He’s back! No, it may not be the Prince Amukamara signing that many New York Giants fans have been hoping for, but the team has opted to reunite with another former starter, headlining a slew of roster moves.
The Giants announced on Wednesday that they have signed center Jon Halapio and wide receiver Johnny Holton. To make room for their new additions, New York has cut bait with offensive tackle Jackson Dennis and Jaquarius Landrews. The latter of which was waived with an injury designation.
Halapio Returns to NY
Halapio has spent the past three seasons with the Giants after being released by the New England Patriots as part of final roster cuts ahead of the 2016 season. The former sixth-round selection out of Florida has entered each of the past two years as the team’s starter at center, including a 2019 campaign in which he started 15 games. Halapio would go on to tear his Achilles in the final week of the regular season, leading to offseason surgery.
Halapio’s injury originally put not only his Giants career in doubt, but also the entirety of his 2020 season. However, Giants GM Dave Gettleman remained fairly adamant throughout the summer that Halapio would always have a home in New York once healthy.
“Halapio is coming back, hopefully he’ll be ready to go and recovered from the Achilles by June. We’re just going to keep working at it,” Gettleman said during a conference call in late April.
It may be a little behind schedule, but Halapio is officially back in the fold with less than two weeks until kickoff, posing as intriguing competition to projected starter Nick Gates.
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Johnny Holton Has Chance to Be Key Contributor
Will Holton carve out a role as one of Daniel Jones’ top receiving targets? Likely not. However, that’s not to say that his addition won’t be felt elsewhere on the roster.
With special teams ace Cody Core on season-ending IR due to a torn ACL, special teams aficionado, Joe Judge, is in search of help in the forgotten facet of football.
Holton showed well in punt coverage during the 2019 season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, collecting four solo tackles and eight combined tackles. The 29-year-old has 25 career tackles under his belt over his 48-game NFL career.
Undrafted out of Cincinnati in the 2016 NFL Draft, Holton entered the league with the then-Oakland Raiders, before a short-lived stint with the Philadelphia Eagles led to his eventual move to Pittsburgh.
As a receiver, Holton has hauled in a grand total of 14 receptions for 273 yards and three touchdowns during his four-year career.
Holton will compete with the likes of undrafted free-agents Binjimen Victor and Austin Mack as well as camp standouts David Sills and Alex Bachman for the final two-to-three receiver spots on the roster.
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Giants Re-Sign Former Starter, Add Ex-Steelers WR