2022 Giants training camp preview: Defensive line
The New York Giants’ defense will be under a different direction this season with the arrival of coordinator Wink Martindale, one of the best in the business the past decade.
The unit will be coached by the well-travelled line coach Andre Patterson and former Pro Bowl linebacker-turned-coach Bryan Cox.
The Giants are relying on a mixture of holdovers and newcomers to form a group that hopefully will become the foundation of Martindale’s scheme.
Here is a quick rundown of the defensive line heading into training camp.
1
1
p
p
e
e
2
2
h
h
Leonard Williams and Dexter Lawrence
AP Photo/Corey Sipkin
Leonard Williams, the highest paid player on the team with a salary cap hit of $27.3 million, played 75 percent of the defensive snaps last season. The Giants would likely prefer to see him play a few less this season so that he be more effective late in games.
Williams’ sack total dipped to 6.5 last year after an 11.5-sack performance in 2020. He did still have 14 quarterback hits.
Lawrence played 64 percent of the defensive snaps last year and recorded 54 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, five tackles for a loss and 11 quarterback hits.
The two will likely see fewer snaps in the rotation to keep them fresh but should remain the stalwarts up front. David Moa will also return from last year’s team. He played in four games after being signed from the practice squad.
Free agents
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
The Giants signed two veteran free agents Justin Ellis and Jalyn Holmes.
Ellis, 31, began his career with the Oakland Raiders as a fourth-round pick out of Louisiana tech in 2014. He started 16 games in three of his five seasons with the Raiders. Ellis played the last three seasons for the Baltimore Ravens, where he was a rotational lineman in Martindale’s defense.
Holmes, 26, was a fourth-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2018 out of Ohio State. He played three years in Minnesota before getting waived last year and was picked up by the New Orleans Saints.
Ellis will play interior line and will most likely start while Holmes is listed as a defensive end.
Rookies
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
The Giants drafted Arizona State’s D.J. Davidson in the fifth round in this year’s NFL draft. They are high on his prospects and he could end up seeing significant playing time.
They also signed Michigan’s Christopher Hinton, Ryder Anderson of Indiana and South Carolina’s Jabari Ellis as UDFAs.
[pickup_prop id=”25509″>
1
1
