Joe Schoen has begun his campaign to slash some cap going into free agency. Giant fans, you need to RELAX. If you are someone who was upset by these cuts, you are in for a loooong couple months. Neither of these cuts surprise me by any means, but I am a little surprised by the timing of the Booker release. I figured they would wait to see how the draft turns out and if they are able to trade Saquon Barkley. This move, to me, means they like what they have in Antonio Williams who was brought in on a futures contract from Buffalo.
Does this release mean they do not plan on trading away Saquon Barkley – I’d say yes. But if someone came knocking offering a second or better, you send him on his way. I will drop a Justin Penik of Talkin Giants rant he posted on Twitter below that I 100% agree with. In this rant he essentially says the trade would be more than just losing cap and aquiring picks. The Giants are in a rebuild mode and having a running back on the roster who will either be allowed to just walk away or signed to a huge deal is not a good place to be. Justin says that it almost never works out for a team to extend a running back on a huge deal and it is not even working out with CMC in Carolina. I will say it is working out for Minnesota and Dalvin Cook.
Anyone who knows what a football is and has half a brain saw the Kyle Rudolph cut happen. He was one of the guys Gettleman brought in who is a good player, but paid him great money (Logan Ryan, James Bradberry, Leonard Williams). Rudolph also had an underwhelming 2021 campaign due to a foot injury that kept him off the field during camp. This ultimately puts the Giants in a position where they will have to choose wisely with a tight end in the draft and decide if Kaden Smith is someone they can keep around. I personally am a big fan of Kaden Smith and when given the chance, he has made big plays in big spots.
These moves save the Giants $7million. So they have about $33million more to chop. There are reports that a few players may be willing to take less money to stay with the team – I have absolutely no idea why anyone would want to stay here after the last 6 years. Shepard and Bradberry are two names that have been mentioned to be talking pay cuts. Keeping these veterans around would be incredible for this organization and I really hope they work something out that won’t kick their contracts to next year. This is going to be a fun off-season for Joe Schoen and company and I am excited to monitor every step.
A Fan With A Mic 