Landon Collins holdout shouldn’t scare New York Giants

Landon Collins threatening a hold out shouldn’t scare the New York Giants from using the franchise tag to retain his services.

If the most polarizing topic hovering over the New York Giants as of the first day of March 2019 is whether or not the club should use the sixth overall draft pick on a quarterback who may or may not start over Eli Manning, second on the list is likely safety Landon Collins. Collins is a hard hitter, no doubt, but his coverage skills often leave much to be desired. The subject of moving him to linebacker — or “moneybacker” — has arisen multiple times since the Giants drafted him in 2015.

Collins is set to enter free agency later this month. As SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano explained on March 1, negotiations between the two sides haven’t been fruitful. In fact, there’s no indication the Giants will offer Collins a long-term deal to his liking anytime soon. Vacchiano also reported that Collins could threaten to hold out through the summer if the Giants look to retain the player’s rights via the franchise tag.

Assuming that general manager Dave Gettleman and head coach Pat Shurmur are serious about the Giants retaining Manning through training camp and about the two-time Super Bowl MVP starting under center come Week 1, the assumption is New York is trying to make an immediate return to the postseason and chase a title with the 38-year old signal-caller, Rookie of the Year running back Saquon Barkley and superstar wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. leading the offense.

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Immediately following the 2018 campaign, it was clear to all who watched the Giants that losing defensive starters while getting nothing in return this offseason would be less than ideal. New York trading Jason Pierre-Paul last March made all kinds of sense, as did the club dealing cornerback Eli Apple to the New Orleans Saints ahead of October’s trade deadline. Things aren’t so simple with Collins.

The Giants aren’t blessed with an abundance of salary cap space during the final weeks of winter. That’s probably one reason Collins hasn’t been locked up through the start of the 2020s. New York losing him for nothing creates yet another gap on a defense that blew no fewer than three games last fall. Replacing Collins with Earl Thomas sounds nice on paper and in editions of Madden, but the numbers don’t work out.

Using the transition tag on Collins isn’t the proper course of action. Yes, doing so could save the Giants some cash, but it’s almost guaranteed a team with boatloads of salary cap space (i.e. the San Francisco 49ers, Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns or the New York Jets) would swoop in and woo Collins away. The franchise tag is undeniably expensive up front, but using it extends conversations between club and player beyond the start of free agency.

The previously mentioned Thomas is a perfect example. Thomas stayed away from the Seattle Seahawks through camp and the preseason last summer, but the Seahawks remained firm and neither gave him the money he wanted nor traded him to a team willing to extend his contract. Thomas had little choice but to return to action for Week 1, and he was one of the best safeties in the league until he suffered a broken bone in his left leg in Week 4.

A similar scenario may not play out in this instance. The Giants using the franchise tag this month doesn’t mean the team won’t pay Collins before or during the preseason. Doing so merely gives the team and Gettleman more time to assess the situation. The Miami Dolphins traded wide receiver Jarvis Landry to the Cleveland Browns last March after Landry signed a franchise tag. Cleveland later signed him to a five-year deal.

Back in 2017, the Giants tagged Pierre-Paul ahead of signing him to a new contract the club probably never intended on keeping through its expiration. The same approach may apply here. Tagging and then paying Collins likely means little for his long-term future with the organization. Those talks are for down the road.