This next week could be franchise-altering for the Giants in more ways than one.
Leading the NFC East and three games up in the loss column over the second-place Dallas Cowboys, the Giants could potentially bury the in-division rival Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders across Weeks 9 and 10.
General manager Joe Schoen, emboldened by a quick turnaround under John Harbaugh, could also go all-in on the open market before the NFL’s Nov. 10 trade deadline.
Make no mistake: The Giants leading a comically weak NFC East is not much to write home about. The roster is still rife with holes, specifically in the backfield and along both the offensive and defensive lines.
Should Schoen land a big fish or two, the Giants go from a nice little turnaround story to the kind of team no one will want to play in December or January.
Here are five major, feasible trade targets that Big Blue can pursue over the next week:
Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts
Let’s get the biggest one out of the way at the top. Taylor is one of, if not the best, running backs in all of football, and his Indianapolis Colts are on the precipice of a fire sale. They already sold offensive lineman Quenton Nelson and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner — two legitimate talents the Giants could have used.
Taylor, though, is the biggest name of all. The Colts are open to trading him before the deadline, and the Giants would have to put together a monster trade package to get him, but having him as the No. 1 option in the backfield and being complemented by Cam Skattebo would make a surprisingly fun offense under quarterback JJ McCarthy that much more potent.
While some might think it a pipe dream, multiple reports have emerged revealing that the Giants are among the most aggressive teams in the running back market right now alongside the Minnesota Vikings.
Tony Pollard, RB, Tennessee Titans
He is not a big-swing home run like Taylor, but Pollard would provide the Giants with consistency — something that has eluded the running back room since they parted ways with Saquon Barkley.
Pollard will likely post his fifth straight 1,000-yard season, with 595 yards and six touchdowns in eight games. Only five running backs have recorded more yards than him since the start of the 2022 campaign.
The problem is that his price might fall into that fourth or fifth-round range, and those are draft picks the Giants don’t have. They sent a fourth to the Browns to move up and draft Malachi Fields in the spring, then sent their fifth to the Vikings for McCarthy.
Grover Stewart, DT, Indianapolis Colts
Taylor’s Indianapolis teammate, Stewart, will be getting plenty of attention after Buckner was dealt to the San Francisco 49ers.
Stewart’s 17 solo tackles against the run ranks 10th among all defensive tackles in the NFL this season, per PFF. Considering Buckner got a fourth-round pick, Stewart could be a perfect fit for a Giants team lacking draft-pick compensation. A sixth-rounder would do the trick.
Interior help within the defensive line is a necessity for a Big Blue defense that ranks 28th in the NFL in yards allowed per carry.
Dalvin Tomlinson, DT, Los Angeles Chargers
A second-round pick of the Giants in 2017, the 32-year-old Tomlinson could bolster his old team’s defensive line should a reunion be in the cards. In five games with the Chargers this season, he has 10 combined tackles and half a sack.
It also helps that he’s cheap. He’s due $1.80 million this season before hitting free agency. Consider him a fallback option if Stewart can’t be had.
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