After the New York Giants featured one of the worst offensive lines in football last season, they’re preparing for a perfect storm once again. New offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo has been cross-training multiple players at different positions to smooth over any bumps the Giants may face during the 2024 campaign.
The Giants Are Still Down Multiple Key Players
At the moment, third-year offensive tackle Evan Neal remains sidelined due to an ankle injury, and second-year center John Michael-Schmitz continues to rehab a shoulder injury. The 25-year-old is coming off a bad rookie season, but there were many variables that impacted his year. He played 755 snaps, allowing 30 pressures and five sacks, but he had a new offensive guard alignment nearly every week and suffered an injury himself.
The Giants are preparing for JMS to miss more time, leading them to cross-train Jon Runyan and Greg Van Roten at center. Both players are projected to start at guard, with Runyan’s preference being on the left side and Van Roten coming off his best season on the right.
Runyan has never played center in his career but has played three consecutive seasons with over 1,000 snaps, the majority of which have come at right guard. He allowed 22 pressures and two sacks last year at RG but had his best-graded season in 2021 at LG.
On the other hand, Van Roten is a seasoned veteran who has played over 1,000 snaps in his eight-year career just twice. He had a few tumultuous seasons with the New York Jets but only gave up 21 pressures at right guard last season over 1,025 snaps.
The Giants Just Need Competency
At the end of the day, the Giants are simply looking for competency at guard, and Van Roten does offer them an average-level player. He will likely experience regression to a degree this upcoming season, with the Raiders having an above-average passing unit in 2023, ranking 13th and 14th in run blocking. The Giants would do unthinkable things to have an offensive line with that type of consistency, so the hope is they will overperform.
However, with JMS still nursing his shoulder, the Giants need to prepare for the worst-case scenario, which is why they’ve been rotating at center significantly. That does pull both Runyan and Van Roten away from their regular duties, developing chemistry at their respective positions.
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With that being said, Van Roten spent the 2023 season alongside new tackle Jermaine Eluemunor, so they already have impeccable chemistry, which is why Bricillo is preparing him at center in case they need his services elsewhere.