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Giants Free-Agent Rival Defender Named "Best Fit" for New York

The Giants need help at linebacker, and this potential free agent from their NFC East rivals could be one to provide it.
Patricia Traina|
Giants Free-Agent Rival Defender Named "Best Fit" for New York
Giants Free-Agent Rival Defender Named "Best Fit" for New York

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New York Giants

The New York Giants are determined to close the talent gap between them and the Philadelphia Eagles, and one way to accomplish that is to lure some of the defending NFC champions' free agents up the turnpike.

That's an opinion expressed by Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport, who, in his list of "best free agent fit" for every NFL team, has the Giants plucking a feather from the Birds' defense in the form of inside linebacker T.J. Edwards.

Davenport noted that when it comes to the Eagles, they might already have a replacement for Edwards on their roster in the form of Nakobe Dean and may not want to spend to retain Edwards, whom Spotrac projects a contract of four years and $47,979 million ($11.994 million APY).

Should the Eagles not wish to retain Edwards, this could be good news for the Giants, who need to upgrade their talent at inside linebacker, one of the most unsettled positions on the roster last year.

Secondly, assistant general manager Brandon Brown, who was with the Eagles before joining the Giants, is undoubtedly familiar with Edwards from his time scouting talent for the Eagles.

The 27-year-old Edwards, who signed as an undrafted free agent out of Wisconsin in 2019, stands 6-foot-1 and tips the scales at 242 pounds. He appeared in 17 games this season (all starts), recording 159 tackles (99 solos) with ten tackles for a loss.

He played in a career-high 94 percent of the Eagles' defensive snaps, posting 11 pressures and seven pass breakups. He allowed 53 of 76 pass targets to be completed (69.7 percent), his best career mark in seasons in which he was targeted at least 15 times, and he has only allowed four touchdowns in his four-year career.

Davenport projects a four-year, $49 million deal for Edwards with $30 million guaranteed, with the APY coming in at $12.25 million, slightly higher than Spotrac's projection.

 

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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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