Getty Ex-Panthers DL Woodrow Hamilton tackles Packers RB Aaron Jones.
Daniel Jones is still not cleared for contact. However, the New York Giants are evidently content with their quarterback room as is. So much so that on December 14 they announced that they have released quarterback Clayton Thorson. The move comes just one week after re-signing the former fifth-round pick as insurance with both Jones and Mike Glennon hobbled with injuries.
Of course, Glennon cleared concussion protocol in time to man starting duties under center for the Giants in Week 14. The eight-year veteran went on to play all 69 of the team’s offensive snaps against the Los Angeles Chargers, completing 47.2% of his passes for 191 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. According to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, the Giants will ride with Glennon as their starter for a third consecutive week for their upcoming divisional bout with the Dallas Cowboys. Glennon compiled 196 passing yards and one touchdown against Dallas back in Week 5 when pressed into duty after Jones exited the game early with a concussion.
Giants Protect 4, Add Depth to an Ailing Defensive Front
As far as quarterback depth goes beyond Glennon, the Giants also have backup Jake Fromm on their active roster as well as Brian Lewerke on the practice squad. Interestingly enough, unlike last week, the team opted not to designate Lewerke as one of their four protected practice squad players heading into Week 15. Instead, New York has protected wide receiver/return man Pharoh Cooper, defensive lineman David Moa and defensive backs Jarren Williams and Natrell Jamerson.
In other roster news, the team has announced the re-signing of defensive tackle Woodrow Hamilton, who was previously released on October 26. The addition is a corresponding move on multiple fronts. First, he replaces the vacant practice squad spot left behind by Thorson. Also, and more importantly, he gives New York some depth along their defensive front. Standout defensive lineman Leonard Williams suffered an elbow injury in the team’s loss to the Chargers that is expected to keep him out for a prolonged period — if not the entirety of the season.
Hamilton, 28, has ties to both New England and current Giants head coach Joe Judge — I know, shocker. As an undrafted free agent in 2016, the Ole Miss product was part of the Patriots’ Super Bowl LI-winning team. Judge served as the Patriots’ special teams coordinator that season. Hamilton has also spent time with the New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, and most recently, the Tennessee Titans, who he appeared in two games for earlier this season.
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Judge Talks Building a Foundation
With reports Judge is likely to stay put in East Rutherford this offseason, the second-year head coach has his sights on building a foundation with the Giants. Not focused on quick fixes, Judge detailed to reporters on December 13 the positives he’s seeing from his young roster as the season nears an end:
What I see on the field right now is we have a lot of young, developing players, a lot of guys that are going to end up being impact players for us and build a strong foundation on the field. There are a number of guys who are rookies, who are in their second or maybe even third year of their contracts that are really starting to turn the corner and show a lot of gains in terms of performance on the field as players, guys at key positions that you can see as we watch these guys in terms of how they practice and how they’re starting to carry it over. The reality is we put a lot of young players on the field and there are some learning curves and there are some things we have to help eliminate and can’t have one-offs with mistakes. But you can see the right demeanor of play, you can see the right style of play of what we want.