Leonard Williams Signs Giants' Franchise Tag; Reportedly Will File Grievance

The New York Giants gave up multiple draft picks to land defensive end Leonard Williams from their fellow Big Apple team, and he will be suiting up for the franchise for at least one more season.

Williams signed his franchise-tag tender with the Giants on Wednesday. Adam Schefter of ESPN noted there was some uncertainty as to what Williams' salary will be in 2020:

Field Yates of ESPN broke down Williams' 2019 snaps by position:

Per The Athletic's Dan Duggan, Williams is expected to file a grievance over a dispute over his position classification:

This comes after Schefter reported the Giants tagged the 25-year-old prior to the March 16 deadline because they were "unwilling to let him leave."

Williams and the Giants are still able to negotiate a long-term contract. However, Duggan noted an extension is not viewed as "imminent":

The USC product started his career as a highly regarded playmaker for the New York Jets after they selected him with the No. 6 overall pick of the 2015 draft. He played the first four full seasons of his career and seven games of the 2019 campaign for the Jets before they traded him to the Giants.

The Giants gave up a 2020 third-round pick and 2021 fifth-round pick for him for Williams, although the latter was conditional. Schefter reported at the time it would become a fourth-round pick if the Giants signed the pass-rusher to an extension prior to the start of the 2020 league year.

Now that New York has Williams under contract for next season, it will surely want to see the version of him that tallied impressive numbers early in his career.

Williams was a Pro Bowler in his second season with 68 tackles, seven sacks, 11 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles. It was easy to feel optimistic about his future as a top-10 pick who would live up to expectations and become a dominant pass-rusher.

However, he posted just two sacks in 2017 and a solid five sacks in 2018 before finishing the 2019 season with 0.5 combined sacks in 15 games on both New York teams. 

There is plenty of pressure on Williams to bounce back from his most recent effort, especially since the Giants traded multiple picks for him and have now committed to a longer deal.

He is still relatively young and has flashed his high potential in the past, but a return to the 2019 totals would be a concern for Big Blue as they look to return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2016 season.