Ex-Bills lineman Daryl Williams could be an intriguing option for Giants

The release Monday morning of Bill’s offensive lineman Daryl Williams certainly resonated at the Giants facility. The 29-year-old could also be the answer to the team’s prayers when it comes to finding a fitting piece to add to a jigsaw puzzle that has been muddled and incomplete for a decade.

Williams is exactly what the Giants need. He is healthy, has stamina and can play right tackle or move inside for cover.

The Bills parted ways with Williams to save $6.3 million on her 2022 salary cap and used some of those savings to give center Mitch Morse a two-year, $19.5 million contract extension. Apparently, the Bills prioritized Morse, 29, over Williams.

The Giants know more than any other team in the NFL whether Williams is worth pursuing. Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll, the new general manager and head coach, respectively, and Bobby Johnson, first-year offensive line coach, were all from Buffalo, where Williams has played for the past two seasons. He started in all 33 regular-season games, as well as all five postseason starts.

Williams spent the first five years of his NFL career with the Panthers, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He joined the Bills in 2020 on a one-year proof-it deal and signed a three-year, $28.1 million contract extension last March. A year later, however, Williams is gone — although there’s always a chance he’ll re-sign with Buffalo at a lower price.

Williams played 600 snaps at right guard and 571 snaps at right tackle last season. The Giants have openings in both places.

Now for the big question: Can the Giants afford him? They won’t break the bank for a single player because they don’t have the resources for the salary cap.

Schoen has already taken about $25 million off the cap, and the Giants are going free, about $7 million to $8 million below the cap. Nice said He eventually wanted to free up $40 million in cap space in order to be able to participate in free agency to some degree, and also so that he could conveniently manage the team’s roster.

Unanswered questions remain on the Giants payroll. For example, replacing cornerback James Bradberry saves $12.1 million at the cap, while splitting running back Saquon Barkley saves $7.2 million. In Barkley’s case, however, the money is fully guaranteed as a fifth-year option – something teams interested in taking on the 25-year-old must consider.

This front office did not make Barkley a second pick overall in 2018 and thus does not have the ties or loyalty to him that the previous regime had. The Giants could find two running backs for $7.2 million. Barkley could make more sense for a year on a Super Bowl team this season, which the Giants aren’t.

This is the season of roster reductions before the free agency frenzy begins on Wednesday. Elsewhere on Monday, the Packers fired Billy Turner, who has started 43 games over the past three seasons and split time between right protection and right tackles. He also played all 810 of his snaps in 2021 in correct tackle.

The 30-year-old gymnast isn’t likely to make much money in the open market. It’s another option for the Giants to consider.