerback Walter Thurmond III to a one-year contract.
And why not? In 2013 for the Seattle Seahawks, Thurmond, according to Pro Football Focus, finished with a 69.5 NFL rating as a slot cornerback, the seventh-best rating of all slot cornerbacks that season.
Unfortunately, it was not meant to be for Thurmond in 2014, as he suffered a season-ending pectoral injury in Week 2.
The good news is that Thurmond told me that he is open to returning to the Giants, if they will have him back.
The Giants haven’t made their intentions public regarding Thurmond, but it would be hard to see why they wouldn’t want him back.
Based on Pro Football Focus’s signature stats data covering Thurmond’s pro career, which began in 2010, in 424 snaps played as the slot cornerback, Thurmond has yet to allow a touchdown.
Assuming both sides do indeed want each other, it might behoove the Giants and Thurmond to work on a deal longer than the one-year contract he signed in 2014.
According to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, that was the team’s original intent, as the Giants wanted to sign Thurmond to a three-year deal last offseason. However, the cornerback was looking for a shorter deal in order to prove his value.
Did his season-ending injury change Thurmond’s perspective about the length of his next contract? We'll find out soon enough.
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Sign OL Orlando Franklin
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The Giants can resolve a glaring hole on their offensive line if they can pick up a solid veteran player who offers the experience at guard and tackle.
One such free-agent-to-be meeting that is Denver’s Orlando Franklin, who lined up at left guard last year after three years of playing at right tackle for the Broncos.
According to Ben Stockwell of Pro Football Focus, Franklin really came into his own as a run-blocker once he moved inside to guard, finishing with a 9.8 grade in that category.
The versatility that Franklin, who is Stockwell’s No. 2 top free-agent interior lineman, offers might just make him worth one of the few big contracts the Giants could be looking to hand out this offseason.
With a player like Franklin on board, the coaches could experiment with different line combinations that would include playing him at right tackle and moving Justin Pugh to left guard, or vice versa in an effort to determine what combination might be the best.
Sign RB Roy Helu
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Last year, the Giants had visions of a three-pronged rushing attack featuring Rashad Jennings, Andre Williams and David Wilson, with Wilson being the change-of-pace scatback and backfield threat.
Unfortunately, Wilson wasn’t able to make it back from spinal surgery and was forced to retire, leaving the Giants with Jennings and Williams, two running backs with similar styles, to carry the load.
This year, the Giants will be on the lookout for a third-down back who can block and potentially play that role the team initially envisioned for Wilson.
“David was a fast, quick guy who could catch the ball out of the backfield and return kicks,” general manager Jerry Reese told reporters at the combine last month. “When you lose that dynamic type player, it stings a little bit, but it is football, and we will try to replace that position.”
New York already has Orleans Darkwa on its roster, a young player it signed off Miami’s practice squad midway through the season last year when injuries started creeping up on the running back unit.
Darkwa performed well in his limited opportunities and will probably get a chance to compete for a roster spot in training camp.
It would not be surprising if the Giants to add another veteran running back to the mix. An intriguing prospect is Roy Helu (5’11”, 215 lbs), a 2011 fourth-round pick by Washington.
In 48 games, Helu has carried the ball 255 times for 1,132 yards (5.3 average) with seven rushing touchdowns, and 129 receptions for 1,152 yards with three receiving touchdowns.
Helu, who is the 10th-best free-agent running back on a list prepared by Matt Claassen of Pro Football Focus, might not have some of the eye-popping numbers as the other names on that list, but Claassen pointed out that Helu has made the most of his opportunities playing behind Alfred Morris.
According to Helu’s 2014 PFF stats breakdown, 137 of his 216 rushing yards came after contact (63.4 percent). He also made 17 would-be tacklers miss him, a stat that Claassen pointed out was rare given that 19 running backs with at least twice as many carries as Helu did not reach 17 missed tackles.
According to Over the Cap, Helu’s four-year rookie deal averaged $627,563 per year and contained $470,252 in guaranteed money.
If there is a match between the Giants and Helu’s skill set, a potential contract could include two years at an average of $1.5 million per year, with $1 million guaranteed.
Unless otherwise noted, all stats via Pro Football Focus, and all contract data 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.
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