Alexander Wilson
The Giants do not need to reinvent Tyler Nubin. They need the role he already plays to produce cleaner football.
That is the part that matters. Nubin was already operating as more of a strong safety and box defender last season, so the 2026 conversation is not about some brand-new position switch. It is about whether the Giants can get a more disciplined, more reliable version of the same physical player.
Nubin had a 16.9% missed tackle rate last season and went another year without an interception, which is a rough combination for a safety who entered the league with ball-hawk appeal. The Giants can live with aggression. They cannot keep living with bad angles and missed chances.
The box role has to become cleaner
Nubin’s best work has always been closer to the line of scrimmage.
The problem is that playing downhill is only valuable if the angles hold up. Nubin can bring force into the alley, but when he overcommits inside or arrives out of control, the edge leaks open and a five-yard gain becomes something uglier. That is where the Giants need growth, not a position label change.
Ar’Darius Washington complicates the room, and that is probably healthy. He split reps with Nubin during OTA work, and his history with Harbaugh gives him a real path to snaps. That does not automatically mean Nubin is being pushed out. It means the Giants are making him prove the job instead of handing it over because of draft status.
The Giants need answers at safety
The Giants are building a defense that wants to be aggressive and multiple, which only works if the back end is clean enough to survive all the moving parts. Dennard Wilson can dial up pressure, disguise looks, and spin safeties around, but missed tackles turn all of that into free yards.
That is why Nubin’s summer matters. If he keeps the physical edge but tightens the run fits, the Giants can still have a useful strong safety who gives them tone and toughness. If the missed tackles keep showing up, Washington’s presence becomes more than depth.
The smart read is not that Nubin is finished. The smart read is that he has to earn trust in the exact role he already knows.
Nubin does not need a new job description, he needs sharper execution inside the old one. If the Giants are going to count on him in a violent, pressure-heavy defense, he has to turn the box role into more than effort and contact.
More about:New York Giants
