Gibril Leaves, Safeties a Mess

Well, S Gibril Wilson has officially signed with the Oakland Raiders. The contract he agreed to is worth $39 million over 6 years with a $16 million signing bonus.
Al Davis seems to be on a rampage this year. First, trying to get head coach Lane Kiffin to quit his job, then signing above average DT Tommy Kelly to a contract that makes him the highest paid DT in NFL history, and now signing Gibril to this huge contract. Don't get me wrong, I love Gibril Wilson and I'm very sad to see him leave New York, but he isn't a top 5 safety as this contract suggests.

This loss leaves the Giants with a decent-sized hole at the safety position. The only safeties that are currently on the roster are last year's starting SS, James Butler, and last year's 7th round draft pick Michael Johnson.

Butler was undrafted in 2005 and one of the worst starting safeties in the league last year, but defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, loves his intelligence. He is a restricted free agent and was given a 2nd round tender which means he's virtually a lock to be on the roster for at least one more year. I, however don't want to see him on the field again until he significantly improves.

Michael Johnson showed a lot of promise in his rookie season playing in every game on special teams, rotating in as a situational player on defense, and even starting 3 games in place of Gibril Wilson. Johnson's most notable play of the year was a diving open-field tackle of Chicago backup RB Adrian Peterson that saved the Giants from giving up a potentially game winning touchdown to the Bears. I wouldn't mind Johnson winning the starting SS spot next year, however, he is still a risky player to have to count on to start in just his second year.

There are some safeties worth looking at in the draft. I will get into the draft later on but right now the safeties that I like are Reggie Smith, DaJuan Morgan, Jamie Silva, and Thomas Decoud in that order (I do NOT like Kenny Phillips from Miami and I wouldn't pick him with anything higher than a 4th rounder.) But who knows whether any of them are will be ready to start in their first year.

Another option would be to choose from one of the veteran, free agent safeties. The Giants have been in contact with a few including Erik Coleman from the Jets and Sammy Knight from the Jags. Coleman is average, but still young so there is some potential for improvement. Knight is aging and a huge liability in coverage for the Jags last year. I think I would prefer Eugene Wilson from New England or Marlon McCree from San Diego. McCree is old but not as slow as Knight and would provide a 1 to 2 year stop-gap to allow a rookie to develop. Eugene Wilson is risky because of injury concerns, but when healthy he has good coverage skills and can play safety or cornerback. Right now, Eugene is getting absolutely no interest from any team which is leading me to believe Reese will be able to sign him to a low money "prove yourself" type contract, similar to what he did with Kawika Mitchell.

No matter what happens, next year's Giants safety tandem will probably not be as good as it would have been with Gibril on the field.

NOTE: With Asante Samuel signing a huge contract with the Eagles, the chances of trading for DeAngelo Hall have dropped significantly. Hall will most likely want a similar contract and GM Jerry Reese will most likely not give it to him, especially after having to give up 1st and 5th round picks to get him here.

UPDATE: The Giants have shown interest in WR Javon Walker. My guess is just to see what he's asking. It's most likely too much for Reese to bite. Also, S Erik Coleman has signed with the Falcons, taking him out of the running to be the next NYG safety. The Giants are now reported to have interest in S Eugene Wilson and LB Clark Haggans.

I'll be back later with a free agent wishlist. That is, unless Al Davis decides to give me millions to go play in Oakland...