New York Giants have made notable transformation at inside linebacker
It's not just the names that have changed at inside linebacker for the New York Giants entering the 2026 season.
The New York Giants ' defense is undergoing a transformation this offseason. Several captains were sent packing (Dexter Lawrence, Bobby Okereke), and new faces that fit the vision of the new regime under head coach John Harbaugh have been brought in. One of the biggest changes is at off-ball linebacker, where free agent Tremaine Edmunds and top draft pick Arvell Reese will be stationed this season.
They are taking the places of Okereke and Micah McFadden, who is now a backup. The obvious difference between the old and new players is height. Okereke and McFadden are listed at 6-foot-2.
The incoming pair are 6-foot-4 or taller. Tom Rock of Newsday recently spoke to Edmunds about the shift to taller players in the off-ball linebacker community. "I said to him (Reese), 'There are not a lot of times that you find someone that you are looking eye-level with, at least for me, because I have always kind of been an outlier as far as one of the taller guys,'" Edmonds said.
"But the league is changing. A lot of teams are going out and getting taller with some bigger guys. That's life in the NFL.