5 New York Giants Whose Roster Spots Could Be in Jeopardy Following the Draft

Every year, a fresh crop of rookies enters the league via the draft and the post-draft free-agency frenzy with the hopes attached to these youngsters by their new teams sky-high.

Meanwhile along the way, some of those players who at one time or another the team might have hitched its shooting star to gradually fall to the way side thanks to the arrival of new faces.

The NFL is a cruel, cruel business, folks, and several New York Giants players are likely to find that out by the end of the summer if the rookie class pays off for Big Blue.

Let's take a look at some of the names who could have the most to lose if the draft picks work out as expected.

S Cooper Taylor

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After plucking 6'4", 228-pound safety Cooper Taylor out of Richmond in the fifth round of the 2013 draft, the Giants had visions of him potentially becoming the next pseudo-linebacker—a role Deon Grant played to perfection.

Instead, Taylor has fought injuries throughout most of his career, finally finding health last season. However, with time ticking away on Taylor's four-year contract, the Giants have been not-so subtly moving away from Taylor, who last year was cut midway through the season only to be re-signed when injuries hit the position.

With the Giants having added Darian Thompson to a group that includes Nat Berhe, Bennett Jackson and Mykkele Thompson—all free safety candidates—it will not be a surprise if Taylor's Giants career has likely run its course.

LB Mark Herzlich

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In 2011, linebacker Mark Herzlich's triumphant victory over cancer captured the hearts of both football fans and non-football fans.

A solid citizen who works tirelessly to champion various charitable causes in the community and nationwide, Herzlich's football career didn't quite pack the same punch as his off-field story.

He got a chance to become a starting linebacker as a rookie in 2011 due to injury, but a broken ankle sidelined him late in the season. While he recovered from that injury, he ended up taking a back seat to Chase Blackburn, who came out of an Ohio classroom to bail the Giants out at middle linebacker.

In 2013, Herzlich again had a chance to be the starting middle linebacker when free-agent Dan Connor went down in the first week of the season with a neck injury. Unfortunately, Herzlich struggled so much in the middle, the Giants ended up making a rare in-season trade for Jon Beason.

In the last two years, Herzlich, always a solid special teams player, found a bit of a niche as an outside linebacker. However, his window to become anything more than situational player on defense might be finally closing with the addition of rookie B.J. Goodson, who can play in the middle and on the outside.

TE Jerome Cunningham

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Tight end Jerome Cunningham turned quite a few heads last summer, finishing with 91 receiving yards, the third-most among all tight ends who played in at least 25 percent of the preseason snaps last year.

After making the 53-man roster, Cunningham's pro career got off to a bumpy start. He was inactive in four of his first five games before being cut in Week 6, only to land on the practice squad for a couple of weeks.

In what limited opportunities he received after rejoining the 53-man roster, he didn't exactly make the most of them, catching just 53.3 percent of his pass targets for 59 yards with two drops.

With Larry Donnell's return, Will Tye's development and the promise of Matt LaCosse and rookie Jerell Adams, Cunningham is probably facing an uphill battle to stick around on the Giants' 53-man roster this year.

RB Andre Williams

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In the 2014 draft, the Giants snagged former Boston College running back Andre Williams, the nation's leading college rusher, in the fourth round of the draft.

The pick looked like a steal for them. However, in the two years since joining the Giants, a pick that at the time looked like a major steal is not living up to expectations.

The problem is, Williams' college production hasn't come close to translating to the NFL in his first two seasons. As a rookie, Williams averaged just 3.3 yards per carry and only 2.1 yards after contact.

Those numbers dipped significantly (along with his touches) the following season, when he managed 257 yards on 88 carries and 1.8 yards after contact in the Giants' four-man committee.

If that wasn't bad enough, his unpolished skills as a receiver combined with him not playing on all the special teams further hurt his stock.

To be clear, Williams is not a bad runner, despite his production. As a rookie, he did his best work when given the ball at least 15 times in a game. The question is whether he's a fit for the Giants offense, and offense which last season saw its lead back, Rashad Jennings, get a single-game high 14 snaps.

If Paul Perkins proves he can translate his electric rushing and pass receiving skills to the field as well as contribute on special teams, it might be hard for the Giants to justify keeping Williams around this year.

WR Victor Cruz

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Up until now, I have looked at guys whose roster spots appear in immediate danger this year. For this final slide, I'm going to look at one who could be in jeopardy as soon as next year: Victor Cruz.

As he did last year, general manager Jerry Reese has been optimistic about Cruz's chances of returning after nearly two seasons away due to lower-body injuries. Cruz, whose relentless work ethic is the only way he knows how to do things, is attacking his rehab from calf surgery much in the same way.

So while everything is looking rosy right now, and while both the Giants and Cruz have apparently learned their lessons about rushing back onto the field before it's absolutely necessary, the question now becomes if Cruz can be the player he once was before suffering a torn patellar tendon in his knee in October 2014.

To refresh your memory as to what kind of player Cruz was pre-injury, Cruz posted back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving campaigns in 2011 and 2012 while missing out on a third straight in 2013 by a measly two yards.

Cruz's quickness and sudden burst made him a terror to defend, especially after the catch. He is averaging 5.1 yards after he catch, which, compared to what the Giants receivers not named Odell Beckham Jr. did last year, would have easily blown the others out of the water.

Although he has had trouble with hanging onto the football—he posted 36 dropped passes to 25 touchdowns, Cruz was also elusive enough to cause 41 missed tackles.

That's who Victor Cruz was. And if he can't come close to being as productive (dropped passes aside), this coming season, assuming all systems are go, the Giants might want to re-think is $9.4 million cap figure next season, according to Over the Cap.

That cap figure includes a $1 million roster bonus that Jordan Raanan of NJ Advance Media reports is due early in the offseason.

Thus if Cruz doesn't return to his pre-injury form and second round pick Sterling Shepard proves to be a dynamo in the slot, this season could very well be it for one of the NFL's most inspiring rags-to-riches stories.

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