The New York Giants offense is preparing to take a big step forward with a modern scheme, courtesy of Brian Daboll and Mike Kafka. The idea is to get playmakers into space and let them operate.
However, with so many mouths to feed, it should be interesting to see the specific route concepts and how the Giants plan to get everyone involved.
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Ranking the New York Giants’ offensive playmakers:
1.) Saquon Barkley
Saquon Barkley has been one of the more polarizing players for the Giants over the last few seasons.
Last year, he generated just 593 rushing yards and 263 receiving yards. He suffered an ankle injury against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 5, derailing his season once again due to injury. If he can replicate his rookie stats, totaling over 2000 all-purpose yards and 15 touchdowns, the Giants may have a tough decision extending him on their hands.
However, a healthy Barkley is one of the best players in football and that shouldn’t be overlooked.
2.) Kadarius Toney
Kadarius Toney also dealt with injury issues last season, tallying 420 yards. With his ability to change direction on a dime and force missed tackles, Toney can easily become the Giants’ top playmaker in the future. It all boils down to health at the end of the day.
Having worn a red jersey during camp this off-season, the Giants are slowly ramping up Toney after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery.
3.) Kenny Golladay
The Giants were hoping to get a lot more value out of Kenny Golladay in 2021, but he produced just 521 yards, failing to get into the endzone for the first time in his career. As a 6’4″ receiver, Big Blue needs to focus on utilizing him down-field and in the red zone, capitalizing on his frame and aggressive nature.
4.) Wan’Dale Robinson
Robinson has the capacity to be a huge impact player in the Giants’ offense, especially after a dominant season with Kentucky in 2021. He recorded 1,342 yards and seven scores. Wan’Dale is lethal on screen passes and short route concepts, given his agility in space. However, I wouldn’t overlook his abilities downfield either, recording the 6th most deep catches and 12th most deep yards in all of college football last season.
5.) Sterling Shepard
Shepard is coming off a torn Achilles, so we should expect him to miss the start of the 2022 season. However, he’s a reliable threat in all phases of the field when healthy, but that’s a big “when.”
The veteran pass-catcher posted 366 yards and one score last season before going down in the final game of the campaign. Clearly, he’s a valued member of the squad, given Joe Schoen made it a priority to re-work his contract and retain him for the 2022 season.
6.) Darius Slayton
The New York Giants have gotten maximum value of Darius Slayton, a former 5th-round pick. Slayton is valuable as a speedster and go-route runner, but he’s poor in most other categories. He dropped six passes last season, good for an 18.8% drop rate, the worst in his career.
He can keep defenses honest with his speed on the back-end, but I see his snap-count decreasing with the infusion of Wan’Dale Robinson into the system.