Tom Rock: Grading the agreements made by the Giants and Jets

GIANTS

FB Patrick Ricard: A

What do you do when you don’t sign a guard? Sign a fullback as big as one. Listed at 6-3 and 300 pounds and the usher for Derrick Henry the past two seasons, Ricard will now be creating running lanes for Cam Skattebo, Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Devin Singletary. Few coaches believe in using fullbacks the way Harbaugh does and it was just a matter of time before they brought his favorite one up from Baltimore.

OT Jermaine Eluemunor: A

The Giants were not going to find a better starting right tackle in this free-agency class than the one they already had, and getting him to sign a three-year deal at $13 million per season with a reasonable out after two was shrewd business. Andrew Thomas and Eluemunor were two of the top pass-protecting tackles in the league in 2024 and the Giants also have second-year player Marcus Mbow, who proved he can step in as a spot starter at swing tackle. That should be enough to allow the Giants to not worry about the position until the third day of the draft at the earliest.

TE Isaiah Likely: B+

The Giants have been looking for a stretch-the-field tight end for a while now, going all the way back to the days of Travis Beckum and Adrien (“the JPP of tight ends”) Robinson. Some have come closer to the ideal than others, but no one has really done it. We’ll trust John Harbaugh on this, given that he drafted and coached Likely for four seasons in Baltimore, but he can be a little streaky when it comes to controlling the ball and offers little in terms of blocking. It will be interesting to see how he and Theo Johnson coexist.

LB Tremaine Edmunds: B+

There was a time during his first season with the Giants that Bobby Okereke was looking like one of the best free-agent signings in Giants history. Now Edmunds will come here and replace him. Edmunds was a Pro Bowl linebacker with the Bills before playing the last three seasons with the Bears, who recently released him. Still just 27 but with a lot of mileage heading into his ninth season, Edmunds gives the Giants' defense a new leader in the middle. If the Giants end up drafting Sonny Styles and Edmunds becomes his mentor, then the three-year, $36 million contract will become even more valuable.

LB Micah McFadden: B+

McFadden missing most of last season with a foot injury was an underplayed reason for the team’s overall flop. Now he is back on a one-year deal with a chance to show he can continue the upward trajectory his career was taking before he got hurt.

P Jordan Stout: B

Maybe all these Baltimore transplants can share a moving van for their relocation to New Jersey. Punter Stout is another former Raven who comes in as part of the overhaul of the Giants’ special teams specialists. He replaces Jamie Gillan, kicker Graham Gano is likely to be cut in the coming days, and the search  likely is on for a new long-snapper to take the place of Casey Kreiter.

CB Art Green: B-

The attention on special teams has been obvious as the overhaul of the specialists can attest and bringing Green back only stresses the importance of the unit as a whole in the new regime’s eyes. In 20 games over the last two seasons with the Giants, Green has posted 13 tackles and one forced fumble on coverage teams and played a bit on defense too. His energy is a good thing to keep around.

CB Greg Newsome II: C+

The Giants pushed hard to bring Cor’Dale Flott back but lost him to the Titans. That made them turn their attention to Newsome as their cornerback opposite Paulson Adebo. He’s a former first-rounder and still young but has struggled a bit in recent years; he was relegated to part-time player for the Jaguars after they traded for him in the middle of last season. The Giants get him on a one-year deal, though, and they still could add competition for the starting spot if they want to.

S Ar’Darius Washington: C

Another of Harbaugh’s guys from Baltimore, Washington arrives on a one-year deal, and although he played late in 2025, he was still recovering from an Achilles injury. Expect him to take over some of the defensive and special teams duties that Dane Belton held for the Giants.

WR Isaiah Hodgins: C

The Giants waited too long to sign Hodgins last year when they needed help at the position. This year they wasted no time securing him on the opening day of the process. Ideally, the Giants won’t have to rely too much on his production with Malik Nabers and others lighting it up, but they learned the lesson from 2024: It’s better to have Hodgins and not need him than need him and not have him.

K Jason Sanders: C

The Giants are moving from one kicker with injury issues to another as Sanders, who missed all of last season with a hip injury, will likely replace Graham Gano. Sanders is a former All-Pro and if he is physically able to do the job it’ll be a good signing for the Giants. If he isn’t they do still have Ben Sauls on the roster after he mopped up at the position and opened some eyes at the end of the long 2024 season.

LB Caleb Murphy: C

There is some familiarity here as Murphy crossed paths briefly with current Giants defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson in Tennessee in 2024, but that might not be enough to keep him around: Murphy was cut by the Titans in October of that season. Since then he has been with the Chargers and Patriots before coming to the Giants late last season and now he is resigning before he becomes an exclusive rights free agent. At Division II Ferris State Murphy had 25.5 sacks to set the NCAA single-season record in 2022 but here he’ll be more of a low-cost, low-risk developmental player who might be able to get some reps on defense and pitch in on special teams.

JETS

S Minkah Fitzpatrick: A

Darren Mougey certainly isn’t shy about making trades, and bringing in the safety from the Dolphins for a seventh-rounder is his latest big swap. Fitzpatrick has 21 career interceptions and has been named to five Pro Bowls. He gives Aaron Glenn a proven pro on the back end of the defense and should help solidify everything else on the field for the unit. Another good move for Mougey, but until he gives the Jets a quarterback with whom they can win, it’s all just extraneous movement.

DB Nahshon Wright: B+

Wright came into 2025 on a league-minimum salary with one career interception and three starts only to become a key to the Bears’ playoff resurgence while recording five interceptions, two forced fumbles and a Pro Bowl nod. The Jets getting that on a one-year deal worth $5.5 million is a nice coup. If his trajectory continues to go upward they may have to either extend him of watch him walk in free agency next season, but that’d be a good problem to have.

QB Geno Smith: B

Is he better than what the Jets had? Yes. Is he good enough to lead the Jets to a winning season? Maybe. Will he interfere with the team’s long-term plans of finding a franchise quarterback at some point between now and next year’s draft? No, not at all. Even if Smith manages to thrive, the Jets can easily move on from him at any point given how little they are investing in him both through the trade with the Raiders and in his actual contract value (most of which is being picked up by Las Vegas).

LB Demario Davis: B

Glenn loved coaching Davis in New Orleans and now will bring him back to the Jets for a third stint as the leader of the defense and maybe the entire team. Davis has that kind of personality and it’s what the Jets are paying for; he’ll be the best ambassador for Glenn the locker room has had since the coach's arrival. At 37, it probably isn’t fair to expect steady production from Davis, but if he can help others buy in and play better, it’ll be worth the investment.

S Dane Belton: C-plus

Belton was a solid pro for the Giants who was always one of their top special teams contributors and was a solid defender when he was able to stay on the field. A few injuries held him back during his time in East Rutherford, but Belton had a good nose for the ball and is a very sound tackler. If he winds up paired with Fitzpatrick, that could help his game grow, too.

DT David Onyemata: C

Another player Glenn coached in New Orleans, Onyemata gives the Jets a big run-stuffer up front to help with the rotation and address an area that has long been one of their weaknesses.

DE Joseph Ossai: C

The Jets paid a lot ($34.5 million over three years) for a player who has never had more than five sacks in a season, but they are in desperate need of help rushing the passer after trading away Jermaine Johnson and coming off a season in which they posted only 26 sacks as a team. Ossai is only 25 and has never really been a full-time starter in his NFL career, so perhaps the Jets can coax better numbers from him.

DE Kingsley Enagbare: D

Another player who might be able to help with the pass rush . . . or  not. He’ll certainly be given the opportunity this season as he’ll play on a one-year prove-it deal for the Jets.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.