New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen took some big swings on defense this past offseason, upgrading all three levels with top draft choices and strategically chosen free agents.
The question now is, what will this defense look like, and how effective will it be?
ESPN NFL studio analyst Mina Kimes believes the Giants can have a top-10 defense in 2025.
“I chose this team entirely based on the idea that the defensive line can just completely take over games and ruin the lives of quarterbacks,” Kimes said on The Mina Kimes Show.
Kimes likes the synergy that the Giants hope to achieve with their secondary, which consists of high draft picks Deonte Banks, Tyler Nubin, and Dru Phillips, as well as recent free-agent pickups Jevon Holland and Paulson Adebo.
“They also added some players in the back end that I think could stabilize things with Javon Holland at safety, Paulson Adebo, Phillips is really good. I really like the combination of Javon Holland and Tyler Nubin together, because I think you can have Nubin playing closer to the box where he’s better, personally,” Kimes said.
The real selling point is still the defensive front seven, which features All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, edge rusher Brian Burns, and rookie linebacker Abdul Carter.
“But set that aside. This is all about the front: Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence, Abdul Carter, Kayvon Thibodeaux. Yeah, it’s a nightmare,” she said. “And they’re deep, I like the D-Tackles they have. They drafted Darius Alexander as well, and bring in Chauncey Golston.
“Every year there’s a defense where the pass rush just goes nuclear and I feel like ‘why not the Giants?’ Why am I crazy to have them at 10?”
She’s not delusional. The Giants look scary on paper, and Kimes is not the first to let their imagination roam about what the defense can be. The addition of Carter, who the Giants plan on playing all over the field, could make them special.