Getty Outside Linebacker Terrell Suggs #55 and defensive tackle Willie Henry #69 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrate after a sack in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions on December 3, 2017.
After releasing RJ McIntosh on Wednesday, the New York Giants made a move to add to their defensive line depth by signing former Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Willie Henry.
In order to make room for Henry, the Giants waived linebacker Cale Garrett. Henry was a fourth-round draft pick of the Ravens in 2016, but injuries limited him to just 17 games in Baltimore.
Henry‘s best season, was his only healthy one back in 2017, where he played in 14 games (three starts), while recording 3.5 sacks, 11 quarterback hits, 33 total tackles and six tackles for a loss.
Unfortunately, following this promising campaign, Henry underwent hernia surgery that derailed his 2018 season. The Ravens cut Henry in August of 2019, and he did not appear for another team during this season.
Henry signed a reserve/future contract with the San Francisco 49ers in January of 2020, but was waived in July with a non-football illness. Henry re-signed with the 49ers’ practice squad in late-October, and was brought up to the active roster for one game in November. After going back to the practice squad after the game, he was released on December 15.
The 27-year-old found a home on the Houston Texans’ practice squad for the remainder of the season, but he was back on the open market again in January.
The Philadelphia Eagles initially picked up Henry in late May but waived him prior to the start of training camp at the end of July. Now, he will look to stick on with a Giants team that is in need of defensive line depth after losing Dalvin Tomlinson to the Minnesota Vikings in free agency.
Giants Defensive Outlook
Offense a Question Mark
While the defense should be even better this year, the offense is the unit to be concerned about when looking at the 2021 New York Giants.
In Jason Garrett‘s first year as offensive coordinator, his unit ranked 31st in the NFL with 299.6 yards and 17.5 points per game. These anemic totals were only slightly better than the Giants’ lowly crosstown rivals in the New York Jets.
In Garrett’s defense, he did lose his star running back Saquon Barkley to a torn ACL just five quarters into the season. However, quarterback Daniel Jones took a big step back under the new play caller after an impressive rookie year in 2019.
Although they chose to stick with Garrett for another year, this season will be make-or-break for him, as the Giants went out and beefed up on skill players. General manager Dave Gettleman signed No. 1 wide receiver Kenny Golladay to a monstrous four-year, $72 million deal, and also brought in former Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph. And in the draft, the Giants traded back to pick No. 20, where they selected the dynamic versatile slot receiver Kadarius Toney out of Florida.
With Barkley coming back, there are no remaining excuses for Garrett and Jones. The Giants’ offense must turn things around next season, or else they will likely be in the market for a new offensive coordinator, and potentially a new quarterback by next year.
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