Giants continue to poach players from Bills to bolster depth

The New York Giants continue to build their roster with familiar faces. General manager Joe Schoen took over last offseason after serving as the assistant general manager of the Buffalo Bills from 2017 to 2021. Upon his arrival in New Jersey, Schoen plucked many of his old players from Buffalo.

This offseason, Schoen is continuing to fill out the Giants roster with former Bills players, like tight end Tommy Sweeney. The Giants’ tendency to steal players from Buffalo has created some nervousness for Bills GM Brandon Beane.

Buffalo GM Brandon Beane worried by Giants’ tendency to pluck Bills players

“Whenever we cut down our practice squad, we know we can lose guys, but particularly with Joe and Brian moving to New York, they knew our players and so you know it’s going to be harder to get guys through the cracks,” Beane told NJ Advance Media at the NFL Owners Meetings.

“So I was thinking about it when we made the moves, but if it wasn’t the two guys they got, it would have been a couple of other guys that they would have done the same thing with,” Bean explained, referring to CB Nick McCloud and WR Isaiah Hodgins as the two players the Giants stole.

Arguably Schoen’s most impressive roster move thus far came midway through the 2022 season when he claimed WR Isaiah Hodgins off waivers following his release from the Bills. Hodgins quickly emerged as one of the Giants’ top offensive weapons down the final stretch of the season.

“We had thought for a couple of years that we could lose Isaiah,” Beane said. “We knew he could play.”

Nick McCloud also contributed meaningful playing time with the Giants, starting eight games in 2022. He logged seven passes defended, 1.5 sacks, and 43 combined tackles.

“I thought he was another good addition, another good player,” Daboll said of McCloud. “Obviously I had experience with him at Buffalo. I got to know him a lot more here and he’s a versatile player for us. He’s good in the kicking game. He’ll be another player that we put out there and let him compete.”

Jamison Crowder is another former Bills player who New York recently added in free agency. Like Sweeney, Crowder will serve as depth on the back end of the Giants roster. Big Blue has made a point to secure the bottom half of their roster and add quality depth this offseason. One would assume that more former Bills players could be on their way to East Rutherford.