The Defense That Nobody Is Talking Enough About
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The saying “defense wins championships” is almost a dying statement when talking about the current state of the NFL. With a league that is now offensively driven and quarterback dependent, defenses don’t seem to get the credit that they deserve anymore. However, they still play a crucial role in a team’s success. For example, teams like the New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, and Baltimore Ravens have some of the best defensive units in the league. It just so happens that all of these teams look to be competing for a Super Bowl this season. Credited that those four teams have excellent offenses as well, but many would argue that they are more known for their defense.
So what does this have to do with the state of the New York Giants defense? After all, New York has one of the worst offensive groups in the NFL, and are by no means contending for a championship this year. Regardless of how mediocre the Giants are as a whole, nobody can deny that they are, at the very least, capable of staying in games with their defense; yet somehow nobody is talking about that this offseason.
The face of New York’s defense and maybe the franchise as a whole is none other than defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. With Aaron Donald now retired, “Sexy Dexy”, as Giants fans call him, is arguably the best interior defensive lineman in football. His 89.5 run defense calculated by Pro Football Focus was third among defensive linemen in 2023, while his 92.6 pass rush grade was first among the position; absolutely dominant numbers. His numbers don’t really jump off the page at first glance, as he only has 12 sacks over the last two seasons, but his advanced stats tell the full story of just how good he is. Just to give an example, his 81 total pressures when lined up at “nose tackle” over the last two seasons are 65 more than Carolina Panthers’ Derrick Brown, who placed second with 16. He is truly a game changer for the Giants defense, and the main building block for any future acquisitions, such as the one that they made this offseason.
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Speaking more to the fact that Lawrence is the most essential piece to this New York defense is how the front office went out and traded for edge rusher, Brian Burns. While New York already has Kayvon Thibodeaux, they decided to upgrade the defensive line even more with another star pass rusher. This now gives Dexter Lawrence more of an opportunity to get to the quarterback and stop the run, since a lot of pressure is off of him.
Edge rusher as a whole is a loaded position on the Giants’ roster. Thibodeaux is only going into his third year and is already one of the better pass rushers in the league. He showed a lot of promise in his rookie season after being selected with the fifth pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, but his breakout happened last year as he totaled 11.5 sacks in the 17 games he played. Despite looking like the best young piece on New York, Giants General Manager Joe Schoen decided that he wanted Brian Burns on his team, as he traded a 2024 second-round pick and a 2025 fifth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers in order to get the 26-year-old. Schoen had so much faith in his investment that he even gave Burns a five-year, $141 million deal right after trading for him; which he has more than earned. In his five-year career, he has had seven and a half sacks or more in every season that he has played, in addition to being one of the best run stopping edge rushers in the game. If he pans out in New York similarly to how it did in Carolina, the trio of Burns, Lawrence, and Thibodeaux could form a top tier defensive line; if they haven’t done so already.
“They’re pretty much going to have to pick their poison. With Dex demanding so much attention, and Kayvon also demanding attention, it’s going to free us up.”
There’s also the matter of Azeez Ojulari, who set the franchise record for most sacks in a rookie season with the Giants back in 2021. He has had a long history with injuries since he first stepped into the league, but when he is on the field, he is immediately recognizable. With 16 sacks in just 35 games, he has proved that he can be great when healthy. With new Giants defensive coordinator, Shane Bowen, leading the philosophy of “stopping the run on the way to the quarterback”, it should be interesting to see what role Ojulari plays in this defense, because it may be a huge one.
Behind this very impressive defensive line, lies two exceptional linebackers in Bobby Okereke and Micah McFadden. Okereke was signed as a free agent from the Indianapolis Colts last offseason and made his mark on the Giants right away, posting what many called a “snubbed All-Pro season”. His 149 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, two and a half sacks, six turnovers (two interceptions, four forced fumbles), and 10 passes defended were numbers that fell in the top ten among all linebackers last season. He also played 100% of the Giants defensive snaps last season, where he was one of only two defensive players in the league to do so.
His partner, McFadden, took a huge leap forward while under Okereke’s wing, as many thought that his play during his rookie year was lackluster. Flash forward to last season, his sophomore year, and he tallied up 101 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, five turnovers (one interception, four fumble recoveries), and a sack; the definition of an underrated season. Together they proved that they can be one of the best linebacking duos in the league, not just now, but hopefully over the course of a few years, as Okereke is 27 and McFadden is only 24.
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New York hasn’t had a great linebacking duo since the 2017 season, where Jonathan Casillas and Devon Kennard highlighted the team’s depth chart, but it is currently one of the brightest spots on the Giants. Now, add in the fact that New York actually has a great trio at the linebacker position, and it is maybe the best group in the league.
Isaiah Simmons is not the player that people expected him to be when he was drafted eight overall to the Arizona Cardinals in the 2020 NFL Draft. Coming out of Clemson, his ability to play in multiple different defensive positions is what many front offices’ considered to be a luxury. The only problem was that Arizona never fully utilized his play, as he was confined to linebacker most of the time, and then placed all over the field during random points in the game. That all changed when the Giants’ traded a seventh-round pick to the Cardinals in order to get Simmons; mostly because former Giants Defensive Coordinator, Wink Martindale, wanted a player that he could use in his various blitz packages.
However, his game went a lot further than being “just a blitz guy” as he racked up 50 tackles, one sack, and three takeaways (one forced fumble, fumble recovery, interception). With Shane Bowen coming in, it is confirmed that he wants Simmons to play first and second-down nickel, meaning that he’ll be guarding slot receivers and tight ends most of the time. It is also confirmed that Bowen wants him to play “money” on third-down, meaning that he can line up as any position on the field; mostly linebacker, safety, and edge rusher.
Simmons might not be a “true middle linebacker” but his ability to line up next to Okereke and McFadden, while also playing cornerback, safety, and edge rusher, is what separates him from other hybrid defensive players. That’s also the biggest reason why New York brought him back on a one-year contract this offseason. If all goes well this year, and Bowen utilizes Simmons in the way that he wants, Giants fans’ could be looking at a Pro Bowl caliber season.
While the Giants’ front seven is newly built and looking to win some games, the secondary is still not quite up to par. The loss of Xavier McKinney to the Green Bay Packers in free agency was a huge hit to this unit, but the team has surprisingly bounced back from the loss. In order to fill the gaping hole that McKinney left at the free safety position, the Giants’ went out and got Tyler Nubin out of the University of Minnesota in the second round of the NFL Draft. Nubin is known for being a “ballhawk” as he had 12 interceptions during his final three years at the school. According to Pro Football Focus, Nubin has also only allowed a 33.0 passer rating in coverage since his sophomore year at Minnesota; one of the top reasons as to why he was considered the best safety in this year’s draft. Nubin will be starting alongside strong safety Jason Pinnock, who’s exceptional play last season was overshadowed by how good McKinney was. His 85 tackles, two sacks, and two interceptions were more than enough to solidify himself as a leader of this secondary. Combine the veteran play of Pinnock, a newcomer in Nubin, and a rotational guy in Dane Belton, who was nicknamed “Mr. Takeaway” for how good he was at creating turnovers, and this safety unit is right back to where it was last season.
Cornerback is in the same boat as well, as New York has found a gem in Deonte Banks, who was selected in the first round of last year’s draft. Banks was arguably a snub for Defensive Rookie of the Year, and has proved that he can shut down some of the league’s elite wide receivers; such as Terry McLaurin and A.J. Brown.
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While opposing teams’ only threw to Banks about four times a game on average, it was the rest of the cornerbacks that were the problem. Adoree’ Jackson regressed a ton from his solid campaign in 2022, Cor’Dale Flott didn’t break out like Giants fans’ expected, and it was just one big revolving door for different players at the position. New York addressed the issue a little bit in the offseason by not signing Jackson back, and drafting Andru Phillips in the third round of the draft, but that was about it. Phillips can be a great addition to the team as he only allowed three touchdowns during his entire time at Kentucky, but he might not be ready to line up as a starter in Week 1. At the moment, Head Coach Brian Daboll confirmed that Flott would be the second cornerback on the depth chart, but it’s all a matter of who comes out on top at the end of training camp. With Darren Waller retiring from the team, it clears up $11.6 million in cap space. Could this mean that a veteran cornerback is on the way to the Big Apple?
It’s still unconfirmed who will start in what position and who will end up backing up who, but the Giants’ defense has a bright future ahead of them. If the offense can do the absolute bare minimum and put up a few scores a game, New York is bound to win this season.
In every year that the Giants’ won the Super Bowl, it started off because their defense was elite. With all of these pieces on the same field, it might not be crazy to say that other teams’ will end up fearing the New York Giants and their defense.