The New York Giants don’t have many holes left to plug during the waning days of 2023 NFL free agency, but another inside linebacker would be useful. Especially if the veteran thumper has Pro Bowl credentials and the versatility to make an impact in both phases of defense.
Deion Jones fits the bill, according to Charlotte Carroll of The Athletic. She named Jones as a potential “solid add” next to Bobby Okereke, who arrived from the Indianapolis Colts earlier this offseason.
Signing Okereke was the splash move the Giants needed to help fix a weak position, but the depth chart could still use a boost. Especially since Caroll noted how “veteran Jarrad Davis and 2022 Day 3 draft picks Darrian Beavers and Micah McFadden” are the only other options.
Fortunately, Jones is still on the market, despite leaving MetLife Stadium without a deal back in April. He’s also still a productive linebacker with plenty of range to be an asset in defensive coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale’s schemes.
Giants Have Already Met With Former Super Bowl Starter
Jones’ April visit with the Giants was reported by NorthJersey.com’s Art Stapleton.
Free agent ILB Deion Jones will visit with the #Giants tomorrow, per source. He’ll arrive in NJ tonight.
Would be interesting speed fit in the mix in remade group headlined by Bobby Okereke.
No deal ever materialized, but things could change based on the player’s track record. Jones earned Pro Bowl honors in 2017, one season after starting in Super Bowl LI for the Atlanta Falcons against the New England Patriots.
Four more seasons followed with the Falcons, but Jones never again reached the heights he’d achieved in ’17, when he logged 138 tackles. A trade to the Cleveland Browns in 2022 gave Jones the chance to get back on track, and he responded admirably by recording 44 tackles, 2.5 sacks and an interception in 11 games.
He snatched that lone INT against Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13. It was the 12th pick of Jones’ career, proof of his proficiency against the pass. The proof was further underlined by Jones allowing a completion percentage of just 62.5 from 24 targets last season, per Pro Football Reference.
His coverage numbers are impressive, but the Giants should be more intrigued by Jones’ skills on the blitz. Nobody sends pressure more than Martindale, who called the blitz a league-high 39.7 percent of the time in 2022, so he’d find ways to make Jones an active member of pressure packages.
Martindale will like plays like this sack of Burrow that involved Jones (54) attacking the pocket on a twist.
The @Browns defense is having a night!
📺: #CINvsCLE on ESPN
📱: Stream on NFL+ t.co/pvWWiaNKbW
Jones can also rush in a straight line and still get home, the way he did for the Falcons against Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins in 2021.
Debo applying the pressure 💪
📺: FOX | @debo
The Falcons blitzed Jones 61 times in 2020, when he registered career-highs for sacks (4.5) and pressures (16). His aggressive, downhill instincts and the versatility to play outside linebacker or in the middle, would make Jones a prominent part of the Giants’ blitz designs.
That’s enough to merit handing Jones at least a one-year flier when the Giants are still $4,853,175 under the salary cap, per Spotrac.com. A team-friendly contract makes sense for a gifted ‘backer who’s still only 28.
Adding Jones would turn what was the glaring weakness of Martindale’s defense into one of its core strengths.
Giants Still Need Help at Inside Linebacker
Okereke will make a difference, and Davis was brought back for a reason, but there’s still room for another infusion of talent at inside linebacker. Jones qualifies thanks to his track record for production, along with his natural fit in a pressure-based defense.
He’s only 6-foot-1 and 227 pounds, but Jones would be amply protected by a beefy defensive front led by 342-pound All-Pro nose tackle Dexter Lawrence. Letting Jones run free would mean the Giants putting a better sideline-to-sideline athlete than Davis, Beavers and McFadden on the field more often.
Giants’ general manager Joe Schoen could fill other gaps, including signing an experienced edge-rusher, but adding a starter-ready middle linebacker would have a greater impact on Martindale’s defense.
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Pro-Bowl Inside Linebacker Can Be ‘Solid Add’ for Giants