The Giants and safety Landon Collins are not currently in active negotiations on a contract extension, sources tell Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). There’s still time for a deal to get done, but it sounds like there’s still a huge gap to bridge when it comes to a new long-term deal.
It seems likely that the Giants will employ the franchise tag on Collins, which is expected to be worth approximately $11.2MM for safeties. For his part, Collins has expressed a desire to stay in New York. He’d probably like a long-term deal, but there’s no indication that he wouldn’t cooperate with a tag in the interim.
Collins leads all defensive backs in tackles since entering the league in 2015. The former second-round pick has made three Pro Bowls in the last four seasons, putting him in somewhat rarified air.
Collins’ 2018 season was cut short by injury, but he indicated that he would have played through the pain if the Giants were still in the playoff mix down the stretch. All in all, he finished out with 96 tackles, four passes defensed, and a forced fumble. Collins graded out as just the 39th best safety in the NFL last year, per Pro Football Focus, but he was a top 15 guy in the previous two seasons. When healthy, Collins is clearly among the best young safeties in the league.
Absolutely love everything that Collins brings to the team, not only on he field but off the field as well. Is a true professional. I believe the Giants feel the same way and have expressed it to Collins. That being said it’s just a matter of time before a long term deal is struck. Owever, being the true NY fan I am, it’s a precursor to him reaching FA and signing with the Cowboys or New Orleans (his home town).
Knowing the Giants they let him go. They have a history of not resigning their own free agents after the rookie contracts. Some decent players – Amukamra, Joseph, Pugh, Richburg, Hankins just to name a few.