When the New York Giants’ offense took off last season, they didn’t start their season with a new look.
They already had two new faces in quarterback Eli Manning and running back Rashad Jennings.
But with the addition of veteran offensive lineman Damon Harrison, the Giants also added a new weapon in free safety Jeron Johnson.
So, what’s next for the Giants?
New York’s offensive line had plenty of issues to work through last season.
The Giants made major changes to their line after the team lost two key starters.
New left tackle John Jerry and right guard Chris Snee both left for other jobs.
That left the Giants with only four tackles from last season to replace.
“I think it was really hard to get that starting line together,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin said.
The Giants could have gone with a different starting lineup, but they wanted to get as much depth as possible. “
The big thing was to get the depth of guys to get better.”
The Giants could have gone with a different starting lineup, but they wanted to get as much depth as possible.
So the Giants were quick to bring back Johnson.
Johnson has made the most of his opportunity.
He started 13 games last season at right guard, making 15 starts.
In his last three seasons, Johnson has started at left tackle in each of his last two seasons.
He had the most starts at left guard in 2016 and had an impressive 3.5 sacks.
“A lot of teams are like, ‘What are you doing?’
But I’m not like, what are you trying to do?
I’m just trying to win football games,” Johnson said.
The other Giants’ linemen, including left tackle David Diehl and center Ryan Seymour, have had bigger roles than Johnson.
The team signed Seymour to a four-year, $35 million contract.
The two also have the same agent, Scott Boras.
“They’ve been there, they’ve done it, they’re not afraid to make a big move,” Boras said.
Seymour has made a strong case for a starting job, but Johnson is the better lineman.
The former Stanford standout has started eight games for the Panthers in his five-year career.
Johnson also has a better NFL pedigree, starting for the Patriots in 2011.
The quarterback started 13 of his first 16 games before a knee injury ended his season.
Johnson is not afraid of the spotlight and believes he has the tools to become a great starter.
“If you don’t know me, you know I’m very quiet, very quiet.
You have to make sure you can speak up when you see something that’s not right, but I just think the more you go out there and show up every day and show what you can do, I think you’re going to get to a place where it’s a confidence thing,” Johnson told The Associated Press in April.
“That’s what I need.”