The New York Giants will begin the 2025 NFL season with what might be the most dangerous trio of pass rushers in the league.
The triple threat of Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and first-round pick Abdul Carter is downright scary, but it also presents a challenge for defensive coordinator Shane Bowen: making sure the right guy is getting the right reps at the right time.
However, in a new trade proposal outlined by Pro Football Sports Network, New York could instead turn their abundance of riches at edge rusher into future assets in the NFL Draft by shipping Thibodeaux to a team that could use an uptick in their pass rush: the Green Bay Packers.
“The duo of Burns and Carter could make the former top-five pick the odd man out,” PFSN wrote. “Thibodeaux racked up 11.5 sacks in 2023, so trading him may seem strange to some, but he may be more of a luxury considering the talent New York has coming off the edge.
“Even though Thibodeaux’s production hasn’t exactly matched his draft position, the talent is undeniable. He only recorded 5.5 sacks and 38 pressures last season, but he also missed five games due to injury.”
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The Giants exercised their fifth-year option in Thibodeaux’s contract, but that doesn’t mean he’ll have a long-term home in New York. Instead, it gives Big Blue another year to decide whether they want to invest in a massive pay raise for a player who, in all honesty, hasn’t lived up to the hype that came along with him being selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Thibodeaux’s best season came in 2023, when he finished with 11.5 sacks, but he’s managed just 9.5 in his other two seasons combined. Injuries have plagued the twitchy edge rusher, who’s appeared in 43 of 51 games so far.
Still, double-digit sack artists are hard to find, and Kayvon Thibodeaux has proven he can be that guy. Trades for guys like him usually come with a premium asking price, and if Big Blue can flip him into a first or even second-round pick, they’d have to give it long and serious consideration.
The bottom line is this: the Giants must get Abdul Carter on the field as much as possible. Brian Burns, too. Both players have higher pass-rushing upsides than Thibodeaux; they can’t be on the bench in any passing situation.
Perhaps Bowen will figure out a way to get all three of them on the field at the same time. However, that seems unlikely, making a trade projection like this within the scope of reasonable outcomes.
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