4 Scenarios New York Giants Must Be Prepared for in 2015

Anything can happen in the NFL, so teams must enter each season prepared with a Plan B for every conceivable situation.

As the New York Giants trudge through training camp toward the 2015 season, several scenarios should be entertained, analyzed and put into action during practice. Failure to adapt has cost the Giants too many games since their most recent Super Bowl victory. If Tom Coughlin's team is caught unprepared again, it could cost the head coach his job.

Four scenarios for the Giants stick out in particular, based on past events and recent developments. They will be highlighted in the slides to follow, and we'll analyze the proper way to handle each one.

Be sure to share what you think the Giants should do for each "What if..." situation in the comment section below.

What If JPP Can't Play at All This Season?

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Scenario: Jason Pierre-Paul holds out as long as he can, but the All-Pro defensive end's injuries from a Fourth of July fireworks accident are too extreme for him to play at all in 2015. He sits out the entire season and becomes an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

Big Blue's Plan B

The Giants are already preparing for this possibility. Last week, Giants co-owner and CEO John Mara said the team is planning for life without Pierre-Paul, according to Bob Glauber of Newsday.

Robert Ayers was the favorite to replace Mathias Kiwanuka at left defensive end before JPP's injury, so nothing changes there. However, after finishing fourth on the team with five sacks as reserve last season, the Giants will expect Ayers to boost his production now that he's in line to start.

Pierre-Paul's season-long absence would create a major void at right defensive end. While there's not yet a favorite to replace him, George Selvie might be the leading candidate. Selvie was signed in free agency this offseason after starting 29 of 32 games with the Dallas Cowboys the past two seasons, according to Pro-FootballReference.com. He had 10 sacks during that stretch.

Ayers and Selvie bookended the first-team defensive line to kick off training camp, according to Art Stapleton of the Bergen Record.

That combination is far from settled science, though. The team has also experimented with Cullen Jenkins, a 34-year-old tackle, in place of Selvie at end, according to ESPN's Dan Graziano. Stapleton also detailed a lineup in which Kerry Wynn and Damontre Moore saw first-team reps.

With no superstar at the position, the Giants may need to rely on a deep rotation until someone emerges as the most effective pass-rusher.

What If Victor Cruz Suffers a Setback?

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Scenario: While making a comeback from a torn patellar tendon, Cruz aggravates his knee injury and has to miss time. The star slot receiver is put on either injured reserve or the physically unable to perform (PUP) list to start the season.

Big Blue's Plan B

Like Pierre-Paul sitting out for the entire 2015 season, this is also a conceivable scenario for which the Giants almost certainly have a plan.

Last season when Cruz was injured, Preston Parker stepped into the fold. The free-agency acquisition had 36 catches for 418 yards and two touchdowns on the year. Parker has impressed wide receivers coach Sean Ryan early in training camp, according to James Kratch of NJ Advance Media. 

Although Parker already has a decent rapport with quarterback Eli Manning, there are more talented receivers in the mix this year.

This spring, the Giants signed Dwayne Harris, formerly of the Dallas Cowboys. Harris is expected to make an impact as a return specialist, but he'd also make a fine slot receiver. The Cowboys rarely used him in such a fashion, but the Giants may have had this possibility in mind when inking the speedster to a five-year, $17.5 million deal with $7.1 million guaranteed.

The Giants also added veteran James Jones just before camp started. He has been a valuable third receiver throughout his eight-year career. In fact, no receiver on New York's current roster even comes close to touching Jones' career catch (383), yardage (4,971) and touchdown (43) figures.

Between Parker, Harris and Jones, the Giants have plenty of talent and experience backing up Cruz.

What If Jon Beason Is Injured Again?

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Scenario: After missing 12 games last season with a foot injury, Beason suffers yet another serious injury and is forced to sit out for an extended period of time. The Giants are forced to field a new middle linebacker and defensive signal-caller.

Big Blue's Plan B

This is another likely scenario, considering Beason has missed 40 games over the last four seasons. At this point, the Giants would be better off planning to be without his services and treating it like a pleasant surprise if he winds up having a healthy season.

Last year when Beason was put on injured reserve, Jameel McClain took over as the starting middle linebacker. He was able to just barely hold the unit together through strong leadership and communication, but he left much to be desired from an athletic standpoint. McClain is not the ideal linebacker to build a defense around.

Neither is Mark Herzlich, but he might be a slightly better option. He is a few years younger than McClain and may be a step quicker at this point in his career. The Giants re-signed him over Jacquian Williams and Spencer Paysinger this offseason, so maybe they like the growth he's displayed over the past four seasons enough to make him Beason's replacement.

The only linebacker who could provide a level of athleticism similar to Beason's might be second-year pro Devon Kennard, and he's already slated to start on the strong side.

Kennard could replace an injured Beason at middle linebacker, but some additional personnel would have to be juggled to make it happen. Most likely, either McClain or Herzlich would step into the starting lineup on the strong side, allowing Kennard to bump over one spot.

The Giants have options when it comes to weathering another injury to their starting middle linebacker, but nothing compares to having him on the field and healthy.

What If Ereck Flowers Can't Handle LT Duties?

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Scenario: With Will Beatty sidelined for quite a while, the Giants move forward with first-round rookie Flowers at left tackle. He's too raw, though, and the NFL's finest pass-rushers eat him alive. To keep Flowers in the starting lineup at left tackle would be to put Manning's health at risk.

Big Blue's Plan B

Although this is a realistic scenario, it's not one the Giants are prepared to handle. And that's because starting Flowers in Beatty's place at left tackle already is Plan B.

So, technically, this would be Plan C.

Unless Flowers is completely overwhelmed by the speed of the game and needs to be benched, he could probably line up at right tackle and be just fine. Of course, that wouldn't do anything to solve the team's problem at left tackle.

The natural thing to do would be to switch Flowers and Marshall Newhouse, who's slated to start at right tackle. Newhouse played left tackle—poorly—for the Green Bay Packers and even started there in 29 of the first 32 games of his career.

Manning wouldn't be any safer with Newhouse as a blindside protector, though, so this switch would be meaningless. The Giants would be better off letting Flowers go through the growing pains of the position, since they consider him the franchise's left tackle of the future.

The Giants could reshuffle their personnel and try Justin Pugh at left tackle, but that would likely spell disaster since he was hardly cut out for the right tackle position. Perhaps some other dark horse on the depth chart emerges. If it gets to that point, however, the team would be grasping at straws.

If Flowers can't cut it at left tackle, the Giants may have no choice other than to sign a free agent off the street and hope Beatty can make a healthy return around midseason.

Kevin Boilard writes about the New York Giants at Bleacher Report.