The Giants have claimed WR/KR off waivers from the Jacksonville Jaguars.  Thorpe caught 12 passes for 70 yards (5.8 avg) with 1 TD grab in his first NFL action due to multiple injuries earlier in his career.  Thorpe also helps out on special teams in the return game.  Thorpe returned 5 punts for the Colts last season for 31 yards (6.2 avg) and he also returned 15 kickoffs for 318 yards (21.2 avg).  This is a very low risk, decent reward move for the Giants.

The Giants have released QB Jared Lorenzen.  Lorenzen will likely have a hard time finding a job as he’s almost too big to play QB in the NFL.  Anthony Wright and David Carr will likely battle for the #2 job for the Giants in 2008 unless rookie Andre Woodson makes a big move with a strong preseason and training camp.

The Giants are lucky that they have a lot of depth at running back because this crop isn’t the most durable around.  It all starts with Brandon Jacobs.  Jacobs would rather run over you than around you and he is often successful at that but he also takes a lot of punishment due to his style.  He has a hard time staying healthy but he is very effective when he plays.  Jacobs played in 11 games (9 starts) for the Giants last season and he carried the ball 202 times for 1,009 yards (5.0 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He also caught 23 passes for 174 yards (7.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Look for Jacobs to have another 1,000+ yards rushing in 2008 as long as he can stay in one piece.  Jacobs has now played in 42 games (9 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 336 times for 1,531 yards (4.6 ypc) with 20 TD runs.  He also caught 34 passes for 323 yards (9.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

Rookie Ahmad Bradshaw was a big surprise for the Giants at the end of last season filling in for injured players.  He has the speed that complements Jacobs’ power running game perfectly.  He played in 12 games (0 starts) for the Giants last season and he carried the ball 23 times for 190 yards (8.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg).  Look for Bradshaw to have a much bigger role on the offense in 2008.

Derrick Ward filled in well for Brandon Jacobs before breaking his foot late in the season.  Ward has a good mix of power and speed which plays well in the Giants’ offense.  Ward played in 8 games (5 starts) for the Giants last season and he carried the ball 125 times for 602 yards (4.8 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also caught 26 passes for 179 yards (6.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Ward will likely have an important role in the offense this season as long as he can stay healthy.  Ward has now played in 35 games (5 starts) in his NFL career and he carried the ball 160 times for 725 yards (4.5 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also has caught 28 passes for 192 yards (6.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.

Reuben Droughns is a hard runner with a style like Jacobs’ except he’s not nearly as effective at it.  Droughns played in 16 games (1 start) for the Giants last season and he carried the ball 85 times for 275 yards (3.2 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  He also caught 7 passes for 49 yards (7.0 avg).  Look for Droughns to have a small role for the Giants in 2008 unless they suffer injuries or he tries out for the fullback job, which he could win.  Droughns has now played in 102 games (51 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 929 times for 3,602 yards (3.9 ypc) with 19 TD runs.  He has also caught 123 passes for 989 yards (8.0 avg) with 6 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A-

Michael Strahan finished his Hall of Fame career hoisting the Vince Lombardi Trophy and it doesn’t get much better than that.  Make no mistake though, Strahan still had a lot left in the tank last season.  Strahan played in all 16 games last season for the Giants and he finished with 57 tackles, defensed 2 passes, had 9 sacks and he forced a fumble.  The Giants will be able to replace him on the field as they have a ton of pass rushers on the roster but they will miss Strahan in the locker room for his leadership.  Strahan played in 216 games in his NFL career and he finished with 854 tackles, defensed 37 passes, had 141.5 sacks, forced 24 fumbles and he intercepted 4 passes including 2 that he returned for a TD.

Eli Manning had another ho hum regular season before transforming into one of the best QBs in the league during the post season.  He helped lead the Giants to an amazing Super Bowl win last season and it will be interesting to see if this jump starts his regular season in 2008.  Manning has a good arm but he oftens throws the ball where he shouldn’t resulting in a lot of interceptions (20 last year).  He also is not the most mobile QB in the league and he sometimes gets rattled in games when he takes punishment from defensive players.  Manning started all 16 games for the Giants last season and he completed 297 of 529 passes (56.1%) for 3,336 yards with 23 TD passes and 20 interceptions (73.9 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 29 times for 69 yards (2.4 ypc) with 1 TD run.  I just have a gut feeling that Manning is going to have his best season in the NFL due to improved confidence.  He has now played in 57 games (55 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 987 of 1,805 passes (54.7%) for 11,385 yards with 77 TD passes and 64 interceptions (73.4 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 89 times for 205 yards (2.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs.

The Giants signed David Carr in the off-season and he will likely be able to beat out Anthony Wright and Jared Lorenzen for the backup job at QB.  Carr got beat up last season in Carolina and that’s because he continues to hold onto the football too long.  He still has a good arm and he is good at running the ball so maybe the Giants can break him of his bad habits.  Carr played in 6 games (4 starts) for the Panthers last season and he completed 73 of 136 passes (53.7%) for 635 yards with 3 TD passes and 5 interceptions (58.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 17 times for 59 yards (3.5 ypc).  Carr’s career to this point has been a huge disappointment and this might very well be his last NFL stop if he doesn’t play well this season.  Carr has now played in 82 games (79 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 1,316 of 2,206 passes (59.7%) for 14,026 yards with 62 TD passes and 70 interceptions (74.4 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 285 times for 1,294 yards (4.5 ypc) with 8 TD runs.

Anthony Wright will battle David Carr for the #2 job and he has some experience to draw on.  Wright has a strong arm and good mobility but he’s never really improved since he’s been in the NFL as he often appears to throw balls up for grabs when under duress.  Wright played in 3 games (0 starts) last season for the Giants and he completed 1 of 7 passes (14.3%) for 12 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 interceptions (39.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 1 time for a loss of 1 yard.  If Wright plays at all for the Giants this season they are in deep trouble.  Wright has now played in 31 games (19 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 332 of 605 passes (54.9%) for 3,590 yards with 20 TD passes and 25 interceptions (66.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 80 times for 221 yards (2.8 ypc).

Jared Lorenzen’s biggest asset is his size as they like to use him on short yardage situations.  The “Pillsbury Throwboy” has a good enough arm to make most of the throws in the NFL but he lacks the mobility to buy time in the pocket because of his size.  Lorenzen played in 2 games (0 starts) last season for the Giants and he completed 4 of 8 passes (50%) for 28 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 interceptions (58.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 1 time for 2 yards.  Lorenzen will have a hard time making the Giants with David Carr and Andre Woodson added to the roster.  Lorenzen has now played in 4 games (0 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 4 of 8 passes (50%) for 28 yards (58.3 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 2 times for 4 yards. (2.0 ypc).

Andre Woodson might wind up on the practice squad this season but he has a nice upside.  He can make all of the throws needed in the NFL and he has good mobility.  He also was a winner at Kentucky despite often having inferior help on offense.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B

Robert Henderson was such a dominating player in college that the Giants decided to take a chance on him.  Henderson is 6’3″, 278 pounds and he’s pretty fast for his size.  Henderson played in 46 games (33 starts) at Southern Mississippi and he finished up with 173 tackles, had 29.5 tackles for a loss, had 13.5 sacks, forced 7 fumbles and he broke up 9 passes.  Henderson might turn out to be a really good pick for the Giants.

Andre Woodson has all of the tools needed to be a good NFL QB.  He has nice size at 6’4″, 234 pounds and he can run a 4.88 40 so he can get out of trouble if he has to.  His arm is plenty strong enough to make all of the throws needed to succeed in the NFL.  It will be up to him to learn the playbook and not rely on the coaches so much like he did at Kentucky.  Woodson played in 44 games (37 starts) at Kentucky and he completed 791 of 1,278 passes (61.9%) for 9,360 yards with 79 TD passes and only 25 interceptions.  Woodson will likely be the young QB the Giants select to groom behind Eli Manning.

Jonathan Goff has the size (6’2″, 238 pounds) and speed combo (4.75 40) that the scouts love.  But, he is not a good open field tackler and he has problems in pass coverage.  It will be interesting to see if Goff improves in those areas because if he doesn’t he will have a hard time making the Giants’ roster.  Goff played in 46 games (39 starts) at Vanderbilt and he finished with 307 tackles, had 15.5 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks, broke up 11 passes and he intercepted 3 passes.  This pick looks like it was a reach by the Giants.

Bryan Kehl is a solid all around football player.  His only real weakness is that he’s not good at covering RBs and TEs in the passing game.  But he plays all out on every play and he is a good special teams player.  Kehl is 6’2″, 234 pounds and he runs a 4.65 40.  He can make plays to the sideline in the running game.  Kehl played in 50 games (26 starts) at BYU and he finished with 205 tackles, had 20.5 tackles for a loss, had 7 sacks, broke up 11 passes and had three interceptions.  Kehl could develop into a starter in the future but he’ll likely be a backup and special teams player as a rookie.

Mario Manningham might not be the biggest WR at 6’0″, 180 pounds and he might not be the fastest timed one either (4.5 40), but he’s an excellent all around receiver and the Giants were really lucky to get him in the 3rd round.  Many projections had Manningham going in the first round.  He is fearless over the middle and he has moves that leave defenders grasping at air.  Manningham played in 34 games (24 starts) at Michigan and he caught 137 passes for 2,310 yards (16.9 avg) with 27 TD grabs.  Look for Manningham to likely be the Giants’ #3 WR as a rookie but he might be able to bump Amani Toomer to that job in the near future.