Giants once-beleaguered offensive line becoming teams strength

It’s always an ironic dichotomy — the more inverse the relationship between discourse and performance, the better.Usually, how little talk there is about a team’s offensive line indicates how well the unit is playing.And for the first time in recent memory, the Giants offensive line is way, way, down the pecking order on the list of qualms around the team.Heck, forget complaints.

The Giants offensive line is emerging as one of the team’s strengths this year.“It starts up front,” head coach Brian Daboll said on Monday.“Those five guys seeing the game through the same set of eyes.

Without those guys, you’re not getting plays downfield or an efficient passing game and pass protection or the screen game.And same thing with the run game, that’s where it starts, but you need everybody on offense doing their job.”The Giants invested heavily in their offensive line this past offseason, placing an emphasis on the position after years of disarray.

Daboll also fired offensive line coach Bobby Johnson and brought in Carmen Bricillo to oversee the group.It’s so far paid dividends.They signed Jon Runyan Jr.to a three-year, $30 million deal, and he’s slotted in as planned at left guard.

Jermaine Eluemunor, who signed with the team on a two-year, $14 million deal with the versatility to play both guard and tackle, has clearly cemented himself at the right tackle spot.Greg Van Roten, who signed a modest one-year deal worth up to $3 million deal late in the offseason, has become a lock at right guard.Those three have played a combined 23 years in the league.Stud left tackle Andrew Thomas is a staple along the offensive line, and center John Michael Schmitz — in his second year after a rough rookie season as the Giants’ second-round pick — has shown promising improvement.All five have played every single snap through five games.

Evan Neal, whom the Giants picked with the No.7 pick in the 2022 draft, has been relegated to a backup and has yet to see ...