For all but four remaining teams, the 2024 NFL season has come to a close. And with the hiring cycle also wrapping up, it’s full steam ahead for the New York Giants and most other organizations.
While many analysts and fans will quickly turn their attention to the 2025 NFL draft, general managers around the league are focusing a bit more on free agency, which officially begins on March 12.
Giants general manager Joe Schoen has quite a bit on his to-do list with 30 players set to become free agents and a plethora of personnel issues that desperately need to be fixed.
Several hundred players will hit the open market in seven weeks and Pro Football Focus has compiled their list of the top 100. Of that group, just two of the Giants’ impending free agents made the cut.
Both of those players should have been dealt at the trade deadline, but that’s a story for another time.
First up? Linebacker Azeez Ojulari.
51. EDGE Azeez Ojulari, New York Giants
Ojulari is a classic designated pass-rush specialist with outstanding sack production on a limited snap count, failing to eclipse the 500-snap threshold since his rookie campaign. Underlying metrics like pass-rush win rate and pressure rate have never matched Ojulari’s sack totals, however, and he notched seven sacks on just 22 total pressures in 2024, with half of those pressures coming when unblocked or as clean-up pressures where the quarterback is chased into his area.
The issue with Ojulari has never been talent. He’s a productive player when he’s on the field, but injuries have defined his career. It seems unlikely the Giants re-sign him, which may benefit Ojulari. A change of scenery could be what the doctor ordered.
The last Giants player to make the list is an obvious one.
38. WR Darius Slayton, New York Giants
Shaky quarterback and offensive line play arguably limited Slayton’s production during his time with the Giants, which is unfortunate for a player who is a threat to break off an explosive play at any moment. The former fifth-round steal nonetheless had four seasons of at least 700 receiving yards on 15 yards per reception over his first five years in the league, which is harder to do when the quarterback has little time to wait for longer-developing routes downfield. Slayton is also the Giants’ 2024 Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee, showing he’d be an asset to any locker room.
Slayton has been the Giants’ most consistent wide receiver and is beloved by his teammates. However, his market valuation likely prices him out of New York’s range and similar to Ojulari, he could stand to benefit from taking his talents elsewhere.
