Giants Likely To Franchise S Landon Collins
The Giants are likely to use the franchise tag on safety Landon Collins if the two sides don’t work out an extension, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.
Collins was available prior to last Tuesday’s trade deadline, but the asking price was high, as the Giants were reportedly seeking a second-round pick in exchange for the All-Pro defensive back. Despite that price tag, New York did receive interest in Collins, and Schefter reports the Packers, Chiefs, and 49ers all made inquiries.
Kansas City would have made sense as a destination for Collins, as the Chiefs nearly dealt for fellow safety Earl Thomas before he went down with a season-ending injury. Green Bay, of course, traded its own safety in Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, but is still squarely in contention and in need of secondary help. The 49ers aren’t going to make the postseason, but they could have acquired Collins with the intention of using their exclusive negotiating window to hammer out a long-term deal.
As Schefter notes, all three of those clubs would presumably have interest in Collins if he hits the open market, but it doesn’t sound as though the Giants will allow that to happen. Given his age (Collins will be 25 years old when free agency opens) and pedigree, Collins will surely target a $10-12MM annual salary on his next contract. The 2019 franchise tag for safeties will be worth roughly that same amount, but wouldn’t come with the long-term risk of an extension.
Collins, a second-round pick in the 2015 draft, has been a full-time starter for the Giants since entering the league. A two-time Pro Bowler, Collins has 62 tackles, four passes defensed, and a forced fumble this season while grading as the NFL’s 13th-best safety, per Pro Football Focus.
Giants’ Kyle Lauletta Facing Charges
Sunday, 09:47am: After learning more about this situation, the Giants are fully supporting Lauletta, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. La Canfora writes that there was a major backup on Lauletta’s route to the team facility on the day of his arrest, and, scrambling to be there by 8:30am, he disobeyed a police officer on the scene who wanted him to take a lengthy detour. Lauletta concedes that he should have obeyed the directive immediately, but sources say the QB did not act belligerently and he says he never came close to hitting the officer or anyone else. He intends to vigorously fight the criminal charges, and the Giants, who believe Lauletta was honest with them about the situation, still think highly of him.
As such, JLC says Big Blue is still considering pulling Manning in favor of Lauletta, and while Lauletta’s arrest may have altered that timeline a bit, the expectation is that he will be under center at some point this season.
Thursday, 12:42pm: Giants quarterback Kyle Lauletta is facing multiple charges after his run-in with cops on Tuesday morning. The Weehawken (NJ) Police Department announced that Lauletta has been charged with eluding police, obstructing administration of law, and resisting arrest. He’s also facing motor vehicle charges for reckless driving, disregarding an officer’s directions, an improper turn in marked traffic lane, and failure to remain in a marked lane. 
[RELATED: Giants Claim G Jamon Brown Off Waivers]
The rookie QB was cuffed on his way to practice this week when he failed to obey the directions of an officer and nearly struck police with his car. It was a disappointing incident for the fourth-round pick, particularly since the Giants could be inches away from yanking Eli Manning in favor of other options.
In a radio interview, head coach Pat Shurmur was non-committal when asked about a potential suspension for the youngster. But, at minimum, a fine from the club seems likely and the arrest may delay his opportunity to start in place of Manning.
The lowly 1-7 Giants are on their bye this week. They’ll resume action on Monday Nov. 12 when they face the 49ers.
Giants Not Interested In Sam Bradford
Pat Shurmur coached Sam Bradford on each of the quarterback’s first three teams, and the coach’s current squad has an uncertain future at football’s marquee position.
But don’t expect the Giants to bring in Bradford. They are not interested in adding the oft-injured passer, ESPN.com’s Diana Russini tweets.
The Cardinals cut Bradford earlier on Saturday, and instead of receiving his outright release as he would have if this move occurred during the season’s first half, Bradford will be on the waiver wire. He has $2.355MM in base salary remaining in 2018.
He’s attached to a contract that runs through 2019 but only via option. If Bradford is on a team’s roster on the third day of the 2019 league year with this contract, he receives a $10MM roster bonus and his $7.5MM base salary becomes fully guaranteed. It’s hard to envision that happening.
Bradford, who will turn 31 next week, could be bound for free agency given his extensive injury troubles. The Giants are not remotely solidified at quarterback beyond this season.
Under Shurmur in 2016, Bradford set the since-broken completion percentage record (71.6) and threw 20 touchdown passes and five interceptions. Bradford’s finished with his highest full-season passer rating (99.3) of his career but has dealt with significant injury trouble since. He’s dealt with a pectoral malady since being benched this season.
Eli Manning‘s contract runs through 2019, but with the team now showing signs it’s ready to rebuild, the soon-to-be 38-year-old passer wouldn’t fit. He’s completing passes at a career-high 68.3 percent clip, but the Giants are 1-7 and have many holes that are less easily filled with a franchise-QB salary on their payroll. Manning’s owed $23.2MM in 2019; it would cost the Giants $6.2MM in dead money to release their 15-year quarterback next year. Manning also has a no-trade clause, further complicating potential proceedings.
Giants backup Kyle Lauletta was also arrested this week and is facing several charges. It’s fairly obvious the Giants will have to make a big quarterback move next year. It’s just unclear what path they’ll take. As of now, it doesn’t look like Bradford will be involved.
Giants Offered Odenigho PS Deal
- Before signing with the Vikings‘ practice squad earlier this week, defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo also had p-squad offers from the Giants and Packers, per Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (Twitter link). Odenigbo, who also worked out for the Saints earlier this week, says he’ll now play only on the edge for Minnesota instead of dabbling at defensive tackle, and interestingly says that designation was actually part of his pact with the Vikings.
Poll: Did The Giants Do Enough Before The Deadline?
The Giants kicked off trade season with a bang by trading cornerback Eli Apple and defensive tackle Damon Harrison on back-to-back days last week. Many expected the Giants to continue their demolition on Tuesday, but that did not come to fruition. 
At 1-7, the Giants have no real hope of making the playoffs this year, so a complete fire sale would have been logical and largely accepted by the team’s passionate fanbase. There were real pieces to move, too, including cornerback Janoris Jenkins and safety Landon Collins.
Jenkins, who just celebrated his 30th birthday, drew the attention of the Chiefs this week. With two-and-a-half years to go on his five-year, $62.5MM deal, the Giants had an opportunity to add to their draft stockpile while dropping one of the highest-paying cornerback contracts in the NFL. If the Giants decide to cut Jenkins this offseason, they’ll save $7.75MM against the cap, but they’ll be left with nearly as much ($7MM) in dead money.
The decision to keep Collins is certainly understandable since he is just 24 years old. However, he’s in the final year of his rookie deal and figures to command serious offers on the open market. The Giants reportedly have concerns about how well Collins fits in their new defensive scheme, so it’s not a given that they’ll make a strong play to keep him. The Chiefs and Buccaneers were reportedly interested in Collins, but no team was willing to meet the Giants’ asking price of a 2019 second-rounder and a late-round pick in 2020. Rival GMs made offers, but no one ponied up more than a third-round choice.
The Giants had other vets to dangle, including defensive end Olivier Vernon and linebacker Alec Ogletree, but the Giants passed on making any additional deals on Tuesday. Was that a mistake by the Giants, or do you think they did enough in the way of midseason rebuilding? Click below (or here, for app users) to weigh in and sound off in the comment section:
Did The Giants Need To Make More Trades?
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Yes 62% (624)
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No 38% (375)
Total votes: 999
Four Teams Tried To Claim Jamon Brown
New Giants guard Jamon Brown was a popular target on the NFL waiver wire, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The Bears, Packers, Ravens, and Titans all tried to put in a claim for him, Yates hears. Those clubs were unable to land him, however, as the Giants had top priority. 
Brown served as the Rams’ starting right guard in 2017 slate and the former third-round pick started 30 games for the team dating back to the 2015 season. However, a suspension sidetracked his run in Los Angeles. With this kind of interest from at least five different clubs, it’s a bit surprising that the Rams were unable to find a suitable trade for Brown and recoup a future seventh-round pick, at minimum.
The Ravens, in particular, could use the offensive line help. Currently, they list four offensive linemen on their injury report, as Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets: left tackle Ronnie Stanley (foot/ankle), right tackle James Hurst (back), left guard Alex Lewis (neck), and reserve guard/center Bradley Bozeman (calf).
The guard has a reasonable cap number of $1.871MM on his expiring contract, so the Giants are on the hook for less than $1MM for the rest of the year. Of course, the 1-7 Giants aren’t playing for much at this point, but Brown could help in run protection for sensational rookie Saquon Barkley and audition his way on to the 2019 roster.
Now that the trade deadline has passed, all players who are released will be subject to waivers for the rest of the season, even if they are vested veterans with more than four years of experience.
Giants Claim G Jamon Brown Off Waivers
A full-time starter for the 2017 Rams, Jamon Brown received notice on Tuesday he was being waived. He will not pass through waivers to free agency and didn’t advance far through the claim hierarchy.
The Giants claimed Brown on Wednesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The offensive line-needy team is 1-7 and getting a player in a contract year, but Brown figures to see action soon in the Big Apple.
Brown served as the Rams’ starting right guard during their playoff drought-snapping 2017 slate, and the former third-round pick had started 30 games since the 2015 season. But a suspension sidetracked his run in Los Angeles. Austin Blythe took over because of Brown receiving a two-game substance-abuse ban. Brown worked as a backup in five games this season before the Rams waived him to make roster room for Dante Fowler.
This season has obviously not gone well for the Giants. They made multiple sellers’ trades, in shipping out two defensive starters, and have struggled in many areas. Their most key problem, though, is still their offensive line. Eli Manning‘s taken 31 sacks, despite Nate Solder and Will Hernandez now being in the fold. That matches his 15-game total from 2017 and is on pace to be well north of the 15th-year veteran’s previous career high. Big Blue also recently benched Patrick Omameh, opening a spot at right guard.
Brown’s contract-year status doesn’t make much sense for the 2018 Giants, but they’re in need of blockers regardless. With answers long-term answers needed, it’s probable the Giants are ready to evaluate the longtime starter to see if he’s a candidate for an extension.
Chiefs, Buccaneers Made Bids For Landon Collins
There were five trades made on deadline day, but none of them involved Giants safety Landon Collins. Appearing on ESPN’s The Michael Kay Show, the 24-year-old said New York was “asking a little bit too much,” leading to suitors shying away from a deal.
Ralph Vacchiano of SNY writes that the Giants were ultimately seeking a 2019 second-rounder and a late-round pick in 2020, but no team offered more than a third. The Chiefs and Buccaneers were among the teams to have made bids for the defensive back.
Considering all of the rumors surrounding the Giants, Collins admitted that he was a bit on edge up until the deadline.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/30/18
Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: OG Colby Gossett (off Vikings practice squad), TE John Phillips
- Released: OL Blaine Clausell, TE Gabe Holmes
Atlanta Falcons
- Waived: DL Michael Bennett
Baltimore Ravens
- Released: DE Albert McClellan
Buffalo Bills
- Waived: CB Dontae Johnson
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: MLB Hayes Pullard
- Waived: K Mike Badgley
Los Angeles Rams
- Waived: OG Jamon Brown
New York Giants
- Waived: CB Mike Jordan
Oakland Raiders
- Promoted from practice squad: DE/OLB James Cowser
Philadelphia Eagles
- Waived: DT Bruce Hector
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: WR Victor Bolden, CB Greg Mabin
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Javien Elliott
- Released: LB Kevin Minter
Washington Redskins
- Waived: LB Cassanova McKinzy
Police Arrest Giants QB Kyle Lauletta
Giants quarterback Kyle Lauletta was arrested this morning for an incident that occurred while he driving to the team’s practice facility, Ryan Dunleavy of NJ.com (on Twitter) hears.Dunleavy hears that Lauletta nearly struck police with car when he failed to obey the directions of an officer. 
The fourth-round pick has yet to see a snap this year, but there has been talk of him seeing the field as Eli Manning continues to struggle.
“We’re trying to do what we can to win this season and you always do what you can in the short run,” head coach Pat Shurmur said Monday when asked if it was important for Lauletta to play (Twitter link via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY). “It’s hard not to look at things in the long run, but what’s important is we try to beat the 49ers [in two weeks].”
The Giants, who have a Week 9 bye, are 1-7. Their next game will be in primetime on Monday Nov. 12 against the 49ers.