The New York Giants have already dealt with their fair share of injuries on the offensive line at the start of training camp. Evan Neal has been absent with an ankle injury, Jermaine Eluemunor got banged up early but returned, and center John Michael Schmitz has remained sidelined with a shoulder injury.
Schmitz is entering a pivotal second season of his career following a disappointing, rookie campaign. The Giants need to return to the field and start to show signs of progress as quickly as possible.
John Michael Schmitz should return to practice soon
Schmitz’s shoulder injury is reportedly unconnected to the injury that kept him sidelined last year. Head coach Brian Daboll has also said that this injury is not a significant one and they do expect the 25-year-old to return to practice soon.
“Making progress,” Daboll told the media on Tuesday. “We’ll keep him on the same routine we had him. We’ll see where he is after this off day.”
The Giants are already feeling the effects of Schmitz’s absence. They’ve been forced to rotate the offensive line and place players out of position during practice. When Schmitz does return, the Giants can configure their projected starting lineup for the regular season and get him on track to bounce back from a disappointing rookie year.
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The Giants need Schmitz to be better in 2024
At the beginning of his rookie season, Schmitz entered the NFL with high expectations. The Giants selected him in the second round of last year’s draft and Schmitz was considered by many analysts to be the top center prospect in the class, being given a “plug-and-play” label. But Schmitz failed to meet those expectations as he wound up being graded out as one of the worst offensive linemen in football by Pro Football Focus.
According to PFF, Schmitz surrendered five sacks and 30 total pressures across 755 total snaps en route to a 41.4 overall grade (26.9 pass-blocking grade, 51.3 run-blocking grade) which ranked dead-last (36/36) at his position.
Could Schmitz even bring his performance up to an average level, he would elevate the floor of New York’s offensive line tremendously. The center position serves as the quarterback of the front line, making pass-protection calls, and helping direct his teammates. Schmitz is an excellent leader and a high-IQ player who, when playing at his best during his collegiate career, was a dominant force on the football field.
If Schmitz can stay healthy this season, the Giants might finally see some return on their second-round investment from last year’s draft.
The expectations for the unit have risen after Daboll hired new offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo this offseason. Former undrafted center Andre James developed into one of the best players in the league at his position during his time under Bricillo who previously served as the Las Vegas Raiders’ offensive line coach. Perhaps he can have a similar effect on a highly-touted young player in Schmitz.
