The Giants have signed 28-year old center Chris White.  White played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Seahawks last year.  He has now played in 33 games (8 starts) in his first six years in the NFL.  White will provide depth on the interior of the O-Line for the Giants.  You can never have enough capable centers and guards, so I like this signing for the Giants.

The Giants have signed 28-year old punter Steve Weatherford.  Weatherford played in all 16 games for the Jets last year and he punted the ball 84 times for 3,581 yards (42.6 avg).  He had only 4 touchbacks (4.8%) and he pinned the opposing team inside their own 20-yard line an amazing 42 times (50%)!  He has now played in 78 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has punted the ball 363 times for 15,585 yards (42.9 avg).  He has 37 touchbacks (10.2%) and he has pinned the opposing team inside their 20-yard line 114 times (31.4%) in his NFL career.  Weatherford will compete with second year punter Matt Dodge for the punting job for the Giants in 2011.

The Giants have released 29-year old fullback Madison Hedgcock.  Hedgcock played in 4 games (3 starts) for the Giants last year and he caught 2 passes for 8 yards (4.0 avg).  He played in 51 games (31 starts) in his four years with the Giants and he carried the ball 1 time for 0 yards.  He also caught 20 passes for 128 yards (6.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs for the Giants.  The running game will probably miss Hedgcock a little bit as he was a solid blocker, but I think the Giants will find an able replacement in free agency.

The Giants have re-signed 28-year old DE Mathias Kiwanuka to a multi-year deal.  Kiwanuka played in only 3 games last year due to injury and he had 11 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 4 sacks and 1 forced fumble.  Kiwanuka has played in 61 games in his first five years with the Giants and he has 222 tackles, 20 tackles for a loss, 23.5 sacks, 7 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, 2 interceptions and 10 passes defensed.  This was a good move for the Giants as Kiwanuka is a pretty darn good football player when he is healthy.

The Giants have released 32-year old DT Rocky Bernard.  Bernard played in 14 games for the Giants last year and he had 18 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 sacks and he defensed 4 passes.  He played in 29 games in his two seasons with the Giants and he had 40 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks and he defensed 4 passes.  This move was a result of Bernard not being worth the money he was making, period.

UPDATE:  (8/4/2011) – The Giants have re-signed Rocky Bernard to a 1-year deal.

The Giants moved quickly to improve the offensive line as they have signed 29-year old center Davis Baas to a multi-year contract.  Baas was the best free agent center available and he should be a nice fit in the middle of the Giants’ rebuilt O-Line.  Baas played in 16 games (all starts) for the 49ers last year.  He has played in 92 games (54 starts) in his first six years in the NFL, as he is a late bloomer.  This was a outstanding signing for the Giants.

The Giants have released 28-year old OT Shawn Andrews after he wouldn’t restructure his contact.  Andrews played in 13 games (7 starts) in his only year with the Giants in 201o.  Andrews has played in 63 games (57 starts) in his first 7 years in the NFL.  The Giants will really need to sign some free agents to help fill out the offensive line, as Andrews is the third member of last year’s starting O-Line to be released today.

The New York Giants have released 32-year old guard Richard Seubert and 34-year old center Shaun O’Hara.  Seubert played in 16 games (all starts) for the Giants last year.  He played in 104 games (88 starts) in his 10 years with the Giants.  Shaun O’Hara only played in six games (all starts) last year due to injury.  O’Hara played in 97 games (all starts) in his seven years with the Giants.  The Giants are going to miss these two guys as they were tough on the interior of the O-Line.  The Giants will have to spend some cash on replacements for Seubert and O’Hara in free agency.

Running back Tiki Barber is 36-years old now and he will be coming out of retirement this year.  The Giants are likely to release him when the lockout is over so that he can be a free agent.  Barber played in 154 games in his 10 years with the Giants and he carried the ball 2,217 times for 10,449 yards (4.7 ypc) with 55 TD runs.  He also caught 586 passes for 5,183 yards (8.8 avg) with 12 TD grabs with the Giants.  Barber is the Giants’ all-time leader in both rushing yards and rushing TDs.  He is also #3 in Giants’ history in receptions and he is also third in team history in receiving yards.  Barber’s best season came back in 2005 for the Giants when he played in 16 games in which he carried the ball 357 times for 1,860 yards (5.2 ypc) with 9 TD runs.  He also caught 54 passes for 530 yards (9.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs in 2005.  Barber’s last season with the Giants was in 2006 when he was still a solid running back.  Barber played in 16 games (all starts) for the Giants in 2006 and he carried the ball 327 times for 1,662 yards (5.1 ypc) with 5 TD runs.  He also caught 58 passes for 465 yards (8.0 avg) with 0 TD grabs in 2006.  That season was his swan song with the Giants.  Barber made it to 3 Pro Bowls with the Giants in his 10 years with the team.  He also rushed for over 1,000 yards six times and he caught at least 60 passes in a season five times.  He caught at least 50 passes in a season 8 times!  It might hurt seeing Tiki Barber playing in another uniform but the Giants are already set at RB.