Giants Roster Rebuilding Season: Tight Ends

The injury bug sure did enjoy feasting on Giants tight ends in 2019.

According to MangamesLost.com, the Giants were the fifth most injured team of 2019, their players missing 256 games due to injuries, with their tight ends combining to lose 13 games due to injuries.

While that figure is but a drop in the bucket—just 5% of the total games lost in 2019—if we consider that between Evan Engram, Rhett Ellison, Scott Simonson, and Kaden Smith the Giants should have been able to get 64 games total out of that group, those 13 games lost represent 20.3% of what was expected from the unit.

The injury bug’s effect on the tight ends was huge because instead of potentially deploying more 12-personnel, which the team showed during the summer and early part of the season, the Giants went back to old trustworthy 11-personnel on 70% of their plays, running 12-personnel on just 20%, according to Sharp Football Stats.

That’s a big difference from a year ago when the tight ends combined to miss just seven games due to injury or 7% of the games they were expected to play. While there is no hardcore proof that the injury bug was a factor, it is worth noting that in 2018 the Giants were able to run 12-personnel 29% of the time versus 11-personnel 53% of the time.

So what does this all mean for the future of the tight ends group? This is an integral part of the offense, but it’s also one of the units that, on the surface at least, the Giants are in good shape regarding the personnel—if they can keep them healthy.

Let’s start with Evan Engram, a talented and diverse Swiss Army knife who can be used as a chess piece but who for whatever the reason, has been mostly used as an inline tight end who often must first get past heavier defenders, the pounding of which hasn't been good for him.

The hope is that new offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, whose Cowboys offenses have regular had a tight end (future Hall of Famer Jason Witten) in the top 15 every season among the position league-wide, will bring enough creativity to get Engram better matchups. No one is going to confuse Engram for Witten, but if the Giants can get production on par with what they got from Engram during his rookie season (when he played in 15 games), then that's a start.

One final note on Engram is that the Giants will need to decide whether to pick up the option year in his contract. It would be a stunning upset if they don't, even as there continue to be talks that the Giants night move on from Engram in the future.

Exercising the option year in his rookie deal will, in essence, assure any team that trades for him by the October trading deadline that they'll get a season and a half to evaluate him fully.

Rhett Ellison has always been a headscratcher. Initially, he was brought in to boost the blocking efforts, but if nothing else, through the years, his blocking has started to decline while his receiving skills have been consistent (he has a career reception rate of 78.1%). Regardless, Ellison's $7,188,384 seems too high for a No. 2 tight end whose career-high target rate is 32 (in 2018).

With Ellison likely to be a salary cap casualty, Kaden Smith should get more opportunities to contribute alongside Engram, perhaps taking on more of that blocking role that isn't as good of a fit for Engram's skillset.

Free Agent Possibility

MyCole Pruitt, 6-foot-2, 245 pounds, 27 years old (TEN)

If the Giants decide to go the veteran free-agent route at tight end—and that’s a big if-- Pruitt might be worth a look.

A solid pass blocker who also has a career 81.8% reception rate, the 27-year-old Pruitt has allowed just three pressures in 641 career snaps. But again, it’s his pass blocking that is most intriguing.

Last year, the Giants offensive line allowed 119 quarterback hits, the third-most in the league, of which 43 were sacks. General manager Dave Gettleman is no doubt planning to add more resources to improve the offensive line and particularly the pass protection, and that would likely include tight ends capable of pass blocking.

Draft Possibility

Josiah DeGuara, 6-foot-3, 245 pounds, Cincinnati

Josiah DeGuara opened a few eyes during the Senior Bowl practice by displaying a good combination of inline blocking and pass-catching abilities. DeGuara runs crisp routes but needs to get stronger in his upper body if he’s to hold up to the physical demands in the pit.

A young, hungry player with a non-stop motor who always seeks to impose his will against opponents, DeGuara might make for a good Day 3 or priority free agent option if the Giants are looking to add depth at the bottom of their tight end group.

Add us as a preferred source on Google