Giants Sign Veteran DT Josh Tupou to Fill in Injury Depleted Depth

Less than a week after losing Roy Robertson-Harris to a torn Achilles tendon, they have added 350-pound nose tackle Josh Tupou, who spent parts of the last two seasons with John Harbaugh's Ravens teams.

Defensive tackle Josh Tupou | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

The New York Giants bolstered their defensive line depth on Wednesday by signing defensive tackle Josh Tupou, a source confirmed.

Tupou, who was part of a larger group of players who worked out for the team earlier this week, is an eight-year NFL veteran who began his career in 2017 with the Cincinnati Bengals, signing as an undrafted free agent out of Colorado.

A versatile defensive lineman who can play anywhere along the defensive line, the 6-foot-3, 350-pound Tupou spent six seasons with the Bengals, his time there interrupted when he opted out of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

More recently, the 32-year-old Tupou spent the last two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, where he spent parts of both seasons on former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh’s practice squad.

Tupou also spent time on the Colts practice squad last season.

He has appeared in 71 regular-season games with 23 starts and has posted 94 tackles, three sacks, and seven quarterback hits over his career.

Filling a Critical Void

Tupou will fill the spot left open by Roy Robertson-Harris, who last week suffered a torn Achilles tendon in the team’s third OTA practice.

The Giants' defensive line is going to have a completely different look this year after losing Robertson-Harris to injury and trading away Dexter Lawrence to the Bengals before the draft.

New York is projected to have veterans DJ Reader and Shelby Harris as their new starters at nose guard and defensive end, respectively.

They are also hoping for the continued development of second-year man Darius Alexander, their third-round draft pick last year, who started to come on strong toward the end of the 2025 season.

The Giants, who drafted nose tackle Bobby Jamison-Travis in the sixth round this year, also added several new faces. In addition to Reader and Harris, they signed Leki Fotu and Sam Roberts, and were awarded Zacch Pickens off waivers.

Besides losing Lawrence, the Giants also didn’t re-sign DJ Davidson, who went to Washington; Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who signed with Tampa Bay; and Elijah Chatman, whom they cut earlier this year.

Tupou, who spent three seasons in Cincinnati with Reader (2021 through 2023) has 1,262 career snaps at defensive tackle and 361 at nose tackle. He also has experience lining up at defensive end, but will likely project as a backup to Reader at nose tackle.

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