Overview of the New York Giants Defense
The 2025 Giants were not a good defense, but they were not horrible in all aspects. The pass defense was the definition of mediocre. New York finished 17th in yards, 19th in yards per attempt, and 18th in completion percentage. Even the pass rush was middle of the pack with their 39 sacks tied for 15th. Unfortunately, they were no better than mediocre at anything. The Giants allowed the 8th most points, and were 25th in takeaways, but run defense was where they struggled the most. Only the Bengals gave up more yards on the ground. No one allowed more per carry or more runs of 20+ yards, and the 21 rushing scores tied for 28th.
The turmoil was accentuated when the team began firing coaches in November. Head coach Brian Daboll was the first to go, followed shortly by the defensive coordinator. The hiring of John Harbaugh as head coach made good sense. He is a proven commodity who has won many games, including a Super Bowl. The selection of Dennard Wilson as defensive coordinator is a different story. Granted, Wilson did not have much talent to work with during his two seasons as the DC in Tennessee, but his defenses there were butt ugly. On the positive side, his scheme turned a few players into fantasy stars.
At least we know what Wilson's defense will look like. It's a press-heavy 3-4 base that uses a lot of 4-2-5 nickel with zone coverage about 75% of the time. The concept is to press receivers and disrupt at the line, while forcing the passer to rush his throws with heavy pressure from the defensive line. From that perspective, he has a lot more talent to work with in New York.
After trading Dexter Lawrence II to the Bengals, the organization strongly addressed the interior line and linebacker positions to boost the run defense. Free agency brought nose tackle DJ Reader, who is known as one of the league's better anchors, and veteran Shelby Harris. Both should start. The rest of the depth chart at tackle was revamped as well, with three other veterans added.
It had been a long time since New York made a serious investment at linebacker. That trend was broken with the signing of free agent Tremaine Edmunds and the round one selection of Arvell Reese. That duo is a huge upgrade against both run and pass, and they are playmakers, which is something the Giants have been missing at the second level for years.
The secondary was not left out. Greg Newsome II joins Paulson Adebo in the starting lineup with second-round pick Colton Hood likely contributing early. New York also signed three veteran safeties.
The Giants will miss Lawrence in the middle, and Dane Belton as their third safety, but all things considered, this unit is much improved on paper. Now we need to see if Wilson is indeed the man to lead them to the promised land.
New York Giants Defensive Line
Brian Burns has been a model of year-to-year consistency. He has recorded between 7.5 and 8.5 sacks in five of his seven seasons, can always be counted on for more than 30 solo stops and at least 19 assists, and has forced 16 turnovers in seven seasons. Most of those numbers come from the five years he spent with the Panthers. Since signing with the Giants two years ago, he has taken the next step onto the elite tier.
Burns recorded the best tackle totals of his career in 2024. At 41-29-8.5 with 2 forced fumbles and a career-best 8 batted passes, he was the fantasy game's number four edge that season. His tackle production was ever so slightly lower in 2025, but his career-best of 16.5 sacks was second in the league. Add 4 turnovers and 7 batted passes, and Burns was the only player within 10 points of Myles Garrett at the top. Burns is 28 years old, in the prime of his career, and signed through 2028.
Abdul Carter was the consensus number one edge defender in last year's draft. As I've mentioned several times before, even the elite edge guys often don't blossom until year two. Carter is on that trajectory. He had half a sack in week one, then virtually vanished until week 13. Through his first 12 games, Carter was 12-11-.5 with a fumble recovery. Then the light came on. In his final four contests, he was 10-7-3.5 with 2 forced fumbles and a recovery.
Carter is an elite talent with exceptional quickness, power, and an arsenal of moves that includes a spin that can leave offensive linemen blocking air. He stands up well at the point of attack and has the skill set and motor to light up the stat sheet. Carter passed all of the tests coming out of Penn State, with an emphasis on college production. He put up good numbers in all three seasons with the Nittany Lions, but his 2024 was eye-catching at 43-25-12 with 2 forced fumbles, 4 batted passes, and a conference-leading 24 tackles for loss. If he picks up where he left off last season, which seems likely, Carter will join Burns in the top 12 and could be headed for a seat on the elite tier himself.
When the Giants used the fifth overall pick on Arvell Reese, speculation began to fly that the crowded edge position would lead to the trade of Kayvon Thibodeaux. Some still believe that will happen, but now that we know the plan is to play Reese at inside linebacker, it is far less likely. Thibodeaux has somewhat underperformed since being drafted fifth overall in 2022, but that has been largely due to injuries.
Like so many other high picks at the position, Thibodeaux started slowly. In year two, he stepped up with 50 tackles, 4 turnovers, and 11 sacks. He missed six games in 2024 and seven more in 2025, crashing his production and fantasy value. A trade to the right situation might be the best thing that could happen. If it doesn't, he will settle in as the third man and have marginal fantasy value unless someone gets hurt.
The Giants will miss Dexter Lawrence II. He was a rare commodity at the tackle position because he made an impact as a pass rusher as well as an anchor for the run defense. The elbow injury he suffered early last year was a major contributor to the team's struggles against the run. D.J. Reader is not much of a drop-off on running downs, but he is not the same kind of contributor against the pass, or in the box scores.
The only interior lineman on the roster with more than one sack last year is Darius Alexander. Last year's third-round pick contributed 3.5 while working as the third man in the rotation. Alexander moves into the starting lineup this year and is the favorite to lead the team's tackles on the stat sheet. Only time will tell if he can make enough impact to have fantasy value, but put him on your sleeper list as a possible late/last round flier.
- Edge Brian Burns – Elite tier ED1
- Edge Abdul Carter – Rising star who could make the top 12 in year two
- Edge Kayvon Thibodeaux – Injury sleeper
- Edge Chauncey Golston – Marginal impact
- Edge Khalid Kareem – No impact expected
- DT Darius Alexander – Late round sleeper at a thin position
- DT Shelby Harris – Marginal value at best
- NT DJ Reader – Could post decent tackle totals
- DT Zacch Pickens – No impact
- DT Bobby Jamison-Travis – No impact
- DT Sam Roberts – No impact
- NT Leki Fotu – No impact