Big Blue View
The New York Giants have botched their safety situation during the Joe Schoen era. The general manager inherited safeties Xavier McKinney and Julian Love from Dave Gettleman. Both safeties were captains on the Giants; the latter left after the 2022 season, signing a two-year, $12-million contract with the Seattle Seahawks, while the former signed a massive four-year, $68 million contract with the Green Bay Packers at the end of the 2023 season.
Both players excelled in their new homes, with Love signing a three-year, $33-million contract to remain in Seattle. Schoen initially opted for a cheap safety solution, with Jason Pinnock as one option and Dane Belton as depth. Then Schoen spent the 47th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on Tyler Nubin, who showed promise in his rookie season but whose athletic capabilities were exposed in year two.
To rectify the weakness of the 2024 safety room, Schoen made a big investment in Jevon Holland to start the 2025 off-season. Holland signed a three-year, $45.3-million contract, and returns on that investment were minimal in year one, albeit a new defensive structure could certainly benefit both Holland and Nubin. Plus, the Giants may not be done investing at the position.
Jevon Holland, Tyler Nubin, Dane Belton, Raheem Layne, Beau Brade
Nubin showed promise during his rookie season but took a step back in Year 2. The image of Nubin struggling to keep pace with running backs up the sideline is one that Giants fans would gladly dispense with; however, to be fair, those backside gaps should never have been left vacant. Nubin was repeatedly placed in difficult situations that exposed his marginal speed and acceleration.
He finished the season with 71 tackles, 15 missed (16.9% missed tackle rate), and 20 STOPs near the line of scrimmage. Schoen drafted Nubin because of his ball-hawking skill set at Minnesota, where he set the university’s interception record. After two seasons, Nubin has two passes defensed and zero picks. Days could be brighter for Nubin, but he may be best suited closer to the line of scrimmage in a Belton-esque role. Nubin missed the final two games of the season with a neck injury.
Speaking of Belton, he played 705 defensive snaps, starting nine games for the Giants, while operating in his sub-package DIME/LB role. Belton started when Holland and Nubin were injured, and he finished the year with 94 tackles and just four missed (4.1% missed tackle rate), with 16 STOPs, four passes defensed, a pick, and three interceptions allowed. The 25-year-old is set to hit free agency.
Belton filled a valuable role for the Giants and was reliable, putting up his best season in a contract year. He played deep safety, buzz defender, in the slot, and he had 272 snaps in the box. You could do much worse than Belton as the third safety.
Holland was known as a ball hawk at Oregon and in the first two years of his professional career in Miami. That...
