The defensive line has been an area of concern for the New York Giants this year, or at least for Giants fans.
The line will look profoundly different in 2026 than it has in recent years, not just due to a bevy of new additions, but also due to who’s missing.
The Giants have added 9nine new defensive tackles this year. They’ve signed free agents D.J. Reader, Shelby Harris, Leki Fotu, Sam Roberts, and Josh Tupou. They also claimed Zacch Pickens off of waivers from the Kansas City Chiefs, drafted Bobby
Jamison-Travis, and signed Anquin Barnes Jr. and Ben Barten as undrafted free agents.
Of course, the other big difference is the absence of Dexter Lawrence II, who was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals for the 10th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Those big differences lead us to some questions the Giants can start to answer in mini-camp.
What will the line look?
The Giants aren’t trying to replace what Lawrence was able to bring to the field at his best, but instead seem to be interested in raising the unit’s floor. They’ve assembled a cast of veteran tackles who largely excel at occupying blockers and controlling gaps, rather than penetrating into the backfield.
The line was dealt a blow when veteran Roy Robertson-Harris suffered a torn Achilles during OTAs. Robertson-Harris was a starter last year and was expected to at least be in the rotation this year. The Giants believe that there’s a chance that the veteran can make a return late in the season and will try to avoid putting him on the injured reserve until after final cut-downs. But still, his injury will test the Giants’ depth throughout the off-season and into the season.
Now, the starting offensive line has been Darius Alexander, D.J. Reader, and Leki Fotu thus far through OTAs. We have yet to see veteran free agents Sam Roberts (undisclosed) and Shelby Harris thus far in practices, so we don’t know how the Giants intend to use them in the rotation.
We’ll also get to see how other defenders like Pickens, Tupou, Barnes, and Barten all figure into the rotation.
There’s also the question of how Chauncey Golston figures into the Giants’ plans. Will he be a down defensive lineman as a defensive end and pass rushing defensive tackle, or will he also be used as an edge defender?
How does Bobby Jamison-Travis figure in?
Giants fans were disappointed when the team didn’t trade up for Ohio State defensive tackle Kayden McDonald or show any real interest in drafting a defensive tackle until the sixth round. That was when the Giants used the first of their three sixth -round picks (186th overall) to select the big tackle out of Auburn.
Jamison-Travis didn’t have much production in college, but was quietly solid in both run defense and in occupying blockers to create opportunities for his teammates.
How Jamison-Travis slots into the Giants’ defensive line rotation will be very telling as to their opinion of the rookie. Will he be with the second or third team? Or will he get run with the first team to be tested against the Giants’ starting offense? He reportedly had some nice plays in run defense in OTAs, could the Giants have found a gap-controlling gem late in the draft?
Play with the linebackers
There’s only so much we can tell about line play at this point in the off-season program. The pads have yet to go on things like hits and sacks are simulated. We also won’t see much of the Giants’ scheme at this point as coaches are still in the process of laying the groundwork.
However, we could get some glimpses of how the Giants intend to deploy their defensive line in conjunction with their plethora of athletic linebackers in both team sessions and situational periods.
Will the Giants use a traditional two-gap 3-man line with two rush linebackers to create a five-man front? Will they use a more traditional 4-2-5 nickel look with Brian Burns, Abdul Carter, or Kayvon Thibodeaux as defensive ends? Or could they use two big tackles as block-eaters and run a 2 down linemen in an effort to get all Burns, Carter, Thibodeaux, and rookie Arvell Reese all on the field at the same time in a modern day “Four Aces” package? There were reports coming out of the final OTA open to the media that the Giants got all four (plus Tremaine Edmunds) on the field at the same time. How much of that will we see in mini-camp, and how will they deploy their defensive tackles in front of those linebackers?
As mentioned above, the Giants seem content to collect tackles who can occupy blockers and clog the middle. Will we get to see more of the blitz looks intended to make use of the holes opened by those big men?
