Giants Interested In Edwards?

First news from The Blue Screen, that the Giants nixed a Steve Smith (plus picks) swap for Braylon Edwards. Now from ESPN.com's Inside NFL Rumor Mill:

A report from Scout.com confirms that the New York Giants had talked with the Cleveland Browns earlier this offseason about a trade that would have brought Braylon Edwards to New York. Although several different options were discussed - draft picks, Steve Smith, Mario Manningham, Domenik Hixon - there was no mention of Mathias Kiwanuka, who was the centerpiece of the rumor that was being circulated in February.

As it stands now, the Giants are nearing the end of March with no resolution yet on the Plaxico Burress situation, and no player on the roster who would be able to take over his level of production. With this report that they had previously gone back and forth in negotiating for Edwards, it would seem likely that they might try to haggle with the Browns again once Burress' fate is sealed. At that point, it wouldn't be surprising if they did include Kiwanuka or another defensive lineman considering their bounty at that position.

The Browns might not be their only potential trading partner either. After all, if Edwards is traded, that leaves Donte Stallworth as the Browns' No. 1 receiver, and even if Stallworth avoids jailtime or league suspension, his declining skillset is not worthy of being anyone's No. 1. Therefore, Giants general manager Jerry Reese has also likely been putting in some time on the horn with Arizona Cardinals general manager Rod Graves, the latter of whom still has a tenuous grip on the contract of Anquan Boldin. Boldin was the subject of another trade rumor involving the Giants and Kiwanuka in February, and a swap between the Giants and Cardinals would seem to make more sense on the surface.

 

As for the other options available, the Giants have reiterated that they are not interested in Torry Holt, the best of the remaining free agents, and with Manningham already on the roster as the team's development project, it's unlikely they would rely on a draft pick to come in and contribute right away. Rest assured a move will likely be made before the start of 2009.