NY Giants Offseason Primer: Roster Breakdown, Trade Ideas, Draft Needs

The 2025 NFL season is officially in the books and it’s onto 2026.

Jan 20, 2026; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen and head coach John Harbaugh pose after the press conference announcing Harbaughís hiring at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

 With the 2025 NFL season officially finished, the counters reset to 0-0 for all teams, and they turn their attention to the roster-building season. 

That includes the New York Giants, who, in between hiring assistants for new head coach John Harbaugh’s staff, have no doubt been studying the roster that vastly underperformed in 2025 in search of clues to help the results match the talent level.

As we wait to see what general manager Joe Schoen and Harbaugh have in store for what the roster is going to look like come next September, let’s do a quick breakdown of where things stand and the possible direction they could be heading.  

State of the Roster 

General Manager Joe Schoen delivers welcoming remarks during a press conference introducing new Head Coach John Harbaugh at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center in East Rutherford on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2025. | Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

We have repeatedly heard that the Giants have a strong young talent core, which is a big reason Schoen was retained in his job. But there have been two major things wrong with the Giants' roster, which has, again, underperformed. 

The first is a lack of identity. Right now, the Giants have a collection of young talent making up the offense’s foundation in quarterback Jaxson Dart, receiver Malik Nabers, running backs Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Cam Skattebo, offensive linemen Andrew Thomas and Marcus MBow, and tight end Theo Johnson. 

And on defense, the core includes defensive tackles Dexter Lawrence and Darius Alexander, outside linebackers Brian Burns and Abdul Carter, and defensive backs Paulson Adebo and Jevon Holland.

But that’s pretty much all the Giants have. Besides their needs, which we’ll get to in a moment, the Giants have no identity; just a collection of personalities and skill sets that could be something special if the coaches could only figure out how to meld everyone toward a common goal.

Therein lies the first challenge for Harbaugh and his staff. Coaches and players might say that identities develop organically, but it helps to have an idea of what you want the team to look like so you can get the players you need, rather than just throwing darts at the wall with a blindfold on. 

The second thing, albeit one that the Giants have started to rectify, is to take advantage of the young talent on rookie deals. 

Right now, the Giants' projected core offensive weapons are all on rookie deals, meaning that with a few shrewd moves in free agency, as opposed to a wild spending spree–not that the Giants will have the money to do that–this roster could just as easily flip their record around in 2026 if they add a few more pieces.  

Trade Ideas

New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (5) runs out of the tunnel during a Thursday Night Football game between the New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on Oct. 9, 2025. | Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Schoen has shown he’s not reluctant to trade away players, though he has fallen short in his stubbornness to overvalue players rather than take the best available offer. 

He has also rolled the dice in letting guys walk away in the hopes of getting a comp pick, something that he can’t continue doing since comp picks are not guaranteed.

While there is no guarantee the Giants will trade anyone on the roster, that is the only way the Giants, who have seven draft picks (and only two in the top 100), will acquire more picks.

Outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux is a name that has come up frequently as a potential trade target, given that he’s entering the option year of his rookie deal. 

Of all the potential trade prospects, Thibodeaux would probably draw the nicest return on investment, including at least a third-round pick, which is the pick the Giants don’t have this year after including it in the swap to Houston to move up for Jaxson Dart.

The argument in favor of retaining Thibodeaux is that doing so would create a hole on the Giants' roster.

This, however, isn’t necessarily true, not if the Giants were to replace him with a bigger-bodied defensive end that can better hold up to the challenges posed by the 300+ pound offensive tackles that oftentimes stonewall smaller and quiver linebackers like Thibodeaux. 

Draft Needs

Feb 6, 2026; San Francisco, CA, USA; The 2026 NFL Draft logo at the Super Bowl LX Experience at the Moscone Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Theoretically, the Giants can use help at every position, but with only seven picks (at the moment) in the draft, it would behoove them to dip into the areas of the class that are deep so that they don’t face the temptation of having to force a pick at a need.

The most glaring needs for the Giants at the moment include linebacker, offensive line (tackle), defensive line, receiver, and safety. However, some of those needs could well be addressed in free agency.

The biggest thing to watch when it comes to the draft is if the Giants look to somehow recoup the third-round pick that they had to send to the Texans last year to move back into the first round of the draft to grab quarterback Jaxson Dart. 

For a team that needs a lot of help, having only two premium picks in the top 100 isn’t ideal, nor is it ideal that the Giants, per Tankathon, have the 15th-strongest set of draft assets in terms of value.

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