National Football League

How Beatty's injury will impact the Giants' offensive line

Published May. 21, 2015 8:45 a.m. ET

foxsports

Despite the fact that New York Giants general manager Jerry Reese spent another premium draft pick on an offensive line, the Giants' protection unit is the topic of discussion once again. While lifting weights on Wednesday, Giants left tackle Will Beatty tore his pectoral muscle. Beatty immediately underwent surgery, and he is expected to miss between five and six months. Losing Beatty, Eli Manning's blindside protector, will have a ripple effect through the Giants' offensive line and their offense as a whole.

Along the offensive line, the Giants had hoped that premium free agent and draft additions over the last three seasons of Justin Pugh, Geoff Schwartz, Weston Richburg and Ereck Flowers would finally solidify a unit that has received most of the blame for the Giants' offensive failures. Giants CEO John Mara referred to upgrading the offensive line as the team's No. 1 priority this offseason. Despite the fact that the team used the No. 9 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft on an offensive lineman, he may not get to see a more complete unit in 2015.

The loss of Beatty stings. Following Beatty's immediate surgery on Wednesday, his timetable for returning to the Giants is Novembmer at the earliest. By then, Beatty will have missed roughly half of the Giants' regular season. Beatty was arguably the Giants' best offensive lineman in 2014. According to Pro Football Focus, Beatty was the only Giants offensive lineman with 100 or more snaps to finish with a positive overall blocking grade in 2014. Beatty finished as Pro Football Focus' 14th-best left or right offensive tackle overall in the NFL.

With Beatty out of the picture, the Giants will be forced to shuffle the offensive line around again. Two offseasons ago, an injury to David Diehl sprung Justin Pugh into the fire at right tackle. Pugh has played right tackle for the Giants since, and according to Pro Football Focus, he has been a league-average tackle in both seasons. On a positive note, Pugh has improved in pass protection. In 2013, he allowed 52 total quarterback pressures, hits and sacks. Last season, he only allowed 28 combined. Although the Giants drafted Ereck Flowers at No. 9 overall to be their left tackle of the future, he may not be ready to protect Manning's blindside right away. Pugh remains the best bet to switch over to left takcle and replace Beatty.

If Pugh kicks over to left tackle, that will leave the right tackle spot vacant and ready for Flowers to take a crack at. If the Giants were hoping to bring Flowers along slowly, they will now need to adjust those plans. The 6-foot-6, 330-pound mauler has drawn rave early reviews from teammate and fellow lineman Geoff Schwartz. Unfortunately, Schwartz' review is based only on what he's seen from Flowers so far without the pads on.

If the Giants can't count on Flowers to take over at right tackle, they may be forced to turn to Marshall Newhouse. The Giants signed Newhouse as a free agent this offseason. Although he has experience starting at offensive tackle for the Bengals and Packers, Newhouse has struggled mightily in his appearances. Last season, he allowed 16 quarterback pressures, hits and sacks in just 373 snaps. If Newhouse makes the starting lineup, Giants fans are sure to endure devastating flashbacks to when the team was forced to play Charles Brown at right tackle when Pugh was out with injury in 2014.

The original plan was to use Flowers at right tackle anyway, and this would mean that Pugh would kick inside to offensive guard. Many believe that Pugh could elevate his game on the inside at guard. Beatty's injury erases that plan. Now, the Giants will be forced to shuffle things around again. Schwartz mentioned that he would likely move back to right guard after serving as the Giant's left guard in the games he was healthy for in 2014. That is still possible, but it would mean that last year's starting right guard John Jerry would likely kick over to the left side. Considering Jerry's struggles on the right side, it would be a risk to ask him to try a new position at left guard. Jerry finished as Pro Football Focus' 66th-ranked guard out of 78 qualifiers, but trust me things can get worse if he's forced to protect Manning's blindside.

Guard is the key position affected most by Beatty's injury. The Giants will likely explore different possibilities that involve leaving Jerry off the field. Their option will be for rookie lineman Brett Jones to take over at left guard. Jones, the former CFL Rookie of the Year and Most Outstanding Lineman in consecutive seasons, has already made strides in his transition to the NFL game. The talent is certainly there with Jones, but in the CFL, defensive lineman do not line up over the ball, and this makes his transition more complicated. Also, Jones has played center his whole career in the CFL.

If Jones does impress, the Giants can get him on the field as a guard or a center. If they see him best fit at center, they can use Weston Richburg at guard again. Richburg served as the team's starting left guard in 2014 following Schwartz's injury, but the Giants had hoped to move him back to his natural position at center in 2015. The Giants also have a few other options to use at guard that include rookie seventh-round pick Bobby Hart or journeymen Dallas Reynolds and Eric Herman.

The Giants' starting offensive line can shuffle around in many different ways following the Beatty injury. The team is likely to look to get their best five on the field at one time and worry about positions later. As of now, I would project the opening day line to feature Justin Pugh, Bobby Hart, Weston Richburg, Geoff Schwartz and Ereck Flowers from left to right.