We're at the three-quarters pole of the NFL season, with only 4 games and weeks remaining (there are no more bye weeks left for any teams). The playoff picture is clearing up, and so is the top of the draft too. We can now see which teams are entrenched in the playoff race, and which ones are not. The Giants' victory in Washington last night keeps them in the race, but it'll take a minor miracle for them to get into "the tournament", as the great Bill Parcells terms the playoffs.
Here are the Unrestricted Free Agents (UFAs):
*Source: New York Giants 2013 Salary Cap - overthecap.com
- Hakeem Nicks (WR)
- Linval Joseph (DT)
- Jon Beason (MLB)
- Andre Brown (RB)
- Terrell Thomas (CB)
- Stevie Brown (S)
- Kevin Boothe (OG/C)
- Justin Tuck (DE)
- McKenna "Bear" Pascoe (TE)
- Curtis Painter (QB)
- Brandon Jacobs (RB)
- Da'Rel Scott (RB)
- Peyton Hillis (RB)
- Louis Murphy, Jr. (WR)
- Kris Adams (WR)
- David Diehl (OT/OG)
- Dallas Reynolds (C/OG)
- Shaun Rogers (DT)
- Mike Patterson (DT)
- Keith Rivers (OLB)
- Aaron Ross (CB)
- Trumaine McBride (CB)
- Ryan Mundy (S)
- Josh Brown (K)
**Please Note: TE Brandon Myers and CB Corey Webster are going to be Unrestricted Free Agents in 2014 as well. I didn't list them wit the players above because of the difference in Webster's and Myers's contracts. Both players have voidable years in 2014. Webster won't be back, and Myers most likely won't be brought back either. The Giants stand to gain $4,250,000 in extra cap room by voiding their contracts: $1 million in the case of Webster, and $3.25 million in the case of Myers. Here's a great article on how voidable years work below courtesy of Jason Fitzgerald of ovethecap.com:
From this bunch, the 3 who stand out are Nicks, Beason and Joseph. After that, the only players who merit realistic long-term consideration are injury prone types, like Terrell Thomas--provided T2 can stay healthy (which is a big "if"), Andre Brown (constant nicks--no pun intended--with his legs), and Stevie Brown (coming off of an ACL injury). Justin Tuck's an interesting case, but ultimately his price tag and the Giants' need to get younger and move on from players who may not be as hungry and who are 30 or older, is going to probably be too overwhelming to keep him, despite his 4-sack performance last night.
Here are the Restricted Free Agents (RFAs):
See the following list of 2011 Draft picks (Giants’ Picks in 2011 N.F.L. Draft - The Fifth Down: NY Times NFL Blog (May 1, 2011). Players with 3 accrued seasons who are not 1st round picks are RFAs. Players who were signed as Undrafted Rookie Free Agents (UDFAs), are also RFAs after their third accrued season. The following 7 players are RFAs.
- Henry Hynoski (FB)
- Mark Herzlich (LB)
- Spencer Paysinger (LB)
- Jim Cordle (C)
- James Brewer (OG/OT)
- Jerrell Jernigan (WR)
- Jacquian Williams (OLB)
I'll try and nail down who the Exclusive Rights Free Agents are (ERFAs) with more surety at a later date, but for now, the 31 aforementioned players are the ones who should be made note of (24 UFAs & 7 RFAs) as being definitely free in 2014. Listed below are the 36 players who are not Free Agents in 2014, as per overthecap.com:
P.S. If anyone notices that I'm off with any of this information, please don't hesitate to post a comment, e-mail me (optimus2g@aol.com), or tweet me (@NYGCapCentral).
P.S. If anyone notices that I'm off with any of this information, please don't hesitate to post a comment, e-mail me (optimus2g@aol.com), or tweet me (@NYGCapCentral).
