The Giants made a lot of progress last season — even with their long-struggling offensive line, as left tackle Andrew Thomas continued to develop into a dominant player.
But the fact remains: Their pass protection, on a whole, was once again not good enough. And if general manager Joe Schoen doesn’t find a way to fix that, he’ll have a hard time achieving his stated goal of building around quarterback Daniel Jones and winning a Super Bowl with him.
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Consider that the teams in this year’s Super Bowl, the Eagles and Chiefs, are first and seventh in Pro Football Focus’ pass blocking ratings. The Giants, meanwhile, finished this season 24th — after finishing 27th, 25th, 16th, 32nd, and 30th from 2017-21, when they tied for the NFL’s worst record.
Throw in the fact that the Giants were 22nd and 21st in PFF’s pass blocking ratings in 2015 and 2016, and that makes an eight-year stretch of finishing in the bottom half of the league. The Giants were 14th in 2014 and 2012 — and 31st in 2013. To be fair, they did manage to win the Super Bowl in 2011 despite finishing last in the league in pass blocking. And they were 10th in 2010.
Bottom line: It’s been a really long time since the Giants had competent pass blocking, let alone very strong pass blocking.
Because of a crippling salary cap situation, Schoen wasn’t able to do much last offseason in free agency, as he tried to patch up the Giants’ problems. And they certainly had plenty of problems on the offensive line, because of Dave Gettleman’s many failures. All long, this was never going to be a one-year process for Schoen — with the line or the whole roster. That’s worth remembering.
Schoen did draft right tackle Evan Neal seventh overall last year, and he struggled as a rookie — just like Thomas did as a rookie in 2020, before becoming an excellent player. So it’s too early to give up on Neal. Schoen also signed right guard Mark Glowinski last offseason to what is essentially a two-year contract that runs through 2023.
Here’s how the Giants’ primary offensive linemen performed as pass blockers in 2022:
• LT Andrew Thomas: 89.9 grade, 23 pressures allowed
• LG Nick Gates: 69.0 grade, 12 pressures allowed
• LG Ben Bredeson: 53.8 grade, 12 pressures allowed
• C Jon Feliciano: 66.5 grade, 25 pressures allowed
• RG Mark Glowinski: 56.5 grade, 37 pressures allowed
• RT Evan Neal: 42.3 grade, 52 pressures allowed
Thomas and Neal obviously will return in 2023. Glowinski, because of his contract structure, can’t be released until after 2023. So he will be back, too.
But what about the rest of that shaky interior offensive line? Bredeson is back for the final year of his rookie contract, with a manageable cap hit ($1 million). So he’s worth retaining, even if he ultimately is just a backup. Gates and Feliciano are both pending free agents. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Schoen lets Feliciano walk, since he’s about to turn 31 — four years older than Gates.
Don’t forget that Gates has the ability to start at center, in addition to guard. He’s a versatile piece who is probably worth keeping around for the right price. But Schoen almost certainly will have one new offensive line starter in 2023 — either left guard or center. And he might have new starters at both spots. Which could end up being an upgrade, depending on how Schoen attacks this.
Clearly, a lot of the Giants’ potential pass blocking progress in 2023 will stem from Neal. Will he take the next step in Year 2, as Thomas did? Or will he ultimately prove to not be NFL starter material, despite his prodigious size and admirable work ethic?
In terms of another young offensive lineman, Schoen did get a glimpse of guard Josh Ezeudu — a 2022 third-round pick — this past season, before a neck injury sidelined him for good. Ezeudu didn’t play a ton — 10 games (with two starts) and 290 snaps. And he was shaky, to say the least — 45.9 pass blocking grade, with 15 pressures allowed.
Ezeudu will return in 2023, but it’s not like Schoen can depend on him as a sure-thing starter who can fix what ails the Giants’ interior offensive line.
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This, of course, isn’t the only item on Schoen’s offseason checklist. He’ll have to sort through Jones’ contract situation, determine if he wants to re-sign running back Saquon Barkley, upgrade the wide receiver room, and land another starting cornerback — among other lingering issues.
But it’s definitely something that can’t be overlooked.
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Darryl Slater may be reached at dslater@njadvancemedia.com.
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