Giants Player Profile: Levine Toilolo, TE
2019 Rewind
The Giants acquired Levine Toilolo, a veteran journeyman tight end in the offseason. Toilolo signed a two-year contract with the Giants and enters a tight end room with the established Evan Engram and the young Kaden Smith.
Engram has a wide receiver-like athletic ability from the tight end position. Smith is more of a well rounded, albeit young blocking, kind of tight end whose athletic ability is adequate at best for the tight end position.
Insert Toilolo, who is a 28-year-old former fourth-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons. He’s played for the Falcons, Lions, and 49ers. He’s a massive 6’8", 268-pound, tight end who has excellent feet in pass protection, and is good at the point of attack as a run blocker, especially when down blocking.
His mirroring skills in pass protection jump out on film, and he can be an asset next to Nate Solder or Andrew Thomas. Toilolo's punch is good and strong, and his grip strength is enough to hold solid pass rushers up at the point of attack just long enough to make an impact and allow the quarterback to get the ball out of his hands.
Toilolo hasn’t done much as a receiver in the last couple of seasons; in 2019, he played on the Super Bowl 49ers team, behind Garrett Celek and George Kittle, and had two receptions for 10 yards.
In total, Toilolo has played in 108 games, recording 97 catches for 996 yards and eight touchdowns. He’s much more useful as a blocker, but he is a big body who possesses soft hands too; this allows him to succeed in short-yardage or red zone situations, despite his lack of natural receiving skills and athletic ability.
Toilolo went to Stanford, which has become a tight end factory in the NFL. Fellow Giant Kaden Smith hails from that program as do Zach Ertz, Coby Fleener, Austin Hooper, and Dalton Schultz.
The school is slowly becoming a tight end factory (although Iowa and the University of Miami will undoubtedly have something to say about that).
Toilolo was honorable mention All-Pac 12 twice. He has played in two Super Bowls, one mentioned before with the 49ers and then the Falcons' 28-0 loss to the Patriots.
Going Forward
The Giants now have a deeper tight end room, but Toilolo offers a different skill-set than Engram, who is a willing blocker. Engram has come a long way since his rookie year, but the Giants can utilize 12 personnel and have Toilolo help with protection while being a check-down option, and Engram can be the vertical threat from the middle of the field.
Engram’s speed can stress safeties and keep them honest, forcing defenses not to load the box against Saquon Barkley.
The big former Cardinal tight end can also spell Engram in running situations, while not setting the trend, but bringing a different level of physicality to the edge of the line of scrimmage.
Toilolo does a good job down blocking and putting himself in-between defenders and the running back’s path. He’s not as agile in space, but when the angles are shortened, he’s very useful.
The Giants have Engram, Smith, Toilolo, Eric Tomlinson, Garrett Dickerson, and undrafted free agents Kyle Markway (South Carolina) and Rysen John (Simon Fraser).
Tomlinson is a blocking tight end that is a lot smaller than Toilolo, and John is a former receiver who has a similar build, although not as heavy as Toilolo.
Tomlinson may earn the last tight end spot behind Toilolo on the roster, and John should be put on the practice squad to develop. Toilolo may have a game-day role that features him in 5-10 snaps a game (especially in short-yardage situations) without injury.
He can assist in the run game, and he’s very good in pass protection for a tight end. I expect him to make the team, and I would expect him to be sprinkled into the game here and there. I wouldn’t expect much receiving production, but I expect more than what he had with the 49ers last year.
