Free agent pass rusher DeMarcus Walker is visiting the Giants on Wednesday, Peter Schrager of ESPN reports.
Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen coached Walker in Tennessee in 2022.
The Bears released Walker on Feb. 21, and he has remained a free agent since. Walker was scheduled to make $5.2 million in base salary and count $5.916 million against the Bears’ cap.
He started all 17 games for the Bears last season but totaled only 47 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 16 quarterback hits.
The Broncos made Walker a second-round pick in 2017, and he spent four seasons in Denver, one in Houston, one in Tennessee and two in Chicago.
Walker, 30, signed a three year, $21 million contract with the Bears in 2023 when he last was a free agent. He had $15.65 million in guaranteed money.
In the aftermath of the Colorado Pro Day on Friday, a player-sparked debate emerged regarding the fact that quarterback Shedeur Sanders patted the ball before throwing it.
Jets safety Andre Cisco got it started. Giants receiver Darius Slayton responded. Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons got involved.
The defenders said it was a problem. Slayton said it’s no big deal.
Former NFL quarterback Chris Simms, who co-hosts PFT Live four days per week in the offseason, shared his views on the issue during Monday’s show. Per Simms, it’s a non-issue.
We showed video of more than a few quarterbacks who pat the ball before starting the throwing motion. All-time greats, including Tom Brady, Joe Montana, John Elway, and Patrick Mahomes. (Elway did it on the throw that capped The Drive.)
Throwing motion and eye placement are far more important, when it comes to not giving defenders more time to intercept a pass and/or to get to the quarterback before he gets rid of the ball.
Quarterbacks have been patting the ball for decades. Suddenly, when Shedeur Sanders does it, it’s an issue? And it’s not an issue from anonymous scouts and/or shouting heads. It’s a player-driven issue.
On this specific issue, one former player firmly believes the players are wrong.
For more, check out the attached video.
Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter is getting to know the Giants this week.
Carter had breakfast with Giants head coach Brian Daboll in State College, Pennsylvania on Sunday and Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that he’ll be meeting with a wider range of club employees at their facility on Thursday.
Carter is expected to be one of the first players off the board in the first round later this month. With quarterback Cam Ward expected to be the top pick, Carter and Colorado wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter are seen as the likeliest non-quarterbacks to come off the board in the first few picks.
Hunter’s recently overtook Carter as the favorite to go to the Browns at No. 2 and that could set the stage for a long-term relationship between Carter and the Giants.
Regardless of where Colorado coach Deion Sanders thinks Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders will be picked, the process will play itself out in 17 days.
And the sports books are taking action on where Shedeur will land.
Both DraftKings and FanDuel have the Saints as the favorites to select Sanders. DraftKings has the Saints at +300. New Orleans holds the ninth overall pick in the draft.
The Giants are next, at +350. The Browns have +425 odds. The Steelers are 7-1. The Jets, Raiders, and Rams are 10-1.
Few think the Giants would take Sanders at No. 3. In theory, they could trade down and take him later. The Raiders, at No. 6, have a contract with Geno Smith that doesn’t eliminate them from the quarterback conversation. The Jets have the 7th pick, and the Justin Fields contract cries out “bridge” quarterback.
If Sanders slips past the Saints at No. 9, he could slide. Or, more accurately, someone could trade up to get him.
That dynamic makes the eighth pick (held by the Panthers) a potential hot spot. Eight years ago, the Chiefs cut the line in front of the Saints to get Patrick Mahomes. This year, someone could trade up with the Panthers to get Sanders before the Saints do.
The floor seems to be the Steelers at No. 20. Even if Aaron Rodgers signs, they need a long-term answer. Kenny Pickett wasn’t. Maybe Shedeur would be.
Typically, pre-draft debates start with anonymous sources and end with talking heads shouting each other down. On Saturday, a back-and-forth originated not from those paid to talk about football but those paid to play it.
The topic? The impact of Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders’s habit of patting the ball before the throws it. It was on display during his Pro Day workout on Friday.
Jets safety Andre Cisco tweeted that Shedeur “better stop patting that ball, we breakin onnat earlyyyy.”
Giants receiver Darius Slayton disagreed with Cisco’s message. Said Slayton on Twitter: “I promise he can pat the ball and be just fine if DB’s was so good at breaking on ball pats they’d all have 8+ picks a year. Same guys that fall for a 2 man dagger concept and give up the dig on 3rd&long every season all season long talkin bout a ball pat what a joke.”
Cisco brushed off the response by suggesting that Slayton was sucking up in advance to the guy who could be his quarterback in 2025.
Then, possibly to the dismay of current or former teammates, Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons got involved. First, he retweeted Cisco’s reply to Slayton. Then, Parsons said this while reposting Slayton’s tweet: “You realize [a pat] on the ball can be difference between a sack or a throw away/completion?”
Slayton had a rebuttal. “Tom Brady literally the king of getting the ball out fast patted the ball when he threw. So actually no patting the ball is not the difference,” Slayton said.
Then came Parsons, with a subtle shifting of the the goalposts on the subject from whether patting the ball is a problem: “Comparing the greatest quarterback ever to sanders is why I’ll never entertain a football conversation with you!! Like what are we doing here??”
Slayton had the last word, posting a video of various quarterbacks (Brady and others) patting the ball.
Parsons has yet to respond.
So is patting the ball an issue for Shedeur? I’ll defer to our in-house quarterback; Chris Simms and I will discuss the issue on Monday’s PFT Live. Tune in at 7:00 a.m. ET on Peacock, SiriusXM 85, or the free and easy to use NBC Sports NOW.
And we won’t be shouting each other down. Unless we legitimately disagree on something. The last thing you’ll see on our show is a contrived effort to have one person take one side and the other make the counter argument.
