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New York Giants tight end Evan Engram is likely in his his final weeks with the team as his rookie contract is scheduled to run out after this season. It’s a been a rocky road for the Giants’ 2017 first-round pick.
Engram has flashed but never burned in his five years in New York. His talent was evident from the start but he has never been able to put it all together.
Injuries and inconsistency combined with the ever-shifting Giants’ coaching landscape have left him an enigma as he faces unrestricted free agency come March. The Giants are unlikely to re-sign him and his performance this season was once again subpar.
Not all of that is on him, however. The Giants did everything possible to upgrade their skill positions on offense this past offseason. Saquon Barkley came back from injury. They signed Kenny Golladay, John Ross and Kyle Rudolph and then drafted Kadarius Toney to complement him, Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton.
That plan blew up in their faces as injuries, COVID-19, poor play calling and a neglected offensive line greatly hindered quarterback Daniel Jones, who also fell victim to a season-ending injury.
Engram will likely be signed by a team who will use him in space where he belongs. The Giants could never figure him out, and when they thought they had, he either dropped the ball (literally) or got hurt.
“Obviously, we definitely had higher expectations,” Engram told reporters on Monday. “We always will have them, but right now we’ve just got to keep working and try to get there.”
Engram’s tenure with the Giants has been mostly of the losing nature, especially the last four seasons He was asked about his time here in which the team never won more than six game in a season.
“It just comes down to your perspective on this game. We have limited number of opportunities to play this game, especially at this level. How you want to approach it — you want to take it for granted or you want to make the most of it? There’s a lot of football plays in these last two games and that means that’s a lot of opportunity. It just depends on how you look at the game. Definitely just don’t want to take these for granted. These opportunities don’t last forever and it’s up to you on how you want to approach it,” Engram said.
Engram will be lucky to land with team that will exploit his skills properly. He has always been a class act and kept his chin up high through all of the adversity. His election to the Pro Bowl last year was met with criticism by many but for those who have followed his career, it seemed to be a well-earned honor.
Engram has always treated the media and the fans with respect and even in his final moments with the team, he still dwells on the positives.
“This is a privilege. This is a blessing,” Engram said. “Obviously, this is not a situation that we work for and that we wish for, but I’m here and you’ve got to face things. I just never shy away from it. I always show up to work and get to work. That’s all I try to do, and I don’t hide from anything.”
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