2 Giants first-stringers in danger of losing starting jobs ahead of 2025 NFL season

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2 Giants first-stringers in danger of losing starting jobs ahead of 2025 NFL season

Jaren Kawada · ClutchPoints

Fri, Aug 8, 2025 ·

5 min read

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The post 2 Giants first-stringers in danger of losing starting jobs ahead of 2025 NFL season appeared first on ClutchPoints .

Few teams improved more in the 2025 NFL offseason than the New York Giants , who attacked free agency and the draft with an equal amount of aggression. With several new additions to the roster, the Giants' depth chart will be an interesting situation to monitor over the final weeks of the preseason.

With young stars like Abdul Carter and Jaxson Dart entering the picture, a handful of the team's high-profile veterans find themselves in unfamiliar territory and forced to defend their position atop the Giants' depth chart. New York released its initial preseason depth chart on Friday. Carter, in particular, joins a loaded edge-rushing talent group and is already nipping at the heels of starters Rakeem Nunez-Roches and Kayvon Thibodeaux .

While the team's focus rightfully remains on its stellar incoming class, several other organizational veterans have quietly improved over the offseason. Of them, former draft bust Evan Neal has been one of New York's most interesting headlines as he transitions from tackle to guard. Neal's position change suddenly placed him in a positional battle with incumbent starters Jon Runyan and Greg Van Roten .

Entering his fourth year at the helm, Brian Daboll's plate is filled to the brim following a franchise-worst 14-loss season in 2024. With owner John Mara continuing to change his view of the Joe Schoen-Brian Daboll regime, pressure is on the current leadership to deliver immediate results.

According to the Giants' initial depth chart, they expect to return 22 of their 25 starters from the 2024 season, not including injured All-Pro tackle Andrew Thomas . Yet, with all four of their preseason games still on tap, a lot can change before the team's Week 1 matchup with the Washington Commanders on Sept. 7.

DE Rakeem Nunez-Roches

Given the abundance of talent in the Giants' defensive line room, it was somewhat of a surprise to see Rakeem Nunez-Roches atop the team's initial depth chart release. New York is beginning the preseason with Nunez-Roches as a starter over Abdul Carter, Darius Alexander , Chauncey Golston and Elijah Chatman .

Nunez-Roches started 15 games in 2024 and had easily the best year of his career. He recorded a career-high 52 tackles on the year, doubling his previous personal best of 26, which he attained in his first year with the Giants in 2023. He has certainly exceeded expectations since signing with New York in 2023, but the general assumption is that he would take a backseat to the recent signings.

Carter is listed as a backup for now, but nobody expects that label to last very long. New York lists its No. 3 pick of the 2025 NFL Draft behind Brian Burns , whom nobody expects Carter to surpass. Instead, the Giants drafted Carter for his versatility and teased using him as an interior lineman and middle linebacker. Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen will spend the first few weeks experimenting, but Nunez-Roches is by far the most vulnerable starter.

Even if it is not Carter, Nunez-Roches will have to fend off Golston and Chatman, who started a combined 16 games in 2024, in addition to third-round rookie Darius Alexander. All three have impressed in training camp, but Alexander seems to be the biggest threat to Nunez-Roches. Spectators have done nothing but praise Alexander's burst, power and intensity throughout the offseason.

Nunez-Roches proved that he can thrive in a full-time starting role, but still finds himself in a competitive Giants' 2025 depth chart. Perhaps he can continue reaching new heights with Bowen, but there is too much surrounding talent to ignore.

OG Greg Van Roten

Anne-Marie Caruso/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Perhaps Evan Neal should have been a guard all along. When the Giants initially confirmed the switch ahead of the 2025 offseason, it seemed like a desperate move. Yet, Neal has almost seamlessly made the transition, nearly making it seem as if he had been playing the wrong position his entire career.

While Neal's athleticism was one of his biggest strengths entering the 2022 NFL Draft, he struggled to maintain his footwork enough to keep up with the league's best edge-rushers. That speed deficiency is no longer an issue at guard, where Neal has consistently been able to wall off the Giants' interior defensive linemen throughout training camp.

Neal's progression has been so impressive that it has him in the conversation to potentially fight his way back into the starting lineup. The Giants listed him as a backup on their initial depth chart release, but the team continues to tout him as a potential starter. If that is the case, 35-year-old veteran Greg Van Roten figures to be the most vulnerable of the two returning starters.

Van Roten has been solid and consistent throughout his career, which is all the Giants need from him in 2025. Yet, he nearly retired in the offseason, but instead opted to return to the team on a one-year deal. On all accounts, it seems like a "one last dance" situation for Van Roten, who is preparing for his 11th season in the NFL.

Van Roten will not be competing for a Pro Bowl slot, but he was the Giants' only offensive lineman to start all 17 games in 2024. Regardless, New York needs a long-term answer at guard, and it potentially has one with Neal. Nobody would have predicted that just three months ago.

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