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Cover 3: First impressions of initial 53-man roster

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The Giants.com crew reacts to the initial 53-man roster, which was announced on Tuesday:

John Schmeelk: I am struck by the youth on the initial roster. Of the 53 players, only nine are older than 27. Of those nine players, two are special teams players in Graham Gano and Casey Kreiter. Four of that group play on the offensive line, where having more of a veteran presence is essential. All four of those offensive linemen were additions this offseason: Jermaine Eluemunor, Aaron Stinnie, Greg Van Roten and Austin Schlottmann. Of the other three, one is the Bobby Okereke, who is a captain and the signal-caller of the defense. Tight end Chris Manhertz is another and defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches is the third. Most of those spots are positions where veterans are preferred.

On the other end of the spectrum, 29 of the 53 players are 25 or younger, with 25 only 24 years old or younger. Thirty-two of the initial 53 players on the roster have four years of experience or fewer, which means they are essentially still on their rookie contracts and haven't hit free agency yet.

The other striking part of looking at this roster sorted by age is how many of the essential players on this roster are also some of the youngest. Malik Nabers is the only 21-year-old on the roster and he is expected to be one of the focal points of the offense. Jalin Hyatt is 22, and he should have a prominent role at wide receiver. Wan'Dale Robinson is only 23. Dru Phillips is the other 22-year-old, and he is expected to start at nickel cornerback.

Deonte Banks, Cor'Dale Flott, Dane Belton and Tyler Nubin are all 23, and they are expected, along with Phillips, to be the primary players in the secondary. Nick McCloud (26), Jason Pinnock (25) and Gervarrius Owens (24) are the other two pieces in what must be one of the youngest defensive backfields in the NFL.

There might be some bumps along the way, but watching this young group come together and learn to play as a unit will be a lot of fun this season. The Giants' success this season will largely depend on many of their young players without a huge track record of success take the next step and prove themselves as productive NFL players.

View photos of the New York Giants' 2024 active roster as it currently stands.

Dan Salomone: It's not just coach speak when they say every season is different. That's why sustained success is difficult to achieve in the NFL, perhaps there more than any other major sports league. Last year was a reminder of that, even though Brian Daboll issued that same warning multiple times in the buildup to 2023.

One of the major reasons is roster turnover. Just take a look at this year. Of the 44 players who started at least one game for the Giants in 2023, there are 24 still on the active roster as of 4 p.m. Tuesday. Taking it a step further, only five of the 10 team captains from a year ago currently wear a Giants uniform.

The turnover is a mixture of planning for the future and simply the nature of the beast. The hope is, eventually, you assemble a core group that can grow together for multiple years. General manager Joe Schoen is starting to see that come to fruition in his third cycle of assembling a roster, particularly on defense.

"I know the players that are under contract for more than one year – Dexter [Lawrence] is under contract, [Brian] Burns is for five years, Kayvon [Thibodeaux] for three, [Bobby] Okereke for another three, Tae Banks for four, and got [Tyler] Nubin for four years," Schoen said back at the draft. "You've got a young core group of players that will be able to be together for [years]. And again, I know people want instant gratification, but it takes time to build this, and then over time, you have guys that are able to create continuity because they play together year over year. It was something we experienced in Buffalo. By the time we left, some of those guys had been playing together for four years in the same exact scheme, same defense, and playing together. … I'm excited about the young core that we have together and the guys that are under contract for multiple years and even guys that may only have a year left that potentially we can extend down the road. But I do think we have pieces in place that I like that are going to be together for a couple of years here."

View photos of every move made by the Giants during the 2024 cycle.

Matt Citak: The Giants were faced with some tough roster decisions, specifically at the bottom of the roster. No one that made the initial 53-man roster should be considered that big of a surprise. There are a few players that only a month ago would have been thought of as longshots to make the team, but strong performances throughout the summer led them to landing on the initial 53.

Let's start on offense, where two players in particular stood out. First up is guard Jake Kubas, who signed with the team as an undrafted free agent back in May. The former North Dakota State lineman had his work cut out for him to make the team, as he began as one of the third-team guards. But to put it simply, Kubas shined throughout the preseason. He allowed just one pressure on 23 pass block snaps in the preseason opener against the Lions, and followed that up by giving up one pressure on 17 pass block snaps against the Texans. He saved his best for the preseason finale when he was on the field for 28 pass block snaps and did not surrender a single pressure against the Jets. You love to see undrafted guys make the 53-man roster, and Kubas undoubtedly earned his spot. Then there's wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton, who had his rookie season cut short due to a torn ACL during last year's preseason. Ford-Wheaton worked extremely hard over the last 12 months to get back to his pre-injury form, as the young wideout showed plenty of promise in the first few weeks of last year's training camp. Ford-Wheaton made the initial 53-man roster not only as depth at wide receiver, but also for his abilities on special teams, where he will likely be a key contributor.

On the defensive side of the ball, let's start with defensive lineman Elijah Chatman. The undrafted rookie out of SMU became a fan favorite with his tremendous hustle play against the Texans in which he chased down running back J.J. Taylor 45 yards down the field. While that one play garnered the most attention, Chatman flashed throughout the summer. In the preseason opener, the young lineman led the Giants with five total pressures, including a sack and a 17.9 percent win rate on pass rush snaps. Chatman could see playing time in passing situations early on, a role he earned with a strong showing over the last month and one he could thrive in given his athleticism. Finally, there's outside linebacker Benton Whitley, who was the Giants' most consistent pass rusher in the preseason. Whitley originally went undrafted in 2022 and bounced around a few teams before the Giants signed him off the Vikings' practice squad last November, but he played limited snaps in a couple of games. Whitley ended up leading the Giants with 12 total pressures this preseason, including four pressures in each game. He registered 2.5 sacks and five quarterback hits across the three games while also playing on special teams, where he figures to contribute come Week 1.

The New York Giants unveiled a "Century Red" uniform to commemorate their 100th season.

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