For the first time in six years, the Giants are 2-0. That’s the good news. The bad news is that free-agent disaster Kenny Golladay (who is quickly playing himself into the conversation for worst signing of the Dave Gettleman Era), may as well have been a ghost Sunday, playing all of two snaps against the Panthers after catching two balls for a meager 22 yards in last week’s opener.
Golladay has pocketed $34,759.36 per route run this season, an unconscionable waste of resources for a team with little margin for error after winning its first two games by a combined 40-36 margin. First-year coach Brian Daboll has made clear the Giants, under his leadership, will be a meritocracy, basing his personnel decisions, not by what salary a player makes, but what they bring to the field day in and day out. Still, it’s hard to fathom Golladay, who led the NFL in touchdowns as recently as 2019, being relegated to spectator status barely a year into a $72-million contract, playing fewer snaps than the unheralded likes of Richie James and David Sills, the latter an undrafted journeyman who spent much of last season on the Giants’ practice squad.
After failing to score a touchdown in his debut season with the Giants, most were willing to give Golladay the benefit of the doubt, attributing his lackluster 2021 to injuries and inconsistent quarterback play. But that narrative has quickly gone out the window following a dismal training camp (Giants beat reporter Jordan Raanan said he ran with “the stiffness of a mannequin” this summer), displaying the urgency of a player on his last NFL breath. Golladay was nowhere to be found after the game (not that he contributed much during it), leaving an empty locker in his wake.
It’s possible Golladay stormed off out of frustration over his lack of playing time, though an abandoned locker is never a good sign, indicating the 28-year-old may not be long for East Rutherford. Cutting Golladay would be an unprecedented admission of defeat, leaving behind a dead cap hit of over $30 million. The more likely outcome, if New York indeed moves on from Golladay, would be a trade, though it’s hard to imagine him garnering much interest given how poorly he’s performed of late. Presumably, the Giants would also have to eat a significant chunk of his remaining salary in that scenario.
Whatever ends up happening, the Giants have to be feeling buyer’s remorse, paying Golladay a fortune for what, through two games, would amount to some light cardio.
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