Skip to main content

A Deep Look at the Giants Safeties Ahead of Training Camp

The Giants are loaded at safety thanks to the versatility their players have to offer defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.

How important has the safety position group become? 

Very, especially after seeing how the game has evolved in recent years to where safeties are not just tasked with patrolling the box or the deepest part of the field. 

Safeties have become versatile to play in the slot, move to outside cornerback on occasions, and serve as a hybrid linebacker/defensive back up closer to the box because they typically offer more speed and quickness than their linebacker counterpart.

Not surprisingly, the GIants have loaded up on safeties--and not just numbers wise but win terms of quality.  Last year, free-agent acquisition Logan Ryan joined holdovers Jabrill Peppers and Julian Love. Later in the season, rookie Xavier McKinney returned from a broken foot to complete the unit.

Those additions turned a group that prior to the 2020 season was ranked the ninth best in the league into an even stronger unit, so just imagine what Year 2 of this group has to offer.

The glimpses that the group provided undoubtedly have defensive coordinator Patrick Graham licking his chops over the seemingly endless possibilities of unleashing that power pack, which has overtaken the defensive front as the team's undisputed strongest position against opposing opponents passing attempts.

The Personnel

Logan Ryan, Jabrill Peppers, Xavier McKinney, Julian Love, Montre Hartage, Josh Kalu, Quincy Wilson. (Note: The Giants are believed to be planning to sign Nate Ebner to their roster, but as of this writing, that transaction hasn't yet occurred.)


MORE "DEEP POSITION LOOK" ANALYSES

Tight Ends | Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Offensive Line | Receivers | Cornerbacks


The Finances

The Giants have $9,719,771 committed to their safeties--5.24% of their 2021 cap per Spotrac--which puts them 22nd in the league at that position.

However, that number is misleading as Spotrac is only counting Julian Love, Xavier McKinney, and Jabrill Peppers--all of whom are on rookie deals--as the three who make up that $9.7 million.

If Logan Ryan, whose primary position is safety, is added into the mix as should have been the case, the Giants' total financial commitment to the safety position jumps up to $16,719,771.

And of the safety group, Ryan and Peppers are the only two whose respective 2021 salary cap numbers top the $3.2 million average for the position and the team's $2.7 million average for the entire defensive backfield.

Position Questions

1. How much better is Xavier McKinney going to be?

A lot. McKinney deserves kudos for hanging around the team last year and remaining involved as much as the rules allowed so that his rookie year wasn't a total waste of time.

And as it turned out, all that behind-the-scenes work he did while rehabbing (some players when they're on IR don't always choose to hang around the facility, so this is why McKinney's decision to do so was so important) paid off. When he finally made his NFL debut late last season, he didn't look out of place.

Now with an entire off-season under his belt, expect McKinney to play faster and look even more comfortable in this defense.

2. Will Jabrill Peppers eventually be phased out?

Peppers is entering the option year of his rookie deal, and talk of a contract extension for the man ranked as Pro Football Focus's 26th best safety (out of 32) ahead of the 2021 season have barely begun. This has left a growing number of questions regarding what Peppers' future might be.

The Giants' salary cap situation for 2022 will almost certainly force them to make some hard choices about who comes back, Peppers included, and the Giants might want to see certain looks later in the season without Peppers.

But as far as phasing him out, that won't happen. In fact, look for Graham to make heavy use of his top three safeties (Peppers, Ryan and McKinney) so long as all three are healthy.

What Would Surprise Me

The Giants keep five "pure" safeties. It's kind of surprising that the Giants don't simply list their safeties and corners as "defensive backs" because, over time, NFL defensive backs have become "positionless."

More often than not, you're going to find a guy whose season-ending snap counts are nearly equally distributed among cornerback positions and safety positions.

The Giants are going to load their roster up on defensive backs-- that much is a given. But you'll probably see many guys filling out the roster in that area who can play both corner and safety rather than strictly one position over the other.

What Wouldn't Surprise Me

The Giants try to trade a safety at the roster cutdown date. The Giants have an embarrassment of riches at safety right now, but not everyone will make the 53-man roster, nor are those who don't make the roster an automatic for the practice squad.

That said, it will be interesting to see if there is a trade market for a safety at the end of training camp to where instead of just cutting guys free, maybe the Giants, who already have ten draft picks next year, can get a conditional seventh-round pick for a guy who doesn't fit their plans but who might fit the plans of a safety-starved team.


Join the Giants Country Community