The New York Giants are boosting their defense after they reportedly traded for a former first-round pick, and it didn’t cost much at all.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Giants traded a 2024 seventh-round pick to the Arizona Cardinals to acquire versatile linebacker Isaiah Simmons.
New York gave up a seventh-round pick for the No. 8 pick in the 2020 NFL draft.
The 25-year-old was converted to safety this offseason after he spent his first three years as a linebacker.
As a linebacker, he racked up 258 combined tackles, 11 quarterback hits, 7.5 sacks, and four interceptions in 50 games.
Simmons mostly played in the secondary last year. He played slot cornerback on 409 snaps, wide cornerback on 28 snaps, and free safety on 53 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.
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Now that he is moving on, Simmons will get a chance to compete in defensive coordinator Wink Martindale’s defense.
Simmons has played in all 17 games in each of the last two seasons. He registered 99 total tackles, seven passes defended, five tackles for loss, four sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery in 2022.
It should be noted that he is entering the final year of his rookie deal after Arizona declined to pick up his fifth-year option. He’s set to make $6.57 million this season.
It will be interesting to see how they deploy Simmons since they have a talented safety tandem in Xavier McKinney and Jason Pinnock.
