A year ago, I suggested that the Giants should trade away Thibodeaux. They didn’t do it, so I’m going to suggest it again. The Giants plan to play rookie Arvell Reese as the weakside linebacker, but they certainly could move him down to an edge position some of the time. Along with Brian Burns and Abdul Carter, that gives them a lot of flexibility at the position.
Thibodeaux is now in the final year of his contract, and the Giants could get some draft capital for him now instead of waiting. If they keep Thibodeaux this season, they also then need to stay out of next year’s free agent market to make sure they could get a compensatory pick when Thibodeaux inevitably leaves. Given how many teams need another pass rusher — check out the NFC North below — the Giants could build more for their future by sending Thibodeaux elsewhere.