The New York Giants have been rumored to be interested in linebacker Tremaine Edmunds. With the Chicago Bears having released the eight-year veteran on Thursday we might now see how real that interest actually is.
The Bears had recently given Edmunds and his representation permission to seek a trade. Not finding a team willing to take on his $13.9 million base salary for 2026, Chicago released him. The Bears will save $15 million in cap space.
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There are a number of reasons to connect Edmunds, who will be 28 this season, to the Giants.
The Giants don’t have a starting off-ball linebacker on the roster
The Giants released linebacker Bobby Okereke this week to save $9 million in salary cap space, and to begin revamping that position. Micah McFadden is an unrestricted free agent, and it isn’t known whether the Giants want him back.
Head coach John Harbaugh has been clear about the value of the middle linebacker.
“The inside linebacker isn’t always considered a value position but you can’t stop the run without an inside linebacker making tackles in the middle,” Harbaugh said at the NFL Scouting Combine. “You can’t do it.That becomes pretty important.”
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Harbaugh has coached a number of excellent inside linebackers — Hall of Famer Ray Lewis, C.J. Mosley, Patrick Queen, Roquan Smith. It follows that Harbaugh will not want to settle for just OK at the position.
The Giants have been said to have been poking around the veteran linebacker market for trade possibilities in recent days, with possibilities including Edmunds and Queen, who is now with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Edmunds is a decorated player
Edmunds, 6-foot-4, 251 pounds, has started all of the 119 regular-season games in which he has played, and has been named to the Pro Bowl twice. He has 900 tackles and 59 passes defensed in his career, which puts him in pretty good company at this stage:
Edmunds can still play.
There is a Joe Schoen connection
Giants general manager Joe Schoen was assistant GM with the Buffalo Bills when GM Brandon Beane made Edmunds the 16th overall selection in the 2018 NFL Draft.
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Both of Edmunds Pro Bowl appearances came when he was with the Bills.
Should the Giants make an effort to sign Edmunds? Your thoughts, Giants fans!
What about the draft?
Signing Edmunds would not preclude the Giants from selecting Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles at No. 5 in the 2026 NFL Draft, or using a Day 2 pick on an inside linebacker to play next to him. Pairing a quality veteran with a highly-drafted young player might be a good approach.