No, the New York Giants don’t need Arian Foster

The Houston Texans cut ties with Arian Foster after seven seasons and 6,472 yards. While Foster is a superstar, the New York Giants don’t need him

According to numerous outlets, including ESPN inside Adam Schefter, the Houston Texans released their all-time leading rusher Arian Foster. While he’s a big-name player with a lot of experience, the New York Giants don’t need the aging Foster.

The move to cut Foster makes sense, as it frees up cap space for Houston. Houston’s playoff push with Foster out of commission probably made the decision to cut him easier, too.

So Foster, who was placed on injured reserve after injuring his Achilles tendon early in the season, is free to sign anywhere. Some Giants fans will want the team to bring him in, but the move just wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense.

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For starters, Foster is coming off of a serious injury. A torn Achilles tendon is one of the more serious injuries within sports, and it’s not crazy to think Foster will never be quite as explosive again. He entered last season probably less than 100 percent from the get-go, too.

Foster missed the first four games, played in four and then got hurt. In the four games he appeared in, Foster only rushed for 163 yards with a paltry 2.6 average. He did catch 22 passes for 227 yards, but he didn’t look like the Arian Foster we’ve all grown to known.

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2015 marked the third consecutive year Foster missed the rest of the season because of an injury. So health is a chief concern with Foster. One could certainly argue that the Giants’ committee style of running the football would help Foster stay healthy — much like it did for Rashad Jennings. But that’s another story for another time — but it’s tough to imagine Foster being willing to share carries with Shane Vereen, Orleans Darkwa and Andre Williams.

Age is another big issue, as Foster will be 30 by the start of the season. The Giants are already harboring a 30-year-old back in Rashad Jennings, so entering the year with two aging backs doesn’t make a lick of sense.

The only way it would even make a little sense would be if the Giants released Jennings, but that’s about as farfetched as it comes, as that would be a Chip Kelly-like move.

Yes, when healthy Foster is one of the most dynamic backs in the league. He’s a bigger back at 6-1, but he makes cuts like he’s Darren Sproles. He certainly still has something left in the tank. But the simple fact is that the dude hasn’t played a full season since 2012. In fact, that was the only time Foster ever started 16 games.

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I’m the guy who’s been advocating for the Giants to take Ezekiel Elliott since December, so I’m not prepared to say the Giants don’t need a running back. But bringing in a banged up, aging, entering-the-twilight-of-his-career running back doesn’t make sense to me. The Giants have so many other needs they need to address in free agency.

Foster will surely contribute somewhere, but that somewhere shouldn’t be MetLife Stadium. At least not when the Giants are the home team.

Writer’s note:

Look, if the Giants brought in Foster, I wouldn’t necessarily be heartbroken. I love Foster, and he’s one of my favorite players, mostly because of his intellectual approach to life. But I still think Jerry Reese and company would be wise to allocate money elsewhere.

Unless Foster wants to come to New York for a small paycheck, there’s no reason for the team to sign him.