The New York Giants were able to add more cap space Monday, as they converted $4.175 million of All-Pro left tackle Andrew Thomas’ contract into a signing bonus, according to ESPN’s Field Yates.
The Giants now have a lot more financial flexibility
The restructuring of the contract gives the Giants an additional $3.34 million in cap space, which they can now use to sign players at key positions that lack depth in such as cornerback. Thomas signed one of the biggest contracts for an offensive lineman prior to last season at five years and $117.5 million, and would have had a cap hit of over $23 million in 2024, the highest of each year under contract, per Spotrac.
According to The Athletic’s Dan Duggan, this restructuring won’t affect Thomas’ weekly earnings and that it is strictly a cap reasoning. Adding financial flexibility is huge for New York, as injuries are starting to mount at important positions on the defense and they generally lack depth in some areas.
The Giants need depth at the cornerback and linebacker positions
The Giants missed out on being able to sign former All-Pro cornerback Stephon Gilmore, as he signed with the Minnesota Vikings on a one-year, $10 million deal earlier this week. There are other available free agents at that position the Giants could pursue, such as Eli Apple (a former Giant) and Xavien Howard.
They also could use some linebacker depth given Azeez Ojulari’s lengthy injury history and Micah McFadden going down with a hip injury in Saturday’s preseason game against the Houston Texans.
Just because they now have this extra cap space does not mean they are going to make a game-changing signing, but it does give them more flexibility in the open market to go after cheaper players that could fill in huge holes on the depth chart. Restructuring one of the team’s most lucrative contracts may seem like a small move, but it is a very smart one by general manager Joe Schoen as they look to address all other areas on the football field.