Dollars and Sense: Detailed Look at Giants' Off-Season Spending Revealed

The vast sum of $332+ million can certainly buy an NFL team a lot of peanuts.

But for the New York Giants, who, according to Spotrac, plunked down $322,017,610 this offseason between free agent signings, extensions, rookie draft class signings, undrafted free agents, and restricted tenders, let’s just say that Big Blue is far more interested in wins than they are peanuts.

That grand total is the 12th highest amount spent by any team this off-season, representing general manager Joe Schoen’s determination to fix a roster that vastly underperformed in 2023 to the tune of 6-11. This record also exposed some significant depth issues at key positions like offensive line and edge rusher.

Yet surprisingly, the Giants weren’t among the top ten spenders on free agency. New York dished out $91,605,000 to free agents, the 18th most in the league.

And no, not even their extending edge rusher Brian Burns, acquired in a trade with the Carolina Panthers, put the Giants over the top, as the $142,377,500 ranked tenth out of the 32 teams.

Otherwise, the Giants were one of five teams to spend on a restricted free agent tender ($2.985 million), that to cornerback Nick McCloud. New York also spent just $28.291 million on undrafted free agents, the 24th most.

Worth noting regarding these numbers is that the Giants took advantage of the opportunity to lock up two major cornerstones of their franchise, left tackle Andrew Thomas and defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence II, last year before the start of training camp. Had the Giants waited to extend one or both this year, their off-season expenditures would have been much steeper.

Regarding individual signings, guard Jon Runyan Jr got the richest free-agent contract from the Giants, a three-year, $30 million deal, the 26th richest deal signed by an unrestricted free agent this past off-season.

Outside linebacker Brian Burns’s five-year $141 million extension ranked third in the league, behind Lions quarterback Jared Goff (four years, $212 million) and Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones (five years, $158.75 million)--this all before the extensions signed this month by players such as receiver Tyreek Hill of the Dolphins or receiver Justin Jefferson of the Vikings.

In the draft pick department, the Giants receiver Malik Nabers was selected sixth overall. He currently has the third-highest contract total, a four-year, $29.207 million deal that’s fully guaranteed and comes to an AAV of $7.301 million.

However, Nabers’ place in the order will change once top draft pick Caleb Williams signs his rookie deal (the rookie deals listed on Spotrac's page also don’t reflect Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels’ new deal).

The Giants currently have a league-low $1.095 million in cap space. That number is expected to increase if tight end Darren Waller, currently the fifth-highest cap hit on the team, retires. The move would yield a $11.625 million savings since it would be a post-June 1 transaction.