Key Pieces Missing on Giants Offense and Defense They Must Address

The 2025 NFL season is far in the rearview. With the 2026 free agency frenzy ready to begin Monday with the legal tampering period, it’s time for New York Giants fans to be hopeful. They can look forward to the revamped roster set to be built under new head coach John Harbaugh.

Harbaugh and general manager Joe Schoen’s task will be daunting, even for a pair of experienced personnel gurus whose individual careers have taken them through this cycle more than a few times.

They’ll have to address a handful of critical needs across the roster that showed weaknesses in their recent 4-13 stretch or were left with holes from impending players heading into free agency. All without the too familiar benefit of a large sum of cap space to recruit the best available pieces to East Rutherford.

That means the Giants will have to prioritize which areas they will plug in during the signing frenzy and which can be pushed off to the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh this April.

Bleacher Report analyst Alex Ballentine unveiled his rundown of the biggest missing pieces on offense and defense for all 32 franchises. He spotlighted the offensive line and the secondary as the Giants’ main roster holes. These must be patched up to elevate the entire team in the 2026 season.

Offensive Line Depth a “Must Have”

New York Giants offensive tackle Jermaine Eluemunoe — Jan 5, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Giants guard Jermaine Eluemunor (72) and center Austin Schlottmann (65) and tight end Daniel Bellinger (82) take the field for action against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The impending fate of Jermaine Eluemunor will heavily dictate how the team handles the right tackle position. They may sign him back, keep another veteran in free agency, or use the No. 5 pick in the draft on a capable starting tackle, such as Miami’s Francis Mauigoa.

The Giants also have their 2025 fifth-round pick, Marcus Mbow, hanging around and already showing glimpses of his potential as a future starting option down the road. They could elect to make him the successor if Eluemunor walks, but it feels more likely that reality gets pushed off for at least another year.

What remains the more serious matter is the interior at the guard and center positions, where Greg Van Roten is vacating the right side, and Jon Runyan’s status on the left could be impacted by a pressing need for extra cap space and his lackluster play over the last two seasons.

Depth is also a scary reality for the Giants' offseason checklist, as they don’t have any real proven options who can be comfortably called up in the wake of injuries. It all sets up for the Giants, making that a top priority as free agency begins, so that they can better protect Jaxson Dart next fall.

A Dilemma on the Defense

New York Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke and safety Tyler Nubin — Dec 21, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants inside linebacker Bobby Okereke (58) reacts with safety Tyler Nubin (27) after a defensive stop against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half at MetLife Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Where Ballentine starts to get off track in his analysis of the Giants’ key missing defensive piece is his clear-cut focus on the secondary, which faces very similar issues to the offensive line: free-agent starters and insufficient depth.

Cor’Dale Flott stands as one of the Giants’ top three pending free agents, and his departure would open up a significant hole at one of the starting cornerback positions on the perimeter.

Flott was the team’s best coverage defender in 2025 while the rest of the unit struggled to play clean and disrupt the opposition’s passing attacks.

However, it might be the middle linebacker room that is the greater concern, especially after the Giants made their first cap casualty decision, nixing veteran Bobby Okereke's deal to bring back $9 million in extra cap savings in advance of free agency.

That is where his former teammate and Week 1 starter, Micah McFadden, is also heading, leaving the franchise with both of their 2025 starters gone if the latter isn’t re-signed over the coming days and almost no experienced depth, outside of Darius Muasau, who has played in 17 games in two seasons.

The second level was arguably the biggest culprit in another year of dismal run defense for the Giants’ defense, allowing the second-most rushing yards and the worst average yards per carry in the league despite putting a lot of assets into beefing up the front seven last offseason.

If Joe Schoen and company don’t get that area of the defense addressed first and foremost, their woes in the trenches may persist into the 2026 campaign, and that goes completely against the grain of the type of team that John Harbaugh wants to establish in his first year as head coach.

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