Team continues scouring for upgrades to tail end of roster

The New York Giants have worked out five players this week in an effort to bolster their roster and add depth. Big Blue hosted EDGE John Daka, running back Taquon Mizzell, tight end Nate Wieting, and a pair of 2017 second-round Florida Gator cornerbacks, Quincy Wilson and Teez Tabor.

Daka is a rookie undrafted free agent out of James Madison University who spent the first half of this season on the Baltimore Ravens practice squad. He was incredibly productive in college and recorded 16.5 sacks his last year at JMU. He’s a bit undersized at 6-foot-2, 227 pounds, but he has some juice in his legs. Daka could figure to be an interesting addition to a beat up EDGE room.

Mizzell is a 2017 undrafted free agent out of Virginia who was with the Chicago Bears for two years, but hasn’t played on an NFL roster since 2018. He was a dual threat at Virginia and recorded 940 rushing yards, on 187 attempts (5.0 YPC), along with 52 catches for 404 yards in his senior season. With Devonta Freeman banged up, Mizzell could latch onto the practice squad while Wayne Gallman and Alfred Morris continue to shoulder the running back load.

Wieting is an undrafted rookie tight end out of Iowa, a school that produced George Kittle, T.J. Hockenson, and Noah Fant at the same position. Obviously, Wieting isn’t that, but the school is known for its physical blockers at tight end. The tight end was originally a walk on, but he impressed head coach Kirk Ferentz so much that he earned a scholarship. Wieting dealt with several injuries in college, so there may be untapped potential if he can ever stay on the field.

Wilson and Tabor were both highly touted draft prospects coming out of Florida in 2017, but both failed to live up to expectations. Wilson was drafted by the Colts, and was solid in his first two years, but his play fell off in 2019 and he found himself cut by the Jets in the subsequent year. Wilson’s marraige with the Colts ended poorly as well; he was traded to New York for a 6th round pick after several players on the depth chart beat Wilson for the starting role. When he was traded to the Jets, he claimed it was one of the best days of his life. Wilson is a big physical cornerback, as you can tell below:

The Wilson fit is understandable, and Tabor was always a better fit for zone coverage due to his lack of speed, which was continuously mocked after his dismal 4.62 40-yard dash at the combine. Sadly for Tabor, he was even slower at his pro day with a 4.75, which rarely happens to players at their own school’s pro days. Here’s Tabor’s other athletic tests and measurables:

Tabor was drafted by the Detroit Lions and was very bad from the start. He hasn’t seen NFL action since 2018, but he’s still 24 years old, and Wilson is 25.

The two players that really interest me are Daka and Wilson. The dearth of healthy bodies at the EDGE position gives Daka a chance to possibly prove himself, and Wilson proved he had talent at the NFL level, but it just needs to be recaptured; I feel Patrick Graham could be a guy to help Wilson reach his potential. Ryan Lewis is now on the IR. which leaves Isaac Yiadom as the de-facto starter now that Corey Ballentine was waived. Could Wilson be someone who could earn a role and possibly challenge Yiadom in the coming weeks, it’s not impossible, but he’ll have his work cut out for him.