The New York Giants have a glut of players clogging up their tight end room. The retirement of Darren Waller was met with general manager Joe Schoen bringing in several free agents to compete with the incumbents as well as using a fourth-round draft pick on one.
Yet, Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report believes the Giants could use one more body in the building — fifth-year veteran Harrison Bryant, who played his first four seasons with the Cleveland Browns and is now with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Giants Receive: TE Harrison Bryant, 2026 seventh-round pick
Raiders Receive: 2026 sixth-round pick
The last time the Giants traded for a Raiders tight end it didn’t work out so well. Darren Waller only ended up playing 12 games last season, averaged 10.6 yards per reception and retired this offseason.
The Giants drafted Theo Johnson and still have Daniel Bellinger on the roster, but it might be worth going back to the Raiders to add another option.
This time, the trade would be much more low stakes. The Raiders signed Harrison Bryant to a one-year, $3.3 million contract in March, but couldn’t have factored in drafting Brock Bowers at the time. Drafting the rookie phenomenon out of Georgia probably puts Bryant third in the tight end pecking order right away.
Meanwhile, the Giants might have pursued a free agent tight end a little harder if Waller had announced his retirement before June. Here, both clubs get a chance for a redo. The former Mackey Award winner could help out New York until Johnson is ready to play.
This all makes sense from the outside looking in, but there’s really no room at the inn at the moment.
The Giants like their tight ends right now. Bellinger and Johnson (who is currently on PUP with s hip flexor) are being pushed by Lawrence Cager, Chris Manhertz, and Jack Stoll this summer.
Cager has really opened some eyes as a pass catcher. He will be a difficult player to cut. Stoll and Manhertz were both signed as free agents for one year and the Giants want to see what they can do before moving on.
Johnson is the real key here, however. The Giants are very high on him and with any luck, he’ll be back in time to compete for a significant role as well.
It’s true that you can never have enough good players but tight end is not where Joe Schoen wants to be spending what little resources he has remaining this summer.