Tag: a’shawn robinson

ESPN ranks Giants’ interior D-line best in the NFL

ESPN has ranked the New York Giants’ interior defensive line as the best in football but wasn’t as kind to other positional groups.

The New York Giants sported the best interior 1-2 punch last season with nose tackle Dexter Lawrence and defensive lineman Leonard Williams, but they needed to add more this offseason.

Lawrence and Williams, who dealt with injury issues last year, were taking entirely too many snaps. Beyond just that, the Giants struggled in stopping the run.

All of that left general manager Joe Schoen feeling uncomfortable, so he went out and added defensive linemen A’Shawn Robinson and Rakeem Nunez-Roches via free agency, and also selected nose tackle Jordon Riley in the seventh round of the 2023 NFL draft.

That was more than enough to sell those over at ESPN, who recently ranked the Giants’ interior defensive line the best in all of football.

The Giants’ defense struggled last season (28th overall and 29th against the run in EPA), which was disappointing considering they have one of the league’s top interior D-lines on paper. Leonard Williams is a certified superstar and Dexter Lawrence II was arguably better in 2022 (only Chris Jones had a higher PFF grade). Rakeem Nunez-Roches and underrated A’Shawn Robinson were solid offseason additions and will play sizable roles.

The Giants edged out the San Francisco 49ers, Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins to claim the No. 1 spot.

Although they didn’t have any other No. 1 rankings, ESPN did rank the Giants’ quarterbacks No. 13 overall, their running backs No. 10 overall, and their tight ends No. 3 overall.

Overall, as a team, the Giants checked in at No. 19 overall.

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A’Shawn Robinson is bringing his ‘hard hat and lunch pail’ to Giants

A’Shawn Robinson, who is bringing a “hard hat and lunch pail,” says he wanted to join the New York Giants to be a part of something special.

The New York Giants activated veteran free agent defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson (knee) off of the PUP list on Monday, in time for him to face the team that drafted him — the Detroit Lions — this week in practice and possibly in the preseason game in Detroit on Friday night.

Robinson was signed to a one-year, $8 million deal this offseason by the Giants after spending the past three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, where he won a Super Bowl two seasons ago.

“Great group of guys, they work hard. I wanted to be a part of something special, so I decided to come here,” Robinson told reporters.

Robinson, 28, was drafted out of Alabama by the Lions in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft. He played four seasons in Detroit before signing as a free agent with the Rams in 2020.

The Giants brought Robinson in to augment a poor run defense that was 31st in the NFL in 2022, allowing 5.3 yards per attempt.

Robinson is healthy now and was asked on Monday why he was on PUP to start camp.

“Why did I end up on PUP? That’s something you should ask the trainers, I don’t know,” he said. “That’s nothing for me. I’m just here to ball.

“I feel great. I feel fantastic. Happy to get this opportunity and to work. I’m at work, I’m a hard-hat guy. I’ve got my lunch pail, and I got my hard hat.”

That’s good news for the Giants as Robinson played the last three seasons next to the great Aaron Donald, who is widely considered one of the best interior defensive linemen in NFL history.

“I learned a lot,” Robinson said of his experience with Donald.  “I learned how to work. I learned how to keep that same main frame of mind. I learned how hard it is to be where he is at and what you’ve got to do to get where he is at. It’s a tough task but it’s something that you can do.”

Robinson said he chose the Giants in free agency because of the talent and tenacity he’s seen along the defensive front.

“I love that every person is going to fight, they are going to dig, claw,” he said of the group that consists of veterans Leonard Williams, Dexter Lawrence, and Rakeem Nunez-Roches.

“They are going to bring their hard hat and lunch pail every day. It’s not about what we see in the future, it’s about controlling the now and being where your feet are so being where your feet are, you’ve got to be dependable, got to be accountable, got to be tough, got to be smart,” he said.

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Giants activate A’Shawn Robinson, Marcus McKethan from PUP list

The New York Giants have activated DL A’Shawn Robinson and OL Marcus McKethan from the PUP list, plus other injury news.

The New York Giants will activate defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson and offensive lineman Marcus McKethan from the physically unable to perform (PUP) list ahead of Monday’s practice.

Both players have passed their physicals.

Robinson, who was signed as a free agent on April 24, was placed on PUP at the onset of training camp as he recovered from a torn meniscus that cost him the final seven games last season. His return will provide much-needed depth along the interior of the team’s defensive line, joining the likes of Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams.

McKethan landed on PUP after missing his entire rookie season due to a torn ACL, which was sustained during a preseason practice last August.

Meanwhile, head coach Brian Daboll says that right tackle Evan Neal remains in concussion protocol but is improving. He and the rest of the roster will travel to Detroit on Monday evening, although it remains unclear if he’ll be back in time for Friday night’s preseason opener.

Finally, defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who recently returned from a concussion sustained during a traffic accident, will sit out on Monday due to a groin injury.

The team is monitoring the issue but Nacho, like Neal, will travel with the team to Detroit.

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5 biggest moves made by Giants GM Joe Schoen this offseason

As the New York Giants prepare for training camp, here are the five biggest moves made by general manager Joe Schoen this offseason.

The New York Giants are heading into Year 2 of the Joe Schoen/Brian Daboll regimes and for the second offseason in a row, have gone through some major changes.

Schoen continued to tweak and fortify his roster, adding some much-needed speed and depth to a young roster that appears to be ready to blossom into something special.

Here are the top five moves Schoen has made this offseason (re-signing in-house free agents not included).

Giants’ interior defenders ranked among NFL’s best defensive position groups

CBS Sports ranks the New York Giants’ interior defenders among the best defensive position groups in football.

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The New York Giants might be lacking at several positions but their interior defensive line is not one of them.

Already strong thanks to the presence of All-Pro Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams, the Giants beefed up at the position this offseason, adding run defenders A’Shawn Robinson and Rakeem Nunez-Roches. They also selected the massive Jordon Riley in the 2023 NFL draft.

Given their top-end talent combined with the newly-added depth, it should come as little surprise that Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports has ranked the Giants’ interior defenders as one of the NFL’s best defensive position groups.

Hard to find a batter tandem last season than Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams, two defensive tackles who anchored the Giants’ turnaround on that side of the ball.

Lawrence had a monster season at defensive tackle, recording 68 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles. His impact came when getting to the quarterback, with 63 pressures, 28 quarterback hits, and a 12.9% pressure rate (only Chris Jones had more pressures and quarterback hits at defensive tackle).

Williams is coming off a year which he had 45 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 33 pressures, and a forced fumble. He did battle a neck injury last season and ended up missing five games, the first time he’s missed any games in his career. Regardless, Williams is still a force to be reckoned with in the A-gap and B-gap (he does switch to the edge on certain formations).

A’Shawn Robinson is also part of this rotation, but Williams and Lawrence are the two that makes the defensive interior elite.

Although the Giants’ interior D-line ranked in the top 10, they were actually second at the position behind the San Francisco 49ers. Kerr gave that unit a slight advantage.

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PFF ranks Giants’ defensive line among top 10 in NFL

Pro Football Focus ranks the New York Giants’ defensive line in the NFL’s top 10 but should they actually rank higher?

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The New York Giants roster is still taking shape and may be a few years away from where general manager Joe Schoen wants it to be, but there are some obvious strengths.

One of those is their defensive line, which Pro Football Focus ranks as the ninth-best in the NFL.

No player improved as much as interior defender Dexter Lawrence did in 2022, ending the campaign as the second-highest-graded player at his position (91.6).

Lawrence and Leonard Williams form arguably the best interior defender duo in the NFL. This defensive line could enter the next tier if either of their young edge defenders — Kayvon Thibodeaux or Azeez Ojulari — make a leap in 2023.

Big Blue’s defensive front is highlighted by the stellar play from the defensive tackles. The team had the second and 19th-best interior defenders according to PFF in Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams.

Lawrence was a monster for New York as he had by far the best season of his career in 2023 recording 35 solo tackles, 7.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles. That earned him Second-Team All-Pro recognition and a 91.6 PFF grade. Williams has also been a great constant for New York recording 20.5 sacks over the past three seasons.

On the edge, the Giants have Kayvon Thibodeaux, who had a promising rookie season where he recorded 4.0 sacks, two forced fumbles, and a whopping 40 pressures. His sack conversion rate was low but he was constantly causing trouble which explains his high-pressure rate and 33 solo tackles (six for a loss). Expect to see the sack number go up for the 2023 first-round pick, especially with a full year of training under his belt.

On the other side, New York has Azeez Ojulari, who was riddled with injuries in 2022 forcing him to appear in just seven games. Despite missing so much time, Ojulari still recorded 5.5 sacks to add to his 8.0 from the year before.

If Ojulari can stay healthy in 2023, New York will have a scary front that will be even better than last season when you account for the signings of A’Shawn Robinson and Rakeem Nuñez-Roches.

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Mike Clay ranks Giants’ interior DL best in the NFL

ESPN’s Mike Clay has ranked the New York Giants’ interior defensive line as the best in all of football.

Mike Clay on ESPN recently ranked the New York Giants’ interior defensive line the best in the NFL entering the 2023 season.

Even though the Dave Gettleman era is over in East Rutherford, Big Blue still has some hog-mollies at the front of their defense.

Leading the way for Big Blue is Dexter Lawrence, who was the number-one-ranked interior defender by Pro Football Focus in 2023. The Clemson product recorded career-highs in tackles (68), sacks (7.5), quarterback hits (28), and forced fumbles (two). The breakout season earned him a contract extension that makes him the third-highest-paid interior defender in football.

Lawrence’s partner-in-crime, Leonard Williams, was not far behind coming in as the No. 14th-ranked interior defensive lineman by PFF. Williams has averaged about seven sacks a season for the Giants over the past three years and will look to build on his consistency of being one of the premier players at his position.

Behind those two, the Giants have solid depth from some key signings this offseason like A’Shawn Robinson (No. 60 by PFF) and Rakeem Nunez-Roches (No. 116) by PFF.

With those four, plus Ryder Anderson, D.J. Davidson and rookie Jordon Riley, New York will have an elite rotation that will likely make them one of the best run-defensive teams in the league.

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Giants sign DT A’Shawn Robinson: Contract details

The New York Giants have signed veteran DT A’Shawn Robinson and some of his contract details are beginning to emerge.

The New York Giants came to terms with veteran defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson on Monday, inking him to a one-year, incentives-laden deal that could net the former Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams star up to $8 million this season.

Robinson, 28, is entering his eighth NFL season. He was a second-round draft pick by the Lions back in 2016 out of Alabama and has played in a total of 93 games in his pro career, including a Super Bowl.

The 6-foot-4, 330-pound Robinson will become part of the Giants’ defensive line rotation and add much-needed talent and depth to their run defense.

As for where the Giants are finding the cap space to sign players these days, Spotrac shows them with approximately $3.36 million in available cap space but it’s unclear if any players have restructured their deals that the team has yet to report.

Over the Cap shows the Giants at just under $1.5 million in space.

Both the Spotrac and Over the Cap figures do not account for Robinson’s signing.

Note: This article will be updated as additional contract details are released.

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What the Giants are getting in DT A’Shawn Robinson

Rams Wire editor Cameron DaSilva breaks down what the New York Giants are getting with DT A’Shawn Robinson.

On Monday, the New York Giants signed veteran defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson, which was a union a month in the making.

Robinson joins a rotation that now consists of Leonard Williams, Dexter Lawrence, Rakeem Nunez-Roches, and D.J. Davidson. It’s a much more stacked unit than it was a year ago, and should give general manager Joe Schoen some peace of mind after he entered the offseason stressing over the unit’s lacking depth.

But what exactly are the Giants in Robinson? We reached out to Rams Wire editor Cameron DaSilva to find out.

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“He’s not much of a pass rusher but he is a very good run defender,” DaSilva said. “He was a huge part of the defense during the Rams’ Super Bowl run a couple of years ago, helping shut down opposing rushing attacks in the playoffs. I would even go as far as to say he was the most underrated player in Super Bowl LVI.

“Injuries have limited him a bit in recent years but when healthy, he’s an impact defender on the interior. He primarily played 5-tech in the Rams’ system but also has experience playing nose tackle.”

The 330-pound Robinson is likely to play both positions for the Giants but will see the majority of his time at nose when spelling Lawrence.

It was another solid addition for Schoen and it comes at an area of need. The Giants absolutely must improve their run defense in 2023 and Robinson will certainly help with that.

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Giants sign DT A’Shawn Robinson: 5 things to know

The New York Giants have signed A’Shawn Robinson, so here are five quick things to know about their newest defensive tackle.

The New York Giants signed veteran defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson on Monday, adding another body to a defensive line rotation that general manager Joe Schoen promised to address this offseason.

Here are five things to know about the newest Giant.