Giants like the way offensive line is performing this preseason
Giants guard Marcus Mbow during the second half against the Jets on Aug. 16, 2025. Credit: Lee S. Weissman
Just in case we had not noticed ourselves, the Giants helpfully posted a tribute on their social media platforms on Monday to their offensive line’s performance this preseason.
The caption: “Shoutout to the guys up front,” followedby a saluting emoji.
The stats: 89 pass attempts, two sacks allowed, 65 points scored and 874 total offensive yards.
Nice. But avid fans already had noticed.
Everyone who works or roots for the team knows it is much, much, much too soon to draw any definitive conclusions from the fact that the offensive line is off to a promising start.
It’s August!
But still, supporters can dare to dream, especially when one factors in that the line’s best player, Andrew Thomas, has yet to see action this summer. The star left tackle still is working his way back from foot surgery last October and is aiming to return for the Sept. 7 6 opener against the Commanders.
If he does, the starters, left to right, figure to be Thomas, Jon Runyan, John Michael Schmitz, Greg Van Roten and Jermaine Eluemunor. Not bad, on paper.
While they wait for him to return, Thomas’ teammates are showing they might be able to keep quarterbacks upright in 2025, starting with Russell Wilson and perhaps ending with Jaxson Dart.
Offensive coordinator Mike Kafka on Monday credited O-line coach Carmen Bricillo and assistant line coach James Ferentz with having “done a really good job of getting that group together, getting everyone on the same page.”
Kafka added, “It’s been really good, and I think you’re seeing it. The players are buying into it and they’re doing well.”
Evan Neal, the former first-round draft pick who disappointed at tackle, saw extensive action at guard in Saturday’s preseason game against the Jets and could provide useful depth.
“His confidence is growing, for sure, in that position and just his demeanor,” Eluemunor said. “He came in and I didn’t sense any drop-off from when Greg was in there.
“He really wants to be successful, and I can see him putting in the work and really putting in the study time, so it’s really cool to see that start pay off for him. I think for him, I’d just say keep going and keep growing that confidence, because once we get to the regular season, I know we’re going to need him.”
Rookie fifth-round pick Marcus Mbow has emerged as another potential source of depth.
“I feel like there's a lot of room for improvement in the consistency area,” he said Monday. “Just keep stringing things together with my footwork and my hands. But I feel like there's a lot of places to go. Good start so far.”
Again: Drawing conclusions based on preseason is a notoriously dangerous game.
“For me, personally, I don’t really put too much stock in the preseason,” Eluemunor said. “Obviously, it looks good, but you can’t really base things off preseason . . . You don’t win any Super Bowls in the preseason.”
Eluemunor did allow that “it’s probably cool for the fans to see the O-line perform like that,” but he added, “as an O-line, we have such a high standard and where we want to be that we’re just going out there and doing our jobs.”
OK, but does he at least see the makings of a solid line?
“I think we’re going to have a great offensive line,” he said. “We have the pieces, we have the depth and we have the coaches in place where we work really hard in practice.”
He added, “How many times are we going to see a better D-line than what we’re going against [in practice]? Dex [Lawrence], [Brian] Burns, Thibs [Kayvon Thibodeaux], Roy [Robertson-Harris], Abdul [Carter], Nacho [Rakeem Nunez-Roches]. That unit is a really good freaking unit.”
How much can Kafka tell about his line in preseason games, the last of which is against the Patriots on Thursday?
“You certainly get a feel for it as a play-caller,” he said. “You see that they’re handling it. There’s not a whole lot of pressure in some points, so you get a feel for how the rush is going, how the O-line is kind of leaning on the defensive line, kind of moving at the line of scrimmage.
“So that’s been really productive and really good this preseason and really through camp.”
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
