2025 New York Giants free agency: Experts, insiders offer mixed grades

[ASFN Admin]

The New York Giants made a multitude of signings over the first week of free agency, addressing needs along the offensive and defensive lines, improving the secondary, and bringing wide receiver Darius Slayton home to East Rutherford. They also added much-needed depth at several positions.

But many issues went unaddressed. The Giants are still without a veteran quarterback, are playing a dangerous game at right guard, and need to bolster several other areas of the team.

As a result, their first wave of free agency was met with some skepticism. Analysts and insiders from across the league have seen the value in many of their signings, but are also aware of the gaping holes left on the roster.

Here's a quick snapshot of the Giants' free agency grades after the first week.

USA TODAY: B-​

The Giants spent most of their early free agent resources on their secondary. They signed cornerback Paulson Adebo and safety Jevon Holland to three-year deals worth a combined $99.3 million. Adebo and Holland are both just 25 years old, so New York in banking on the duo continuing to grow into a dynamic, playmaking tandem.

Some will question why the Giants were willing to pay Holland $15 million in AAV but not Xavier McKinney $16.75 million in 2024. Nonetheless, the Giants' secondary is improved, and so is their trench depth after agreeing to deals with Chauncey Golston and Roy Robertson-Harris on the defensive line and backup offensive tackles in James Hudson and Stone Forsythe.

Pro Football Focus: B​

The Giants can now pair Holland with Tyler Nubin, their second-round pick from last year. While Holland didn’t enter free agency on a high note, finishing with a 63.0 overall grade in 2024, he posted elite coverage grades in 2021 and 2023. The Giants are betting on him returning to that form within their young secondary.

Yahoo! Sports: D​

The secondary got some help, but it's a reminder that they let 2024 All-Pro Xavier McKinney walk. And there's still the quarterback problem.

CBS Sports: C+​

The Giants clearly need impact players across the roster, but especially in the secondary after generating the fifth-fewest takeaways (15) last season. So, credit to them for landing Paulson Adebo, who will be just 26 at the start of next season, and has 10 interceptions over his first four seasons in the league. New York also scored arguably the best safety in this free agency class in Holland, who is a super versatile defensive back that will make an immediate impact. These wins don't do enough to make up for the fact that the Giants still don't have a quarterback, though.

Pro Football Network: B+​

The New York Giants have actively addressed the defensive side of the ball in free agency so far. The unit struggled in 2024, and they needed to get better across the board. Paulson Adebo and Jevon Holland give them young high-upside defensive backs who should start in 2025. Roy Robertson-Harris should be a decent rotational piece for a run defense that was porous last season.

Bringing back Darius Slayton was somewhat unexpected — not because the Giants shouldn’t want him but because he could’ve easily wanted out of a rough offensive situation. The future at quarterback is uncertain, but Slayton decided to return. The Giants also got him back on a good deal. New York still has a lot of work to do, but they’re off to a decent start.

The Sporting News: B-​

They have the same refrain as the Steelers — what will they be doing at quarterback to bring this team together? Holland and Golston were great defensive additions, and Slayton was a reasonable re-sign to keep with Malik Nabers.

This article will be updated as more grades and analysis are made available.

This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: 2025 Giants free agency: Experts, insiders offer mixed grades

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