And with 4:00 comes the end of the preseason for the 2014 New York Giants. We have our final 53 man roster -- at least for now.
Offense
Quarterback - 2
1) Eli Manning
2) Ryan Nassib
Running Back - 3
1) Rashad Jennings
2) Andre Williams (rookie)
3) Peyton Hillis
Fullback - 1
1) Henry Hynoski
Wide Receiver - 6
1) Victor Cruz
2) Ruben Randle
3) Odell Beckham Jr (rookie)
4) Jerrel Jernigan
5) Preston Parker
6) Corey Washington (rookie)
Tight End - 3
1) Larry Donnell
2) Adrien Robinson
3) Daniel Fells
Offensive Line - 10
1) Will Beatty
2) Justin Pugh
3) JD Walton
4) Geoff Schwartz
5) Weston Richburg (rookie)
6) Brandon Mosley
7) James Brewer
8) John Jerry
9) Charles Brown
10) Dallas Reynolds
Defense
Defensive End - 5
1) Jason Pierre-Paul
2) Mathias Kiwanuka
3) DaMontre Moore
4) Robert Ayers
5) Kerry Wynn (rookie)
Defensive Tackle - 5
1) Cullen Jenkins
2) John Hankins
3) Mike Patterson
4) Jay Bromley (rookie)
5) Markus Kuhn
Linebacker - 6
1) Jon Beason
2) Jacquian Williams
3) Devon Kennard (rookie)
4) Jameel McClain
5) Spencer Paysinger
6) Mark Herzlich
Safety - 4
1) Antrel Rolle
2) Stevie Brown
3) Quentin Demps
4) Nat Berhe (rookie)
Cornerback - 5
1) Prince Amukamara
2) Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
3) Walter Thurmond III
4) Zack Bowman
5) Trumaine McBride
Special Teams - 3
Punter - Steve Weatherford
Kicker - Josh Brown
Long Snapper - Zak DeOssie
Initial Thoughts
- First off, this team has a tremendous number of rookies and second-year players. There is either a first- or second-year player at every position except TE, CB, and the ST's specialists. There has been a lot of talk this past offseason about re-energizing the team, and having this much youthful enthusiasm is a great way to do it.
- Secondly, this is a pretty balanced roster. There are, of course, areas of weakness that still could be addressed. However, they Giants assembled a roster that is much more balanced than some projected.
- Third, while the safety spot is a bit thin, this secondary is just stacked with talent. When your number two starter -- who was a very solid number two at that -- drops all the way to number four or five on the depth chart in the span of a year, you have done some serious work.
- Finally, there is a very good chance -- maybe even a certainty -- that this is not the true final roster. The Giants can not use the "Short Term" IR designation until Sept. 4th, so they may yet be needing to fill Geoff Schwartz's roster spot. Also, the Giants are in the fairly unfamiliar position of having the 12th claim on the waiver wire. There are a few very interesting names out there, most notably running back Lache Seastrunk and defensive end Michael Sam. Hopefully, the Giants will make good use of their position on the waiver wire and continue to upgrade the team. Then go a good long time before getting this early a claim again.
That's it folks, the off-season is finally over. When the Giants take the practice field on Tuesday it will be to game plan for the Detroit Lions, and when they take the field Sunday, it's for real.