8 Giants who could be released or traded to save cap space
It’s that time of year again for the organizations who are going home for the postseason. It’s time for NFL teams to get their financial houses in order. Or at least begin to get that process in motion.
For the New York Giants, who have lost 10 or more games five straight years (seven of the last eight) and have so little cap room heading into 2022, deep cuts are in order.
Who could that be? Here’s a quick look.
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Let’s get this one out of the way right now. The Giants cannot save any cap space by cutting Saquon Barkley and his $7.2 million guaranteed fifth-year option.
The only way they can avoid absorbing that nut — as per Spotrac — is if they trade him.
Based on Barkley’s performance this year and his injury history, it’s hard to see any team stepping up to the plate and taking him off the Giants’ hands unless the Giants throw in a draft pick or shave some cash off Barkley’s salary.
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AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Sterling Shepard hasn’t played a complete 16-game season since 2018 due to a multitude of injuries. This year, he only appeared in seven games before blowing out his Achilles.
Shepard has two years left on his four-year, $41 million deal and there’s no way the Giants bring him back. By releasing him pre-June 1, they can save $4.5 million in cap space, which would increase to $8.5 million if they wait until after June 1 (that would also come with a dead cap hit of $3.995 million).
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
The Giants post-Tom Coughlin have not been able to figure out how to use tight ends. They never got Evan Engram straightened out and this year they squandered Kyle Rudolph’s presence as well.
That doesn’t mean they’ll keep Rudolph. They can save $1 million in cap space by releasing him before June 1 and $5 million if they release him afterward.
AP Photo/Brett Duke
The Giants might not want to reassess James Bradberry outright, they’re more likely to restructure him (for the third time) as he is still a viable player with a lot left in the tank.
Bradberry’s cap hits the next two seasons are tough to swallow at $19 and $9.7 million, so it’s almost a certainty the Giants will look to restructure at the very least.
Mike Stobe/Getty Images
Riley Dixon has not been impressive this season, something that has largely gone unnoticed since very few people care about the special teams when everything else is going wrong.
The Giants can save $3.2 million by releasing Dixon in both pre and post June 1 scenarios.
AP Photo/Mark Tenally
The Giants would hate to have to let Nick Gates go after all he’s done for them but the reality is, his leg fracture could be career-ending. The Giants could save $2.5 million by releasing him but it’s more likely they’ll ride this out until the medical team makes a determination and then any realize will have an injury designation.
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Devontae Booker has provided the Giants quality when called upon but with salary cap space at a premium, he might find himself in an unfair situation.
Booker doesn’t eat up a ton of cap space but if the Giants find themselves in a dire situation, they can cut bait and run. A pre-June 1 release would save Big Blue $2 million in cap space with a $1 million dead cap hit. A post-June 1 release would also save $2 million in cap space with no dead hit.
AP Photo/Corey Sipkin
This is a highly unlikely scenario — especially since injury complicates things — but the Giants could clear some space by parting ways with Blake Martinez.
Again, this is a highly unlikely scenario for a number of reasons but it’s worth pointing out. Cutting Martinez pre-June 1 (assuming he can pass a physical) would save the Giants $8.525 million to go along with a dead cap hit of $5.5 million. The same numbers apply to a post-June 1 cut.
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