The Giants have stumbled into a strange kind of success through five weeks. At 3-1-1 and sitting alone at the top of the NFC East, they’ve managed to hold the division lead even after losing their starting quarterback and best pass rusher for the year. Now they’re headed back to MetLife Stadium in Week 6 to face the 1-4 New Orleans Saints, and a win on Sunday would push New York to 4-1-1 and give it a little more cushion in what looks like the league’s weakest division.
That record also puts Joe Schoen in an interesting spot with the Nov. 10 trade deadline creeping closer. If the right offer lands on his desk, there are a few Giants who could be available.
Theo Johnson is the kind of player who makes this exercise painful. At 6-foot-6 and 260 pounds, with a 9.93 out of 10.00 RAS score that ranks ninth among 1,199 tight ends evaluated from 1987 to 2024, he has the kind of size and athletic profile teams chase.
He’s also 25, which only adds to the appeal. But the Giants’ tight end room appears to belong to Isaiah Likely, and Johnson has been left with whatever is left over.
Through five games, he has four catches for 55 yards and a touchdown. The offense simply does not have the same kind of room for him now that Jaxson Dart is no longer under center and Likely is drawing double-digit targets every week.
Drops have been part of the story too, though that kind of problem is the sort a few trips with the JUGS machine can clean up.
Devin Singletary is another name that could make sense if another team is hunting for backfield help. This came down to him and Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Singletary ended up as the odd man out.
Tracy has had fumble issues, but so have Najee Harris and Cam Skattebo, so the whole room has handled the ball loosely. The bigger issue is that Singletary doesn’t bring much that the Giants don’t already have.
He isn’t especially big, fast, powerful, or efficient in space, and with Skattebo, Harris, and Tracy already there, he has become more of a luxury as RB4 in North Jersey. He’s still on his rookie deal with one season left in 2027, but a team looking for depth could probably tempt New York with a late Day 3 pick.
Micah McFadden is harder to ignore because the problem isn’t ability, it’s usage. He’s a proven tackler when healthy and could start for a number of teams, but Arvell Reese and Tremaine Edmunds have taken over the starting jobs and don’t seem in any hurry to give them back. McFadden is too good to spend the whole season glued to the sideline, and if a linebacker-needy team is willing to pay with a draft pick for a player who has 36 starts and 273 tackles, the Giants should listen.
John Michael Schmitz has already lost his grip on the starting center job, and the timing makes him a logical trade candidate. It took three years and three games, but he is no longer the starter in New York.
Bryan Hudson has taken over and played much better, which only makes Schmitz’s case look worse. His 45.7 overall PFF grade through three games this season ranked 33rd out of 34 qualified centers, and he has been one of the league’s worst at the position since entering the NFL.
With Schmitz in the final year of his rookie deal, the Giants could try to get something back now rather than let him walk for nothing.
Kayvon Thibodeaux is the biggest name on the list, and maybe the toughest call of all. The Giants could make the case for cutting bait entirely, but there’s still a trade path worth exploring.
His 2026 season has been rough enough to crater his value, but teams still tend to chase young edge rushers with his draft pedigree, especially when there have been flashes before. New Orleans reportedly offered a fourth-round pick for him in April, while the Giants were holding out for a second-rounder.
Since then, Thibodeaux has gone five games without a sack and has just one solo tackle. With Burns out for the season and Golston on IR, moving him would leave the pass rush thin.
Still, if another team is willing to make a worthwhile offer before Nov. 10, New York should at least take the call.
In Other News...
Giants Suddenly Have A Starting Safety Problem Around Tyler Nubin
Tyler Nubins spot in the Giants secondary has gone from stable to unsettled in a hurry. The third-year safety was hurt in Week 5 with a neck injury and is day-to-day, but the concern goes beyond his health because his grip on a starting job had already started to loosen before the injury.
Nubin has been losing snaps to Jason Pinnock and ArDarius Washington, leaving the Giants with a real decision to make alongside Jevon Holland. Pinnock is nearing a return from concussion protocol, which adds another layer to a rotation that has already shifted once this season and could shift again as the defense tries to settle on its best pairing at safety. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Offense May Have Found A New Identity With Winston
The Giants spent much of a recent game looking like a different offense once Jameis Winston started throwing more often, with Malik Nabers and Isaiah Likely becoming central pieces of the attack. The shift gave New York a more aggressive feel and hinted at a group that may be more comfortable when the game is in Winstons hands and the ball is moving through the air instead of being managed conservatively.
Isaiah Likelys role has been especially notable, because his work as a pass catcher has already stood out among NFL tight ends and given the Giants another reliable option in key spots. Even the late-game decision to play for overtime rather than chase a two-point conversion fit into the broader conversation around how this offense wants to operate, and whether the Giants are settling into a new identity or just revealing one for the first time. [Read more 🡒]
Giants May Have Found A Needed Answer On The Offensive Line
The Giants were forced to make a quick adjustment along the offensive line in Week 5 against Washington, and Marcus Mbow was the one who stepped in at right tackle after Jermaine Eleumunor went down. It was the kind of spot duty that can expose a young lineman in a hurry, especially against NFL edge pressure, but Mbow handled the sudden promotion with enough poise to give New York something to think about moving forward.
Over 45 snaps, Mbow allowed two pressures and largely got the job done in pass protection, showing the sort of baseline stability the Giants have been searching for up front. The tape also left room for growth in his technique and footwork, which is why this doesnt read like a finished answer so much as a promising start, but for a line that has needed help, it was the kind of outing that can earn a longer look. [Read more 🡒]