New York Giants: 2018 offseason prediction through the draft
The Future of the Franchise QB
Frankly, the way the Giants handled the quarterback situation was a complete mess, and everyone knows it. No one would begrudge Eli Manning for wanting out of New York at this point, not can anyone begrudge him the money he’s owed and him spiting the team and making him pay, even though he’s not worth what the contract demands.
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Eli Manning also knows that not many football players get to go walking out of the game healthy. The Giants and Manning will sit down at some point and discuss their future. The Giants will lay out the issue, and the two parties will come to a mutual agreement, and he will retire as a New York Giant.
That leaves one problem, though. For salary cap purposes, retiring is just like being cut, and the bonus money that he’s due won’t have to be paid, but it will be accelerated, and the Giants will still lose $12.4 million in cap space, but save $9.8 million. In essence, Manning will cost the Giants $12.4 million, but will go out in a dignified manner, rather than being cut.
All of this means that the Giants will have to replace him, and we’ll get to that later.
Brandon Marshall
Given the way the season has gone for Eli Apple, you’d think he’d be on the top of the list for being cut. He’s been a total nuisance, and frankly doesn’t deserve to play on this team, but he’s still on his rookie deal and the dead cap hit is larger than his cap hit. That would result in a negative if they cut him. So, it’s not worth it.
That said, the New York Jets transplant Brandon Marshall makes this list, because his cut would result in a cap savings of over $5 million. His production this season was the worst of his career, and he was held without a touchdown for an entire season the first time ever.
It’s been a disappointing season. Marshall thought he was staying at MetLife Stadium with a chance to be a part of a winning team with Super Bowl aspirations. Instead, the Giants and he completely collapsed. To say the season didn’t go well for him would be an understatement. He’s definitely not worth the $6,156,250 he’s owed in 2018. So, the Giants really have no choice but to cut him, and it’s time for him to ride off into the sunset and move into television full-time.