Big Blue View
Actually, there don’t have to be any losers
Leading up the 2025 NFL Draft, as it became clear that neither Cam Ward nor Travis Hunter was likely to be on the board when the New York Giants picked at No. 3, discussion shifted to whether the Giants would select Abdul Carter. Carter was the consensus No. 3 on most big boards and supposedly one of the few “generational” talents in this draft.
The discussion did not center so much around Carter himself but rather on Kayvon Thibodeaux, a previous No. 5 pick who has been a good but not great player and whose fifth year option had not yet been picked up by GM Joe Schoen. The signing of free agent Chauncey Golston in March only added to the questions about whether Schoen would pass on Carter and pick up Thibodeaux’s option, or choose Carter and decline Thibodeaux’s option.
The answer, as we now know, is that he took Carter (thank you, best player available philosophy) AND picked up Thibodeaux’s option. That didn’t end the questions, it only changed them to: Who’s going to start on the edge opposite Brian Burns and how will defensive coordinator Shane Bowen find snaps for both Thibodeaux and Carter? (Because Giants fans and the press corps never run out of questions about Giants players.)
Quoting from Ed’s article the other day about Shane Bowen, Bowen’s response to that was:
“You got three guys for two spots when you look at it from the outside in. It’s a really good problem to have,” Bowen said. “Got three really good players, three really talented players. Two of them that have done it in this league at a high level.
“Again, I think that’s something from a staff standpoint that we’re working through trying to find a way. Ultimately we want to get our best 11 on the field, whatever way we got to maneuver to do that. We got to find ways to get the guys that can impact the game on the field.”
Really, though, it’s a surprising controversy for this particular franchise to have, given its history. Here are the Giants’ primary edge defenders during their 21st Century Super Bowl “window” years (2000-2011). A “starter,” indicated in boldface, is anyone who started at least half the games that season:
Early in the 21st Century, the Giants had two clear “starters” on the edge: Michael Strahan plus one of Cedric Jones, Kenny Holmes, or Keith Washington on the other side. Osi Umenyiora was a second round draft pick in 2003 but only started one game that year and seven the following year.
Things got interesting in 2005, though. The Giants drafted Justin Tuck in the third round, but he only a started a total of three games in his first three seasons, as Strahan and now Umenyiora were entrenched as the starters. That wasn’t a problem for Tuck, though - he managed 10 sacks despite only starting two games in 2007, and...
