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New York Giants' $22 Million Move Looks Like a Swing and Miss
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- New York Giants' $22 Million Move Looks Like a Swing and Miss
(Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images)
After last season, New York Giants offensive guard Jon Runyan Jr. was considered a potential cut candidate by some, and the Giants could have saved over $9 million had they parted ways with the veteran.
New York signed Runyan to a three-year, $30 million contract back in March 2024, hoping that he would help stabilize the interior of its offensive line after a solid run in Green Bay.
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That has not happened.
Runyan labored over his first couple of seasons in the Big Apple, so much so that the left guard job was viewed as an open competition heading into the Giants' offseason program.
Clearly, John Harbaugh did not see anyone worthy of Runyan's job, so things remained unchanged. That was understandable. No one wanted to see Daniel Faalele nor Evan Neal getting daily reps.
But what was confusing was when New York handed Runyan a two-year, $22 million extension , keeping Runyan aboard through 2028 and blocking some cap room in the process.
The early returns of the extension have not been good, as Runyan has posted a 50.1 overall grade at Pro Football Focus thus far in 2026. While he has been fine as a pass blocker, he has been regularly discarded by defenders in the run game, owning a 44.1 run-blocking grade. That is good for 72nd among 75 qualifying NFL guards.
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Given that Runyan is more of a tactician than a mauler, the fact that he struggles in the run should not come as much of a surprise.
So why on earth did the Giants extend his contract?
You can't tell me that there won't be any better options than Runyan next offseason. New York could always pluck a guard in the NFL Draft, and the Giants might even have a couple of internal answers.
Marcus Mbow and rookie J.C. Davis are both tackles, but Mbow played some guard at Purdue, and Davis showed his ability to line up inside during Senior Bowl practices.
Mbow has shown he is capable of playing tackle on the NFL level, so moving inside to an easier position should be doable. Davis was also very impressive throughout the Giants' offseason program.
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I'm all for extending players for the sake of continuity, but only if those players have actively produced. Runyan isn't in that category.
Perhaps the 29-year-old will improve as the season progresses, but this move is looking like a swing and a miss by Harbaugh and general manager Joe Schoen.
