The New York Giants are already thin along their offensive line following the retirements of Zach Fulton and Joe Looney, and that issue has only been compounded this week.
In addition to center/guard Jonotthan Harrison, who has missed the team’s previous two practices, veteran offensive tackle Nate Solder went down with a shoulder injury on Tuesday.
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Solder left the field in apparent pain and was met by trainers on the sideline. Although he didn’t leave for the locker-room, he also did not return to the field.
Following the conclusion of practice, Solder provided little update on his status or the potential severity of his injury.
Nate Solder says he doesn’t know what the deal is with today’s injury, hasn’t been examined by trainers yet. He did walk off under his own power and talk to me/media, though. Didn’t look despondent #Giants
— Pat Leonard (@PLeonardNYDN) August 10, 2021
It’s hard to imagine, but with rapidly thinning depth the Giants can ill-afford to lose Solder for any extended period of time. Not only can he start at both tackle positions and serve as a swing tackle, head coach Joe Judge also briefly put him in at guard earlier this week.
That decision came following a Will Hernandez false start and may have been a product of the lacking depth more so than an ode to Solder’s potential versatility.
Either way, the Giants have some legitimate issues along their offensive line and while that sounds like a broken record on repeat for the past decade, a lot is riding on the unit here in 2021. The team insisted they were happy with their players and their depth, but two weeks into training camp and that faith seems misplaced.
As things currently sit, Jackson Barton and Jake Burton are the only healthy reserves at tackle, Brett Heggie is the only healthy reserve at center, and Kyle Murphy, Chad Slade and Kenny Wiggins are the only healthy reserves at guard.
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