Training camp is drawing near and the worst time of the year is slowly coming to an end. With the New York Giants ready to embark on another hopeful run toward the Lombardi Trophy, I will analyze the team and present my top 10 players on the Giants’ roster. This year’s rookies have been excluded as they bear no body of work yet in the NFL.
No. 6: Will Beatty
Position: LT
Age: 28
Seasons with the Giants: Five (drafted in 2009)
2012 in Review: The former 2009 second-rounder, Will Beatty, had his long-awaited breakout year for the New York Giants in 2012. While much of the offensive line played shoddy, inconsistent football, Beatty was a dominant, physical force that consistently protected quarterback Eli Manning’s blindside.
Beatty — who had missed substantial time in each of the last two seasons due to injury — finally found a way to stay healthy and appear in all 16 games for the G-Men, starting 15.
Pro Football Focus ranked Beatty as their 11th-best offensive tackle for the year and it showed on game day. He allowed just three sacks of Manning, a number that placed him behind just one other offensive tackle with at least 200 pass-blocking snaps. His performance as a run blocker was equally as impressive, earning a positive score of +10.9 from the folks at PFF — third among offensive tackles.
His production did not go unrewarded in the offseason. He signed a five-year, $38.5 million contract with the Giants in February that placed him among the highest-paid left tackles in the NFL.
Outlook for 2013: With so much uncertainty looming over the remainder of the Giants’ offensive line, the team — and Eli Manning — will need Beatty to be just as good, if not better, than he was in 2012.
His performance was a pleasant sight and his ability to stay healthy was even better. The Giants have had tough run-ins with the injury bug in recent years, but they’re hopeful that they can retain their franchise left tackle for another full season to keep Manning’s backside off the turf.
Beatty is just entering the prime of his career at the age of 28, and his vast improvement last season is a good indication of his ongoing progression as this season nears. Manning is one of the more elusive quarterbacks in the NFL already, despite a considerable lack of running speed. A top-10 performance from Beatty would do wonders for Manning and the Giants’ offense.
Louis Musto is a reporter and sports talk host for the Sports Journey Broadcast Network. You can follow him on Twitter @LouisMusto.