2022 NFL Scouting Combine in Books. Free will is not far off. The project is not that far behind. The New York Giants have a lot of work to do before any of that starts and there isn’t much time left to make those decisions.
Here are some “things I think” coming from the Alliance.
James Bradbury exchanges thoughts
I usually send all our “mailbox” questions on Saturday. However, I often get the following question about quarterback James Bradbury, and since it’s timely, let’s talk about it now.
Gino Phillips asks: My question to you is, do you think the Bradbury deal will go through before the draft, or will the Giants wait until draft day to pull the trigger to maybe get better leverage?
The reality is that by March 16, all NFL teams, including the Giants, must be below the $208.2 million salary cap. That is nine days later. That’s when the NFL league year and free agent officially begin.
The Giants still have $20.198 million of effective ceiling space, according to Over The Cap. Like it or not, whether you like it or not, the Giants will have to do what they have to do to get under the hood.
One of the things they’ll almost certainly have to do over the next nine days in exchange for Bradberry, their best defender. This would have saved them $12.136 million over the limit. They cannot take any other step that would bring them so much relief.
They could have saved more ($13.5 million) if they waited out the draft or cut it after June 1. This, however, will not help them to be restricted in the next nine days.
There was a lot of speculation about what the Giants might get for Bradbury. Perhaps the best thing they can do is pick in the third round. Maybe it’s a fourth round pick. Whatever it is, the Giants will almost certainly have to take it – and have little to no choice but to do so within the next nine days.
To trade or not to trade Saquon Barkley
We’ve talked a lot about whether the Giants should trade Barkley’s Saqwon or not. Most of the messages coming from Combine are that Barkley’s comeback won’t be all that great, maybe nothing more than a fourth round pick.
Rumors have come out of Indy that the Giants are open to trade Barkley, but are actually reluctant to do so. Depending on what else happens, the Giants may need $7.2 million in capital savings.
I’m still someone who thinks that the right long-term solution is to leave Barkley. However, I can understand the temptation to see what a healthy Barkley can do. The problem is, what do you do then? Paying big money on a second contract to a runner is not good business.
Age of Analytics
It didn’t get much attention, but last week the Giants hired Cade Knox as offensive assistant/game manager. A year ago, Knox was a football data and innovation trainee. Head coach Brian Daball said Knox would be on his ear during games to provide data.
“We used it a lot (in Buffalo),” Daball said of his tenure as the Bills’ offensive coordinator. “It’s part of the process. This is a tool to use. As a Harvard graduate who played quarterback and switched to wide receiver, (Knox) worked in the analysis room. I would say that we have a lot of people there, very, very smart in this area, who were there before me. I sat down and talked to various of them. Cade played quarterback, wide receiver, very, very smart, so he’ll be in the box during the game. He will have a headset.
“You plan a lot. (Game management decisions) are not made spontaneously. What we did in Buffalo is similar to what we’ll be doing here, meetings on Fridays and Thursdays on the many different situations and scenarios that come up. You never know when they will pop up and you have to make split second decisions. It’s always good to have a voice by your side in the middle of the process while you’re doing other things. He is an impressive young man.”
Merge Notes
- I liked this answer from Northern Iowa Offensive Gear Trevor Penning. He was asked what three words best describe his playing style. His answer. “Physical. Nasty. Prick.”
- Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum is outraged. What well. I’m a little worried about his leg injury. I’m a little worried about its size. I’m a little concerned about the versatility of his circuitry. He is the best center in the class, but the more I think about it, the harder it is for me to see him in the top ten.
- I loved hearing Ohio State offensive player Nicholas Petit-Frare talk about why he loves football. Here is part of what he said:
“I wanted to make sure they knew how analytical I am about football, how much I love this game. And not only because I love this game, just because I enjoy playing it, but also because of what the game has brought me. The game has brought me so many friends and family members, because many people may not know it, but I am a lonely child. It was just me and my mom, so she’s a single mom. And I never had any brothers or sisters. But my family and similar fathers came from football. Like every head coach I’ve had, he’s been a father figure to me. I’ve been to their office several times, talking to them about life and things like that. And I look at them as fathers, because these are the guys who, when I have problems, as if they were my fathers. These are the people to whom I say: “Hey, this is the person I trust.” This is a person I respect and this is a person I want to be around.” And then, in terms of brotherhood, in terms of family, like my best friend from high school, Dylan Brown, he played me right and left when I played catch. My friend Thayer (Munford) played left back here in Ohio. Wyatt (Davis), he played right back with me. And all my brothers in the offensive line, both in high school and college, like they’re all my best friends. My roommates are football players. Like one of my roommates, he is from Dallas, I have to spend a week with his family in the summer. I have created so many different relationships and new families thanks to football. And that’s why I love the game, because of what it was able to give me. He was able to give me what I could not afford. I was not provided with a figure of the father. I was not allowed to have additional brothers and sisters. But the game gave me that. And that’s something I can never repay the game for.”
Teams want to see such people in their dressing room.
- Travon Walker on what it means to join the Giants and reunite with former Giants teammates Aziz Ojulari and Tae Crowder. “Playing with these guys, I felt like I was home again. Because I know they were great leaders at the University of Georgia, and I know they are great leaders now based on the careers they’re in. It would mean a lot.”
- General manager Joe Shawn said last Tuesday that he wants to enter the draft with seven players that he would be comfortable taking with two Giants picks in the top seven of the draft. I’m going to spend some time thinking about the seven players that will be on my list, and when I have it, I’ll write it down.
- I really hope the NFL is smart enough to keep the Combine in Indianapolis. The city is ideally built for this event. This may be due to the fact that the city is largely built “around” the event.