Giants host former Pro Bowl LB Anthony Barr

The New York Giants hosted linebacker Anthony Barr on Thursday, per a report from Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

Barr had previously met with the New Orleans Saints, but left New Orleans without a deal. Rapoport added that no deal appears imminent with the Giants as well. The Giants appear set at off-ball linebacker at the moment, with Bobby Okereke in place as their starting MIKE, with second-year linebacker Micah McFadden at the WILL position. Fellow sophomore linebacker Darrian Beavers is coming along as well, though DC Wink Martindale has McFadden in the lead for the starting job alongside Okereke.

“I thought Micah played really well in the game. He did a lot of good things,” Martindale said. “I think that this is truly Beavers’ rookie year because of the ACL, and he’s missed so many practices that Micah’s got a year under his belt. It’s a good competition and Micah is definitely leading right now.”

Barr, 31, is best known as a Pro Bowl player for the Minnesota Vikings, but last played for the Dallas Cowboys. Barr has rare physical traits for an off-ball linebacker at 6-foot-5, 255 pounds and is still reasonably productive. He played in 14 games for Dallas in 2022, starting 10, and notched 58 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 4 QB hits, and a pair of fumble recoveries.

Barr shouldn’t be terribly expensive if he does wind up signing with the Giants. He played on a 1-year, $2 million contract a year ago.

The Giants’ interest in Barr is likely them doing their due diligence on a big-name free agent. It’s only smart to check on his conditioning, get familiar with him personally, and update their report on him should they need to sign a linebacker at some point in the future.