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The Saturday NFL roster cut deadline has passed, and the New York Giants have their 2017 Week 1 roster all but finalized.

With such a deep team on both sides of the ball, some very talented players found it difficult to crack the team, and now find themselves on the market. After the 4 p.m ET deadline, the Giants announced their 53 man roster to open up the 2017 season.

Here are the players who earned a roster spot for Week 1.

 

Quarterbacks: Eli Manning, Geno Smith, Davis Webb

Running Backs: Paul Perkins, Shane Vereen, Orleans Darkwa, Wayne Gallman Jr.

Fullback: Shane Smith

Wide Receivers: Odell Beckham Jr., Brandon Marshall, Sterling Shepard, Dwayne Harris, Tavarres King, Roger Lewis Jr.

Tight Ends: Rhett Ellison, Evan Engram, Jerell Adams, Matt LaCosse

Offensive Linemen: Weston Richburg, Justin Pugh, Ereck Flowers,  John Jerry, Bobby Hart, D.J. Fluker, Chad Wheeler, Brett Jones

Defensive Linemen: Jason Pierre-Paul, Damon Harrison, Jay Bromley, Olivier Vernon, Romeo Okwara, Robert Thomas, Dalvin Tomlinson, Avery Moss, Kerry Wynn

Linebackers: Devon Kennard, B.J. Goodson, Jonathan Casillas, J.T. Thomas III, Calvin Munson, Keenan Robinson

Safeties: Landon Collins, Darian Thompson, Nat Berhe, Andrew Adams

Cornerbacks: Eli Apple, Janoris Jenkins, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Michael Hunter Jr., Ross Cockrell (acquired in trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers)

Kicker: Aldrick Rosas

Punter: Brad Wing

Long Snapper: Zak DeOssie

 

At the beginning of preseason, this was the most likely of outcomes in terms of the team’s depth chart. However, even with strong performances from some players, they still could not crack it onto the final roster. Here is the list of players who were released or placed on injured reserve by the Giants from this Saturday afternoon.

 

Quarterback: Josh Johnson

Running Backs: Shaun Draughn, Khalid Abdullah

Fullback: Jacob Huesman

Wide Receivers: Travis Rudolph, Jerome Lane, Canaan Severin, Marquis Bundy, Ed Eagan

Tight End: Will Tye

Offensive Linemen: Adam Bisnowaty, Jon Halapio, Jarron Jones, Matt Rotheram

Defensive Linemen: Devin Taylor, Bobby Richardson, Jordan Williams, Josh Banks (IR)

Linebackers: Mark Herzlich (IR), Deontae Skinner, Stansly Maponga, Curtis Grant

Cornerbacks: Donte Deayon, DaShaun Amos, Nigel Tribune

Safeties: Duke Ihenacho (IR), Ryan Murphy, Trey Robinson

Kicker: Mike Nugent

 

Out of all of the releases, Donte Deayon and Devin Taylor really stood out.

Deayon made a name for himself for his ball-hawking abilities, where he hauled in one interception (he would have had two, but one was negated by a defensive penalty). However, once the Giants traded for Cockrell on Saturday afternoon, Deayon became the odd man out in a crowded cornerback field.

Devin Taylor was an offseason acquisition and he exceeded expecations, where he had five total tackles and one interception this preseason. Just like Deayon, Taylor was a victim of the numbers game due to the deep defensive line.

In regards to the much talked about backup QB position, Smith narrowly edged out Johnson. Both QB’s were rather unimpressive in their first three preseason games. However, when the lights shone on both and with the pressure rising this past Thursday against the New England Patriots, Smith and Johnson stepped up their game big time.

However, when it was decision time, Smith was chosen as the backup behind Eli Manning. When looking back at all the preseason games, Smith was able to move the ball down the field much more effectively than Johnson, even though Smith was turnover prone.

Even though the 53-man roster was announced by the New York Giants, this is not the final roster by any means. A lot of talented players found themselves cut by the other 31 NFL teams, and the Giants would certainly look at bringing in some of these players over the next couple of days. NFL veterans who were released on Saturday can sign with a new team on Sunday afternoon. Players with less than four years experience are automatically placed on waivers.

Stay tuned, as we will keep you posted if the Giants make any additions through free agency or waivers.

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General Editor and New York Giants Lead Writer.
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