Former New York Giants safety Jason Pinnock Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Will NY Giants Miss Safety Jason Pinnock?

Originally posted on New York Giants on SI
By Alex House | Last updated Jun 25, 2025 2:00 PM ET

Will the New York Giants regret not re-signing safety Jason Pinnock, who signed with the 49ers as a free agent this past offseason?

That is the opinion of Jared Dubin of CBS Sports, who recently listed each NFL team's biggest offseason loss and had Pinnock as his choice for the Giants.

"Pinnock played 95% of New York's defensive snaps in each of the last two seasons," Dubin said.

"He was seemingly less effective the more he got on the field, though, so the Giants replaced him with the more versatile Jevon Holland, and that should help improve Shane Bowen's defense."

The Giants wanted an upgrade at the position, which is why they signed free safety Jevon Holland to a three-year, $45.3 million contract.

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Will the NY Giants miss Jason Pinnock?

Pinnock’s transformation from being a core safety to a replaceable depth safety happened when opposing offenses went after him in deep zone coverage, and he could not hold up.

This change exposed Pinnock’s lack of movement skills, and his instincts were brutally exposed; soon, teams started going after him in short and intermediate coverages as well.

While Pinnock tackled well (85 total tackles, 3.0 sacks), for some reason, he wasn’t deployed much as a blitzer by defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, blitzing being among Pinnock’s strengths.

The 25-year-old out of Pittsburgh missed 14 tackles in 2024, a glaring team weakness that Bowen must improve moving forward.

And as the lone reliable veteran in the secondary, Pinnock was also tasked with getting his young charges lined up on every play; that didn’t go particularly well either.

Add it all up, and Pinnock, while having value as a depth piece, was not a long-term answer worth investing a new contract in, something that perhaps the 49ers agree with as well, considering they only signed him to a one-year, $2.2 million contract.

While there is certainly a possibility that San Francisco unlocks Pinnock's full potential, one can see why the Giants went in another direction. Schoen could have further addressed the safety position, however, given a lack of depth behind Holland, Tyler Nubin, and Dane Belton.

There is much pressure on Holland and Nubin to carry the group this season. They are each dependable on run defense, and the former has thrived in coverage in two separate campaigns. Opposing playmakers should have their work cut out for them against this duo if they can stay on the field.