MICHAEL EISEN: I'll say nine. It's a position group where substitutions are frequently made, so depth is essential. Let's say four ends (Jason Pierre-Paul, Mathias Kiwanuka, Damontre Moore and Robert Ayers) and five tackles (Cullen Jenkins, Mike Patterson, Johnathan Hankins, Markus Kuhn and Jay Bromley).  A rookie free agent who impresses in training camp and preseason games will make those decisions harder. If the Giants keep fewer than nine defensive linemen, they'll be releasing a good player.

JOHN SCHMEELK: Nine. This is a tough one, but I think the Giants keep four defensive ends (Moore, Kiwi, JPP, Ayers) and they will be forced to keep five defensive tackles (Hankins, Jenkins, Kuhn, Bromley, Patterson).