The NY Giants are heading into OTA workouts this month with rookies competing for playing time and rookies like Ereck Flowers, Landon Collins and Mykkele Thompson will get chances after being taken in the draft and this comes as Tom Coughlin could move Justin Pugh on the offensive line to guard this offseason ahead of training camp.
The Giants went 6-10 last season and ended up with a top 10 pick in the draft, which general manager Jerry Reese used on Ereck Flowers. The Giants have a major need on the offensive line and Flowers was considered to be one of the top prospects in this class along with Brandon Scherff. According to Pro Football Talk, Flowers has the potential to play tackle and he could take over for Will Beatty eventually and it also could force Justin Pugh to guard.
The Giants took a potential starter in the first round with Flowers and in the second round they added another one in a trade with Landon Collins. The Giants moved up in the second round with the Titans to get the first pick of the night and they took Collins at number 33 overall. Coming into the draft the Giants main need on the roster was at the safety position and now Collins could push to start after the departure of Antrel Rolle.
Collins was a starter out of Alabama and he was considered to be one the best safeties in the nation coming into the draft. The Giants have Nat Berhe and not much else and now Collins should be penciled in as a starting option, while fifth round pick Mykkele Thompson also could get a long look. Reese praised both players after the draft and said that the team traded up for Collins because they felt he could potentially start right away out of college as a rookie.
The Giants traded three picks to move up and they now have Collins after he started 23 games for Alabama, making five interceptions and playing both free and strong safety. That versatility could be big for the Giants and while Collins is known more as a box safety, Reese said the team would not hesitate to use Collins in multiple sets for new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. The Giants had a terrible run defense last season and the secondary dealt with injuries and now the additions of Collins and Thompson could help the unit bounce back.
Jason Pierre-Paul is not yet signed, but the team used the franchise tag on him and they have until the middle of July to get a deal done. According to NJ.com, Coughlin said that he expected JPP to participate in offseason workouts, but unless he signs a deal, that is very unlikely. Pierre-Paul could end up agreeing to a long term contract, but right now it looks like he will end up playing on the one year franchise tage deal.
