The New York Giants have a 90-man roster spot to fill after Darren Waller retired from the NFL officially on June 10.
The first group of veteran tryouts for the job include a few different positions. “Tryout players at Giants mandatory minicamp, which starts [on June 11], per the camp roster: CB Tre Herndon III, TE Noah Togiai, TE Geor’quarius Spivey, OL Kellen Diesch,” reported New York Daily News media member Pat Leonard on Tuesday morning.
NorthJersey.com beat reporter Art Stapleton also confirmed these free agent tryouts, among others that were live on the scene.
Giants Take a Look at Tre Herndon & Kellen Diesch as Minicamp Gets Underway
The headliners from this group are easily Herndon and Diesch. The former began his career as an undrafted free agent before finding a long-term home with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Herndon has always been more of a role player than a bona fide starter, but he has experience in both areas. Since 2018, the 5-foot-11 defensive back has started 34 games, appearing in 85 overall.
He earned his most usage as a defensive starter in 2020 (1,016 snaps) but has also contributed on special teams in every season that he’s been with the Jags.
Herndon is versatile enough to line up in the slot, or along the perimeter as a true cornerback. He can also play both safety positions in a pinch. According to Pro Football Focus, the 28-year-old DB has a career passer rating against of 112.3 in coverage, with 17 touchdowns allowed compared to three interceptions and 25 pass breakups.
He’s also struggled as a run defender and tackler at times throughout his tenure in Jacksonville — 16.2% career missed tackle rate and sub-50.0 grades as a run defender the past three seasons. Having said that, a Herndon signing would add experience and versatility to this secondary.
As for Diesch, the former Arizona State offensive tackle was a surprise UDFA in 2022. Weighing in at 6-foot-7, he’s an intriguing blocking prospect that several teams have taken a crack at already — with brief stops in Miami, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Cleveland since entering the league.
Diesch is still only 24 years old, and the Giants need all the offensive line depth they can find, so this could theoretically be a good fit for the prospect if Big Blue sees a glimmer of potential while he’s in the building.
Giants Also Host UFL RB Jacob Saylors on Day 1 of Minicamp
The final two reported tryouts were tight ends. Togiai is a blocking tight end who has played most of his career with the division rival Philadelphia Eagles. While Spivey is a 6-foot-5 UDFA out of Mississippi State.
There was one UFL visit on June 11 too, however, St. Louis Battlehawks running back Jacob Saylors.
According to Fox Sports, Saylors accumulated 611 all-purpose yards this year with eight total touchdowns and 460 rushing yards. His yards per carry average was 4.90 with St. Louis.
Saylors has very little NFL experience after entering the league last offseason. He spent some time inside the Cincinnati Bengals organization but failed to latch on.
In college, Saylors played at East Tennessee State and put together back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns in 2021 and 2022. He had 27 total touchdowns over that stretch.
Saylors also returned kick-offs for East Tennessee State and could theoretically become another candidate to try out for a kick returner role in New York. There’s been a growing emphasis on this position in 2024 after the NFL altered the kick return rules to allow for more creativity.
We’ll see if any of these five impress the Giants enough to garner a signing during minicamp.
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Giants Bring in 4 Free Agent ‘Tryouts’ After Darren Waller Retirement: Report