New York Giants 2023 Free Agency Storylines

The roster-building season starts today when NFL teams can begin negotiating with unrestricted free agents from other teams that have not received the franchise tag.

And what a difference a year makes for New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen, who had to sit on the sideline and shop in the bargain bin after inheriting a horrible cap situation last year.

“We’re not shopping for minimum players anymore. So, even players like that that can be really good depth players will make us that much better,” Schoen told reporters last week after the team signed quarterback Daniel Jones to a contract extension.

“Just having the flexibility now to be creative, go get players at maybe a little bit higher value, but also being able to sign, whether it’s tier three players, two, one--however, you do it. We can map it out, and there are players that we can go procure now that maybe we weren’t in the past. So, this offseason, we’ll build a bit.”

Schoen and the Giants aren’t expected to go crazy in free agency, but there are areas they’ll look to pursue and fill with veterans, while others will be reserved for the draft, the latter being Schoen’s preferred way to build out the roster.

“I still think with Daniel and (defensive lineman) Dexter (Lawrence) coming down the road and some of the other players, you’re still going to need to build through the draft because I think there’s going to be some players who will be making good money on our roster,” Schoen said.

Let’s look at where things are and what we might expect as free agency begins.

Kenny Golladay's Final Status

Per Over the Cap, the Giants have $12,813,439 in effective cap space as of Sunday evening. Effective cap space is what they’ll have to spend to fit guys under the Top 51 rule that starts up on March 15, the official start of the 2023 league year.

The Giants stand to gain more cap space depending on how they designate the release of receiver Kenny Golladay. If Golladay is a standard release, they’ll gain $6.7 million in space.

If he’s a post-June 1 transaction, that amount jumps to $13.6 million; however, that money won’t be available until after June 1, resulting in a $6.8 million dead money hit in 2024.

“There’s a good chance that we just take the hit this year,” Schoen said of Golladay. “We already have some money that’s dead money in 2024. Just to get through this past season, we had to make some financial moves and kick dead money into 2024. So, if we can take our medicine this year, I think that’ll help us in 2024 and get out of the business of having a lot of dead money in any year.”

What Will Be the First Position Addressed?

The Giants have several needs, and as previously noted, they're probably not going to go all in on free agency. But what they will likely do is use free agency to address the defensive side of the ball.

Early signs point to the team potentially working on adding a veteran linebacker to the mix. There have been some early whispers of the team being interested in Eagles linebacker T.J. Edwards.

Other positions the Giants will likely address in free agency include defensive line depth and safety, the latter especially if Julian Love walks.

Will There Be a Trade?

The free-agent receiver class isn't exactly brimming with premium talent, at least not at the moment. So if the Giants want to land a potential X-receiver to replace Golladay, their best bet might be to explore a trade.

DeAndre Hopkins of the Cardinals is said to be available, though it's hard to envision the Giants paying a second and fifth-round pick for the veteran. A more realistic compensation package could be a third and a fifth from rounds where the Giants have multiple picks.

Whether Schoen makes such a deal will depend on how much he values those picks to continue adding to the team's depth. Schoen, remember, held his water last year when faced with a chance to acquire a receiver via trade, so it's possible that considering the team isn't one receiver away from a championship, he might just turn to the draft to fill this important spot.

Who Stays and Who Goes?

The Giants began re-signing some of their own free agents, but there are still more than a dozen unrestricted free agents still to be addressed. We made our predictions right here.

Will There Be Any Extensions Done?

Schoen did not rule out getting more cap space via extension or Dexter Lawerence and Leonard Williams, two players with significant cap hits for 2023.

The Giants general manager revealed that he had talks with the representatives for both. In Lawrence's case, things might have gotten a bit easier now that Washignton's Daron Payne inked a new extension (Payne is repped by the same agent as Lawrence).

Wiliams's deal could be a bit trickier. He's coming off an injury-filled season, but the Giants still believe that he can be a factor for them moving forward. How long is another story, but it's all but certain that the team will look to lower Williams's $32 million cap hit via an extension.

The Odell Factor?

Another position where the Giants need help is at receiver. And it just so happens that this past weekend they were in Arizona to get their eyes on one-time Giant Odell Beckham Jr, who held a private workout for about a dozen teams.

The Giants, under Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll, have kept an open mind when it comes to Beckham, who, in his early years with the team, often drew the wrong kind of attention with his antics. Daboll and Schoen sat with Beckham at the end of last year in what Daboll characterized as a "good meeting."

Even with the Giants having seen Beckham work out--and based on reports, he dazzled-- there are still a couple of hurdles to clear. The biggest is money. According to Pro Football Talk, the receiver still has his sights set on $20 million per year, which the Giants aren't likely to be comfortable paying.

But even if they were, there is also the matter of the medical exam. Before any team signs him to a new deal, the receiver must undergo a comprehensive medical examination, especially on his twice-repaired knee. If there are doubts about his knee being able to hold up, any chance of a deal won't make it out of the gate.

That said, the Giants did their due diligence, as expected. But if Beckham is holding firm in what he wants money-wise, it's a safe bet he won't get that kind of contract from a Giants team with many more needs than receiver to address.

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