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The New York Giants opened the preseason with a 23-21 victory over Bill Belichick, Joe Judge and the New England Patriots.
The New York Giants opened their preseason slate against the New England Patriots on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
Starters played just two series before giving way to the second-team, who stayed in the game through halftime. At that point, the third-team and deep reserves came in to attempt to cement a role for themselves.
There were the typical ups and downs from a first preseason game on both sides but ultimately, the did enough to secure the win.
The New York Giants wrapped up their first week of training camp with practice No. 4 on Saturday, and here are 10 quick takeaways.
The New York Giants wrapped up their acclimation period with the fourth and final training came practice of the week on Saturday.
Things kicked off with head coach Brian Daboll conducting his routine pre-practice press conference. He focused primarily on recapping the first three days and breaking down how Saturday’s practice would be structured.
The players will have on off day on Sunday before returning on Monday morning for the first padded practice of camp.
Here are 10 quick takeaways from practice No. 4.
The New York Giants’ offensive line looks significantly better on paper but there may still be some depth issues.
One of the key areas New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen wanted to address when he took the job this offseason was the offensive line.
The Giants’ offense has been pitiful the past few seasons and the line has taken the brunt of the blame from the critics. That may be about to change.
With a new head coach (Brian Daboll), new offensive coordinator (Mike Kafka) and a new offensive line coach in Bobby Johnson, the approach alone should change things for the better.
Here’s a quick rundown of how the line shapes up heading into training camp.
The New York Giants entered the offseason in desperate need of offensive linemen and now have both quality and depth.
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New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen knew coming in the door this past winter that he had a lot of work ahead of him when it came to the offensive line.
Several months and nearly a dozen personnel moves later, Schoen has addressed the Giants’ most glaring issue with both quantity and quality. The team now has loads of options along the offensive line and it should be markedly improved in 2022.
The process began with just one spot on the line chiseled in stone — left tackle — where former first round pick Andrew Thomas has developed into an asset. The other four spots were wide open after the team shed themselves of some underachieving players, while others remain on the outside looking in as they rehab from injuries.
The Giants’ depth chart was scant: Shane Lemieux, Nick Gates, Matt Peart, Ben Bredeson, Wes Martin, Korey Cunningham and Devery Hamilton.
Lemieux, Gates and Peart are all still in the throes of coming back from serious injuries. The others were brought in as replacements on the fly.
Schoen went out shopping in the low rent district and managed to pull in veteran free agents Mark Glowinski, Max Garcia, Jamil Douglas, Matt Gono and Jon Feliciano. Then, he signed the massive Roy Mbaeteka out of the NFL’s international program.
Right there he could have stopped. They could make a serviceable line out of those players but Schoen still had the draft head of him.
In the draft, Schoen got an early Christmas present when Alabama tackle Evan Neal fell into his lap at No. 7 overall on Thursday night. Neal will start Day 1 at right tackle and gives the Giants an enviable pair of bookends along with Thomas.
Later in the draft, Schoen added two North Carolina linemen in Joshua Ezeudu and Marcus McKethan. Ezeudu is noted for his versatility at both guard and tackle and McKethan is a 6-foot-7, 340-pound guard who just overwhelms defenders with his size and strength.
Now comes the hard part. Getting a starting five out of all of this volume. We know Thomas and Neal will be the tackles but who will be the other seven (or eight) who will fill out the roster.
“We’ll see once we get pads on and things like that,” head coach Brian Daboll said after the draft. “I know the guys are hard working. They are smart. They show some toughness when you watch them on tape. The people that we’ve had in the building are dependable. It’s been good to go into meetings with (offensive line coaches) Bobby (Johnson) and Tony (Sparano) and those guys. They are eager.
“Again, let’s not make it more than it is. Your job is to protect the inside part of the pocket and the width of the pocket and get moving in the running game, but that position you need five guys operating as one unit. And that is what will be really important.
“You’ll see. I know I will get a lot of questions on it once we get out in OTAs, and I’ll tell you right now, there are going to be a lot of guys mixing and matching. You can write the lineup down each day, but it’s going to change from day to day.”
With Gates’ future still uncertain, the Giants will use Feliciano at center. Glowinski was inked to a three-year deal so we expect him to be one of the starting guards. The other guard position is wide open. You can expect Lemieux, if healthy, to get a shot as well as Garcia and Douglas. You can add Ezeudu to that mix as well.
It is a refreshing change for the Giants now that their weakest unit has been turned into a major strength.
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A breakdown of the contracts the New York Giants have handed out to free agents, as well as details of restructures and pay cuts.
The New York Giants and general manager Joe Schoen entered the new league year and free agency with very little money to spend. The idea was to clear upwards of $40 million in salary cap space while hunting for bargains on the open market.
Through a week and a half, the Giants have fared relatively well. They’ve been unable to trade either cornerback James Bradberry or running back Saquon Barkley, but they’ve found other ways to clear room.
New York has also added a number of new contracts, including multiple offensive linemen. But only one of them was a big-ish money signing.
Here’s a quick look at the basic contracts for all new signees, as well as some information on restructures and pay cuts.
Note: New details will be added as they become available.
Jamil Douglas says it was a “no brainer” to sign with the New York Giants, where he’ll reunite with Brian Daboll and Bobby Johnson.
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The New York Giants added another offensive lineman to their roster with the signing of offensive guard Jamil Douglas, which was made official on Monday.
Douglas projects to be a strong depth piece for the Giants as he enters his eighth season in the NFL. He, recently being in Buffalo during the 2021 season, will rejoin Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll as new members of the Giants.
Due to this connection with the general manager and head coach, Douglas joining Big Blue seemed like a perfect fit.
“Really, this is the best opportunity for myself and my family. I want to be a part of an organization that has a lot of pride and I know with this coaching staff they are looking to bring it to that point,” Douglas told reporters. “So, when an opportunity presented itself, for me, it was really a no brainer just looking at the guys that are in this building and the goals they are trying to accomplish.”
Douglas is now another member of this great migration of players from the Buffalo Bills to join the Giants. The Giants have signed his former teammates Jon Feliciano and Matt Breida, both whom he has a connection with as the former was a fellow member of the Bills’ offensive line and the latter is a running back he blocked for.
However, for Douglas, a big factor was the migration of offensive line coach Bobby Johnson from Buffalo to East Rutherford.
“Coach Johnson is a great coach, man. I’ve been fortunate enough over my career to have some really good o-line coaches, really good coaches in general, but the thing about him is he’s going to instill confidence in his guys and he’s also going to coach you hard. That’s all you can ask for, really, as a player is to be coached hard. That’s how you get better,” Douglas said.
New York will need Johnson to transfer his success with the Bills to the Giants as their offensive line has been the worst part of the roster for some time now. There has been an inability to get a push in the run game or protect the quarterback, resulting in the Giants rarely scoring touchdowns in 2021.
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Washington claim #Bills OL Jamil Douglas off waivers:
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The Washington Football Team have claimed offensive lineman Jamil Douglas off of waivers this week after the Buffalo Bills let him go over the weekend.
That was revealed via the NFL’s transaction wire early this week.
On Saturday when the Bills (7-6) added offensive lineman Jon Feliciano to their roster from injured reserve, Douglas was released to make room for him.
While Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott nor any member of the the Bills confirmed it, but many suspected that Douglas would have ended up back on Buffalo’s practice squad had he cleared waivers. Instead, Washington picked him up.
Douglas had previously been on the Bills’ practice squad. Buffalo placed him there at the end of training camp.
The 2021 season was Douglas’ first season with the Bills.
He has made 17 career starts, however, he only was active on game day once for the Bills. That came in Week 12 vs. the New Orleans Saints when he was called up from the practice squad.
Despite that, he did not see any playing time.
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#Bills trade candidates before cutting roster to 53 players:
The Bills must trim their roster to 53 players ahead of the regular season by Tuesday. A lot of tough decisions await Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane.
Most players will get released and potentially land on the Bills’ practice squad. But there’s another option as well: Trades. Since that duo have taken over in Buffalo, dealing players for draft picks has been almost an annual tradition.
Could that happen again in the the coming days? And if so, who could be on the trade block?
With that, here are three trade candidates for the Bills as final roster cuts approach:
4 #Bills players who might go on the trade block before roster cuts:
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Bills head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane, nearly since Day 1, have never been shy about making deals. If there’s a trade to be had, you can bet those two are looking into it.
For the Bills front office, there hasn’t been any trade that’s too big or too small for the team to make.
While we’re still a few weeks away from any roster cuts to get Buffalo down to 53 players, they are looming. And something more profitable than cutting a player? Trading him.
With that, here are four players that might end up on the Bills’ trading block before cuts.
Jamil Douglas spent three seasons with the Tennessee Titans.
Signed OL Jamil Douglas to a one-year contract. pic.twitter.com/54o1FJaTTo
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) April 2, 2021
After three seasons with the Tennessee Titans, offensive lineman Jamil Douglas is moving on to play for the Buffalo Bills in 2021 after signing a one-year contract with the team.
Douglas was originally signed by the Titans to their practice squad in 2018 and served as depth during his time in Nashville. In 2019, Douglas had a chance to show what he could do as a starter with right guard Nate Davis missing time due to injury, but didn’t do much with his opportunity.
In 2020, Douglas saw himself jumped on the depth chart by undrafted free agent and offensive lineman, Aaron Brewer, who figures to be the main backup on the interior for Tennessee in 2021 after an impressive rookie season.
A former fourth-round pick of the Miami Dolphins in 2015, Douglas brings versatility with him to Buffalo thanks to his ability to be a backup at both guard and center.
With Douglas’ departure, the Titans will likely be looking to add more depth on the inside for this coming season, whether that be through free agency or the draft.
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