The New York Giants often struggle with a tight salary cap in the offseason, and they face the same challenge as they prepare for the 2026 season.
Tough decisions have already had to be made by both the team and the players alike to get the salary cap into a healthier state in the lead-up to free agency, beginning with the legal tampering window on Monday at 12 p.m. ET.
Initial moves included cutting linebacker Bobby Okereke and offensive tackle James Hudson III, which raised the Giants’ cap space to about $14.23 million, with effective cap space at $4.18 million.
The Giants got running back Devin Singletary to take a pay cut to the veteran minimum of $1.3 million, with incentives added, so he can stay on the team next season and create more cap room.
All of that early work still isn’t enough to get the Giants to a point where they can be truly competitive in the free-agent market in the coming days.
They will likely need a few other players to step up and take one for the team by sacrificing some imminent money that will help the signing cause and possibly keep them around for the start of the John Harbaugh era.
It’ll be interesting to see what becomes of the Giants’ 2025 roster remnants as the opening bell looms, but we have one strong suggestion for an incumbent player whose tenure in East Rutherford might hinge on the decision to accept a contract adjustment in 2026.
NY Giants OG Jon Runyan Would Be Smart to Settle on a Pay Cut
During their most recent attempt to overhaul the offensive line, which had been a recurring issue, the Giants brought in veteran Jon Runyan to bring capable experience to the left guard position, which had been rotating through failed options beforehand.
Runyan’s first four seasons in the NFL with the Green Bay Packers saw him be pretty serviceable in pass protection, earning a PFF grade above 70.0 twice and no more than two sacks and 21 total pressures per season in that span. His reliability and adaptability made him a valuable asset, especially on teams seeking consistency on the offensive line.
However, Runyan hasn’t maintained that same level of efficiency as a member of the Giants’ starting five. Over the past two years, since he signed a three-year, $30 million contract in free agency, the 28-year-old lineman has allowed 60 pressures, four sacks, and been penalized 11 times for the most in such a window.
In 2025, Runyan played in the second-most snaps (1,095) on the Giants’ crew of blockers and finished with the lowest pass blocking efficiency (97.3), two sacks, and 31 pressures. He was coming off two difficult injuries the previous season, but those aren’t the numbers the organization signed him to deliver.
The Giants should have a hard look at Runyan’s contract, which is entering its final year, where he is scheduled to make a $9 million base salary and account for an $11.5 million cap hit, marking the eighth largest on the roster, and see if they could get the former sixth-round pick to agree to a compromise.
Similar to Devin Singletary’s situation, the Giants could cut his base pay down to the veteran minimum for a player of his experience while throwing in some incentive bonuses, such as the number of games played, that would grant him the opportunity to earn his lost wages back over the course of the 2026 campaign.
The other side of this equation is the Giants’ severely weak depth in the interior, where they have only two guards, Jake Kubas and Reid Holskey, both practice-squad pieces under contract for next season. They also have doubts about the future of the center position with John Michael Schmitz’s poor play and injury woes.
An inability to reach a pay cut with Runyan might put the Giants in a tricky situation, one in which they might want to move on but would further jeopardize the health of the offensive line.
Few cap-saving options remain for GM Joe Schoen. Additional funds might come from top players’ contracts or releasing kicker Graham Gano, which would free $4.5 million as rookie Ben Sauls takes over.
It will be interesting to see if Runyan is approached and agrees to a pay cut.
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