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New York Giants Urged to Sign Perfect Xavier McKinney Replacement

Originally posted on Gridiron Heroics | By Matt Lombardo | Last updated 3/8/24

The New York Giants elected to allow one of the NFL’s ascending young safeties, Xavier McKinney, test free agency by not deploying either the franchise tag or transition tag to guarantee his return in 2024 but could be big players to sign his perfect replacement.

Even though the New England Patriots used the transition tag on Kyle Dugger, the Giants are a team in position to pry him away and drop him into the secondary as an anchor for the position group.

Pro Football Focus lists the New York Giants as a perfect free-agent destination for Dugger this offseason.

“Dugger received the transition tag,” Brad Spielberger writes for PFF. “So, teams can still sign him to offer sheets in the hope of stealing him away from the Patriots, who may not be so inclined to match a hypothetical deal if it reaches a certain number.

The Giants elected to let Xavier McKinney test free agency, so here they hypothetically add a chess piece who can come down and make plays in the box, with linebacker Bobby Okereke being a solid coverage player and the rest of the safety room serving as more ball-hawking types.”

Dugger would certainly add an element to the New York Giants’ secondary that that group currently lacks.

Last season, the 27-year-old had one of the most prolific seasons of his career, posting a career-best 109 total tackles with a pair of interceptions and 1.5 sacks.

Given the physicality in the New York Giants’ secondary, Dugger’s ball-skills and being a veteran presence has the potential to significantly elevate the defense at large.

What Might a Kyle Dugger Offer Sheet Look Like for New York Giants?

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen probably needs to put a strong offer sheet on the table that the Patriots either decide not to or cannot match, in order to pry him away from Foxboro and into the swamps of Jersey.

Fortunately for Schoen, the New York Giants are currently projected to have approximately $29.6 million in effective cap space once free agency gets underway, which should be plenty of spending flexibility to absorb a strong offer sheet to Dugger.

The transition tag Dugger signed is priced at $13.8 million for the 2024 season, so any offer sheet the New York Giants put together would need to exceed that, but the guarantees could be spread to future seasons which would benefit Schoen and the Giants.

Spotrac sets Dugger’s market value at $66.2 million, over four seasons, averaging out to $16.5 million, annually, which could provide the framework for an offer sheet.

This article first appeared on Gridiron Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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