Neal or No Deal: Why the Giants Need to Move On from This Offensive Lineman

The Giants have been trying to figure out what their biggest issues are when it comes to playing on the field. They had a magnificent draft this past year and managed to draft some new and exciting talent for the team. They are hoping that they can bring these guys in and show that they can be what the Giants were years ago league champions. However, there are certain areas stopping the Giants from moving ahead. One of those is one of their offensive linemen, Evan Neal. 

Neal was the Giants' 2022 first-round pick, the seventh overall pick of the draft that year. Everyone believed that he was going to be a great player. The Giants franchise thought he was going to bring something new to the table to help out the offensive line. Though he has been a complete draft bust over the last three years that he has played with New York.

Neal has played in 29 regular season games and started in only 27 of them over the last three seasons. During his rookie year, the former Alabama tackle played in thirteen games but was mainly hurt due to a knee injury. The following season, he played in seven games before having an ankle injury. In 2024, Neal appeared in only nine games, starting seven games, and allowed two sacks over 459 snaps. His career with them has not been all that great.

To revive life into his professional football career, the Giants have moved him from his current position as the team's Right Tackle to make him a Right Guard. He hasn’t played in this position since he was in college at Alabama back in 2019. It’s not the best idea, but it’s not the worst idea either. He has had a better run-blocking rating with a grade of 80.8, putting him in ninth according to Pro Football Focus. When it came to pass blocking, Neal had a grade of 49.6, which ranks 111th out of 140 tackles.

The Giants honestly need to trade him to another team and pick someone else up off of waivers, or they need to get something in return for him. They have already decided to decline his fifth-year option. This season is supposed to be huge for him in proving what he can do. They gave him several chances already. The Giants should move on at this point and let him go elsewhere. It would honestly give the Giants the boost they are looking for if he can’t do what he needs to in this up-and-coming season.