Giants Release Brandon Marshall; What Does it Mean for OBJ and Dez?

• The New York Giants have released wide receiver Brandon Marshall
• Are the Giants clearing space to acquire free agent Dez Bryant?
• Will the Giants keep Odell Beckham Jr?

Today, Brandon Marshall learned a very valuable lesson: don’t sell the bear’s skin before you’ve killed the beast. One day after telling Dez Bryant, via his Instagram story, there wasn’t any room for him in the Giants receiving corps, it seems a spot has opened up.

New York announced today they are releasing Marshall with the designation of a failed physical.

welp… pic.twitter.com/fmy03qX1NC

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) April 19, 2018

Although it would seem the move came as a surprise to Marshall, the rest of us had been anticipating it. The 34-year-old did not look good in his five games with the Giants in 2017, hauling in just 18 receptions for 154 yards and no touchdowns. In cutting Marshall, the Giants free up $5.1 million in cap space.

But what will they do with that extra cap space now?

Odds the Giants Sign Dez Bryant Now

When he was released by the Cowboys earlier this week, Dez Bryant made it clear he was taking it personally, and wanted to make Dallas pay. This is why we were quick to project the New York Giants as a possible landing spot for the three-time Pro Bowl receiver.

? Twice? Let’s see https://t.co/939nM5atzi

— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) April 13, 2018

However, even after clearing $5.1 million in releasing Marshall, the Giants still don’t have a ton of cap space, and there aren’t many other moves they can make to free up space outside of restructuring a couple contracts. (I’m looking at you, Eli.) Spotrac projects the Giants to have just under $10 million in cap space for the 2018 season.

And with all the headaches Odell Beckham Jr has caused for them lately, would the Giants really want to bring another diva into the locker room when they already have two other budding pass-catchers in Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram?

It is possible, though, that the Giants decide the pros would outweigh the cons and Dez agrees to take a very team-friendly deal in order to play the Cowboys twice in 2018. At the very least, it’s more likely now than before releasing Brandon Marshall.

What Does This Mean for Odell Beckham Jr?

The more likely reason behind the Giants releasing Brandon Marshall is to clear some space to offer OBJ the long-term contract he is seeking.

Though the trade rumors haven’t ceased, the G-Men should have come to the realization by now that they are a better team with Beckham than without him. Excluding the game against the Lions in Week 2, when OBJ clearly wasn’t healthy enough to play, New York averaged 23 points per game with Beckham in 2017, and just 13.9 per game without him.

The 25-year-old is truly a special talent who has the rare ability to change a game with one play. Dave Gettleman would be foolish to try and trade his star receiver, and would never get equal value in return.

But there is also the possibility that New York may want to hit the reset button, draft their franchise pivot with the second-overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, and just take whatever assets they can get to have OBJ out of the locker room.

Brandon Marshall’s Future

When the six-time Pro Bowl receiver went down with a season-ending ankle injury in Week 5 of the 2017 season, he was adamant that his career could not end this way.

Marshall is three years removed from a campaign that saw him post 1,502 receiving yards and a league-leading 14 TD receptions. While it may be very difficult imagining him match that yardage total in 2018, he can still be a productive red zone threat for a good team.

And with Marshall never having experienced playoff football in the NFL, look for him to try and catch on with a contender on a cheap one-year deal, if they’ll take him.

Be sure to keep up with our Super Bowl 53 Odds Tracker as all these moves unfold!