Giants Country

Assessing New York Giants’ 2025 Salary Cap Health

The Giants' salary cap situation isn't bad at the moment, but general manager Joe Schoen will still probably have to make some moves at some point.

Patricia Traina

Dec 29, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants owner John Mara, right, and general manager Joe Schoen, left, talk before the game against the Indianapolis Colts at MetLife Stadium.
Dec 29, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants owner John Mara, right, and general manager Joe Schoen, left, talk before the game against the Indianapolis Colts at MetLife Stadium. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
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The New York Giants' cap situation is as good as it’s ever been to start a new league year. The team is projected to have $43.380 million of total space (based on a projected $272.5 million league cap) and $32.062 million in effective cap space for those contracts that will fall under the “Top 51,” which begins on the first day of the new league year.

On the surface, that cap space seems like plenty to fill many roster holes, but with quarterback and cornerback being among the team's most pressing needs, that money is expected to evaporate rather quickly.

Fortunately for the Giants, they can create more cap space as needed. The first option is to trim the fat off the cap through salary cap cuts. Unlike in recent years, though, the Giants don’t have as many contracts that they can potentially unload that will yield significant savings.

New York Giants defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches
New York Giants defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches (93) leaps in the air while running out of the tunnel during a game between the New York Giants and the Washington Commanders at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. / Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Cuts

The one that stands out the most is that held by defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who has a $5.033 million cap figure this year. Nunez-Roches is in the final year of his three-year contract and isn’t owed any guaranteed money in 2025. 

He’s also likely to compete against a very deep and talented defensive line class where a rookie contract will be far more affordable for a team.

If the Giants move on from the 32-year-old Nunez-Roches, they would save $3.6 million and eat $1.433 million in dead money. 

Kicker Graham Gano’s name has been floated as a potential cap casualty. Trimming him from the roster would save $3.165 million (a $2.5 million dead money hit if he is a pre-June 1 transaction). 

Gano has been mentioned as a potential cap cut because, like Nunez-Roches, he doesn't have any more guaranteed money owed to him in his contract.

There has also been some concern about Gano’s durability after two straight years of injuries, but I would be very surprised if the Giants moved on from Gano this year.

New York Giants OL Jermaine Eluemunor
Sep 26, 2024; East Rutherford, NJ, US; New York Giants OL Jermaine Eluemunor (72) warms up during pre-game at MetLife Stadium. / Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Extensions

One player who could be in line for a contract extension is guard/tackle Jermaine Eluemunor, who is in the final year of the two-year deal he signed last off-season. Eluemunor currently counts for $9.191 million against the cap, of which $5.75 million is his 2025 base salary.  

The question is whether the 31-year-old Eluemunor would be open to an extension. As we learned during last year’s Hard Knocks, the Giants wanted to sign the veteran offensive lineman to a three-year contract, but he didn’t want to commit that long and instead got the two-year deal.

If he were open to an extension, the Giants could lower his base salary to $1.255 million, which is the minimum base for a veteran with at least seven years of accrued experience (Eluemunor is entering his ninth NFL season), tack on two more years, with the second one being a voidable year.   

New York Giants offensive tackle Andrew Thomas
Jul 24, 2024; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants offensive tackle Andrew Thomas (78) talks with media during training camp at Quest Diagnostics Training Facility. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Restructures

This is where the Giants can free up a lot more money as needed. The Giants’ top five highest cap hits belong to edge Brian Burns, defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence, left tackle Andrew Thomas, inside linebacker Bobby Okereke, and guard Jon Runyan, Jr., all of whom have contracts that could be targeted for either a simple restructure or a maximum restructure, depending on the specific circumstances.

A simple restructure involves converting part of a player’s base salary into a signing bonus and spreading it over the remaining life of the contract. Teams can make these moves with little to no involvement from the players just so long as the player receives the equivalent or greater of what he was owed in his base salary for that year.

A maximum restructure is when the base salary is reduced to the bare minimum commensurate with the years of accrued experience the player has, and the remaining money is converted to a signing bonus that is spread over the life of the contract and usually includes at least one voidable year to help minimize the impact of the conversion. Since this alters the contract’s length, this entails an agreement on the player’s part. 

So, what would the Giants be looking at in each scenario? According to Over the Cap, the team could gain up to $51.83 million with simple restructures. This would boost their projected cap space to $83.895 million, presumably if they targeted the contracts with the biggest cap hits this year. 

If they pursued maximum restructures, the Giants would gain up to $80.451 million in space, with a potential estimated cap space of $112.514 million.  

The obvious drawback with restructures is that a team pushes potential dead money into future years, which can get them into cap trouble if they don’t use the tactic judiciously and accurately forecast the cap’s potential year-over-year growth.  

New York Giants linebacker Micah McFadden
Dec 25, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Giants linebacker Micah McFadden (41) against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

So Then What?

As of right now, Schoen doesn’t have to do anything with the cap unless, in addition to signing a veteran quarterback, which is not going to come cheap, he has another major move or two in mind.

The other factor to consider is if Schoen intends to extend any contracts coming up for renewal, much like how he extended Andrew Thomas and Dexter Lawrence before they reached the end of their contracts. 

Right now, Schoen has little to consider extending, which is alarming for a team that seems to have had a revolving door of players coming in and leaving after only one contract.

As already noted, Eluemunor is one such candidate for an extension, though the Giants' intention to add a young offensive tackle in the draft could change any such plans.

Inside linebacker Micah McFadden might be another potential extension candidate. McFadden is in the final year of his rookie contract, and if the Giants ultimately plan to move on from Bobby Okereke, whose contract ends in 2026, perhaps having a starting duo of McFadden and Darius Muasau, the latter of whom would still be on a rookie contract, would be the way to go. 

The Giants could also consider extending outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux. If the team picks up his option year, which is likely to happen, he would be due a whopping $16.06 million base salary in 2026. 

In this case, the Giants might be better off waiting to see what kind of start Thibodeaux gets off to in 2025 before presenting him with a new contract.

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen
Jul 26, 2024; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen / Lucas Boland-Imagn Images

Final Thoughts

The Giants have the resources to fix many problems with their roster if they make the right moves. But this won’t be easy because the more challenges a team has, the more it must prioritize what gets addressed first–and we all know how this works: The one or two areas that don’t get prioritized usually end up biting the team the hardest. 

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Patricia Traina
PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for 30+ seasons, and her work has appeared in multiple media outlets, including The Athletic, Forbes, Bleacher Report, and the Sports Illustrated media group. As a credentialed New York Giants press corps member, Patricia has also covered five Super Bowls (three featuring the Giants), the annual NFL draft, and the NFL Scouting Combine. She is the author of The Big 50: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants. In addition to her work with New York Giants On SI, Patricia hosts the Locked On Giants podcast. Patricia is also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and the Football Writers Association of America.

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