Giants' Revamped Offensive Line Still Not Inspiring Much Confidence
The New York Giants have several units to be proud of, such as the defensive line and the linebacking corps. Big names like Dexter Lawrence II, Kayvon Thibodeaux, Brian Burns, and Bobby Okereke have helped those groups flourish.
Then they have some question marks, the biggest of which is the offensive line, at least in , who slotted the Giants offensive line–newcomers and all–at No. 29.
The reason behind the ranking is likely based on how the offensive line performed last year, which included allowing 85 sacks, the second most sacks given up by a team in a season since sacks became a trackable stat.
The Giants offensive line performed poorly last off-season, but Buday acknowledged it was partly due to the injuries that forced several different lineups and affected their best player, left tackle Andrew Thomas, until having proven otherwise, the offensive line is a legitimate question mark/
"While they brought in a couple of new players in Jermaine Eluemunor and Jon Runyan to start at guard, they need their returners to improve drastically," Buday wrote.
"Center John Michael Schmitz, a second-round pick in 2023, and right tackle Evan Neal, a top-10 pick in 2022, have been disappointing so far. Even left tackle Andrew Thomas staying healthy and returning to his 2022 form wouldn't compensate for poor performances from the other young players on the line in 2024."
Eluemunor could be the gem of the two free agents. He was more than solid last season with the Las Vegas Raiders, having played 905 offensive snaps and allowing just six sacks and 28 total pressures.
Last season, Eluemunor played 779 snaps at right tackle and 125 at left tackle. Eluemunor is currently projected to play left guard ahead of training camp, and he should excel next to Schmitz and potentially Thomas.
If Thomas can remain healthy, he could be an All-Pro-level player. He is one of the best tackles in the league and arguably one of the most indispensable Giants players. Neal is entering a critical third season in which he needs to stay healthy and show that he can live up to his draft pedigree as a top-10 pick.
Overall, the Giants need their offensive line to at least be a middle-of-the-pack unit if this team is to have any success this season.
MICHAEL FRANCE