Free agent wide receiver Kevin Curtis signed with the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday. He received a six-year deal worth $32 million that includes a $7 million signing bonus and $9.5 million in guaranteed money.
I've gotta say, while I've grown very impatient with the Giants lack of activity this off-season, they've been very disciplined when it comes to not overpaying for free agents. While still left scratching my head as to why they didn't make much of an effort to re-sign Luke Petitgout after cutting him due to salary cap reasons or free agent kicker Jay Feely, they haven't over payed in money, players, or draft picks for any players so far this off-season, something Ernie Accorsi tended to do.
So what should the Giants priorities before the NFL Draft in April? First of all, I think they need to re-sign linebacker Brandon Short. Short played for the veteran minimum last season, and despite missing a few games due to injury, played exceptional when healthy. He's a modest guy that wouldn't mind having to earn a starting spot, he can contribute on special teams, and even if it's not the veteran minimum I don't see Short demanding that much money, especially since he's stated several times that he wants to come back to New York.
Second priority would be to sign a veteran lineman. They're thin all around on the offensive line, so the more versatile the better. Assuming they don't find another starting lineman this off-season, it looks as though the starters will be David Diehl, Rich Seubert, Shaun O'Hara, Chris Snee, and Kareem McKenzie. The only other lineman that might actually be able to hold his own that's currently under contract would be tackle Guy Whimper, and he's never played a down in the NFL. The Giants have expressed interest in re-signing guard Grey Ruegamer. Matt Lehr, former Falcons guard, has also drawn interest from the Giants.
Me personally, I'm hoping offensive tackle Levi Brown out of Penn State will fall to the Giants in the 1st round of the draft and they'll actually take him. It would solidify the offensive line. A left tackle is much harder to find in this league than a linebacker or safety of starting caliber. And I think the best place to find a starting cornerback in this league is free agency, despite the high asking price of many of them. So that would leave the only logical pick for the Giants to be a left tackle, although i'd be content if the Giants got the right running back or a wide receiver in the first round.
Kicker is third priority. Rumors have been swirling around that the Giants are interested in Dolphins kicker Olindo Mare since he's likely to be traded or cut very soon. The Giants are high on Josh Huston, but he can't go into camp without competition. There are several kickers available on the free agent market, such as John Hall and Todd France, that would be suitable candidates for the job.
Now that Curtis is gone, there aren't many solid free agent wide receivers left on the market. Former Raven and Viking Travis Taylor is one receiver that's still out there, as well as former Seahawk Bobby Engram. It's important to bring in competition for the 3rd receiver spot to push Sinorice Moss.
Other than that, all other needs such as linebacker depth, secondary depth, more competition at defensive tackle, a 3rd down running back, and perhaps a 4th quarterback to compete for a spot in camp should be taken care of in the draft.
Don't get me wrong, I wish the Giants would take a more aggressive approach to their off-season, but the market this year isn't all that talented and many players have been grossly over payed. So maybe it's not the worst thing in the world that the Giants haven't been very active at all this off-season.
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