Evan Neal named a player New York Giants should consider trading before Week 1

Yahoo

19 hours ago

Three years ago, Evan Neal was a promising prospect the New York Giants hoped would man their offensive tackle position for the next decade.
Today, he is a man without a position and is likely playing his last season for the Giants after three disappointing years filled with injury and incompetence.
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The Giants have scrapped the idea that the seventh overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft is their answer at right tackle, shifting him to guard this spring in hopes he can win a roster spot.
The notion of trading Neal is very real and, as he competes for a spot in their guard rotation, could heat up should he not acclimate to his new position.
From Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report:
There's no question who the most valuable trade asset for the New York Giants is. After drafting Penn State edge-rusher Abdul Carter third overall in April, the G-Men have three high-end edge-rushers in Carter, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux. Other teams have undoubtedly inquired about the availability of the latter.
But unless Giants general manager Joe Schoen gets a 'Godfather' offer for Thibodeaux, there's no reason to make a deal. Not yet.
It was Schoen who drafted Alabama tackle Evan Neal seventh overall in 2022. But after three mostly horrific years at tackle (including 22 missed games), New York head coach Brian Daboll told reporters that this year the team will try Neal out at left guard.
'He's a big man. He's got length. He's obviously a little bit taller than I'd say traditional guards, but he's played it,' Daboll said. 'He's played a number of positions since he's been at University of Alabama. He's been working hard this last month and a half and look forward to getting him out there.'
Maybe Neal will pull a Mekhi Becton and blossom after kicking inside. But if he doesn't, Big Blue should look to flip the contract-year lineman to a team that believes it can salvage Neal's career.
Neal won't be easy to trade and cutting him before or after June 1 will bring no cap relief to the Giants. If they can deal him, they will save $4 million on his $7.8 million cap hit. But that would be a long shot.
Neal was once seen as a "can't-miss" prospect who has missed badly. It happens. For another team to think they can redeem him as a tackle in this league is unreasonable as he has been atrocious in pass protection against speed rushers.
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And the last time we checked, that's the main function of an NFL offensive tackle.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Evan Neal named a player Giants should consider trading before Week 1