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New York Giants: Grading the Brandon Meriweather signing

By Ryan Disdier

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In an effort to bolster a shaky safety corps, the New York Giants signed former Pro Bowl safety Brandon Meriweather Sunday.

Meriweather, 31, has been in the league since 2007, and he’s an improvement at safety for Big Blue.

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The Giants are currently dealing with a less-than-ideal safety situation. Second-round pick Landon Collins is dealing with a strained MCL, second-year man Nat Berhe has a calf injury and rookie Mykkele Thompson is lost for the year with a rupture Achilles tendon.

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The idea is probably for Meriweather to start, and there’s a good chance he will, considering the inexperience in the Giants’ secondary.

Despite his age, Meriweather is still one of the league’s fiercest players. Head coach Tom Coughlin is excited about what the former Patriot, Bear and Redskin will bring to the table.

“He’s a very physical safety,” Coughlin said, during the team’s Monday media hour. “[He] comes down in the box well. He’ll bring a degree of toughness to our secondary, so we welcome him.”

Coughlin’s right in saying Meriweather will bring toughness, but he’ll also bring some penalties, too. Meriweather has been fined multiple times for illegal hits, and that’s one thing the Giants can’t deal with.

“The toughness part you want,” Coughlin said. “The penalties and the issues, you don’t. And he’s a young man who has expressed thanks in being here and having the opportunity, and I think he’ll take coaching. He’s competitive, very competitive.”

Meriweather fits in with this defense, though. He’ll play hard and make big hits, and he’s also the perfect person for Landon Collins to learn from. Despite being suspended and fined in the past, Meriweather knows what not to do at this juncture of his career.

Collins has a skill set not too different from Meriweather’s (both are better in run support), so it will be interesting to see how their relationship plays out. The combo of Collins and Meriweather will likely be New York’s starting safety tandem (Collins is listed as the starting free safety, according to ESPN’s depth chart) for week 1, barring more injuries.

The former Miami Hurricane also has the support of his former college teammate and Giants team captain.

“We played all four years together, he was All-American, he was the quarterback of our defense and got everybody lined up,” linebacker Jon Beason said, according to Michael Eisen of Giants.com. “Extremely intelligent player … He’s going to help us tremendously, a veteran, another voice back there, and I think it’s going to make our secondary a lot better.”

That’s a lot of praise from Beason, but it’s not unwarranted. Meriweather is a talented, athletic player with a penchant for laying wood on receivers and running backs. He knows where to position himself to make big plays, and that’s an underrated trait in defensive backs.

In fact, last year against the Redskins, Rueben Randle had a pass knocked out of his control by Meriweather, causing the ball to be intercepted.

Meriweather will likely get the starting nod at strong safety over second-year man Bennett Jackson. Once he gets his feet wet, he should be a positive difference maker. He has adequate ball skills, though he won’t be getting confused with Earl Thomas any time soon.

He adds experience to a safety unit that was in desperate need of some.

One thing’s for sure, and that’s the fact that Meriweather hasn’t lost The “U” swagger. When was asked whether he thinks he’s still a top-tier safety or not, Meriweather said: “Yes, I know I am,” according to James Kratch of NJ.com.

Grade: B

The skinny: Honestly, what’s not to like? The Giants got better at a weak position, plain and simple.

The fat: This isn’t an immensely splashy move, but it was a good one. If Meriweather can cut down on the dumb penalties, then he’ll be a huge help on this defense. Actually, even if he does get some penalties, he’ll still be an improvement. I was at training camp Sunday (Aug. 16), and Meriweather was getting second-team reps in his first practice. He didn’t necessarily look comfortable (frequently asking Chandler Fenner for help), but it shows the team wants him in there ASAP.

Let’s slide into each other’s DM’s on Twitter: @DisdierSports 

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