Sterling Shepard will be sticking around Big Blue, but on a less expensive deal. Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

WR Sterling Shepard takes pay cut to stay with Giants

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 3/10/22

It was widely assumed the New York Giants would part ways with veteran wide receiver Sterling Shepard either before or shortly after the new NFL year opens next week. Shepard's 2021 season ended prematurely when he suffered a torn Achilles during a loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 19, and new Giants general manager Joe Schoen, who has no previous ties to Shepard, openly admitted in late January he needed to clear millions upon millions of dollars in salary-cap space ahead of free agency.

Per multiple reports, Shepard offered Schoen some relief and extended his Giants tenure by restructuring his contract. ESPN's Jordan Raanan reports the two sides came to terms on a one-year deal:

The #Giants and WR Sterling Shepard have reached agreement on a restructured contract, sources tell me and @RapSheet. The longest-tenured player on the roster is sticking for a seventh season.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 10, 2022

WR Sterling Shepard is returning on a reworked one-year deal with the Giants, per source. Team’s longest-tenured player wanted to return. Was previously signed through 2023.

(@MikeGarafolo first on Shepard returning)
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) March 10, 2022

NFL insider Josina Anderson spoke with Shepard about the decision:

Just got off the phone with #Giants WR Sterling Shepard on restructuring his contract: "We are just finishing it up. It's almost where we want it to be. You just got to realize it's not personal. Right now I'm just focusing on my Achilles rehab & controlling what I can control."
— IG: JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) March 10, 2022

According to Zack Rosenblatt of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, Shepard's original deal carried a $12.49 million cap hit for 2022 that went to $13.49 million for 2023. Rosenblatt added the 29-year-old who has been attached to the Giants since the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft is "making good progress in his return from the Achilles injury" and wrote there's a "chance he is healthy enough for the start of training camp, if not sooner."

It makes sense the Giants would want to keep a familiar face at the receiver position as Schoen and new head coach Brian Daboll continue their evaluations of quarterback Daniel Jones. Across just seven games this past season, Shepard recorded 36 receptions for 366 yards and one touchdown.

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