Clint Lamb
Videos by OutKick
Well, that didn’t last long.
Back in March, edge rusher Ryan Anderson signed a one-year, $1.12 million contract with the Giants. Now he’s back on the free agent market looking for a new gig after New York cut him on Monday afternoon.
Art Stapleton with USA TODAY tweeted out the news:
Giants have released LB Ryan Anderson, who never got into the EDGE mix due to a back injury.
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) August 9, 2021
The timing is unfortunate considering Anderson had just returned from a back injury that had him on the NFI (non-football injury) list since late July. Though he passed his physical, the team ultimately decided to part ways with the former second-round pick.
Anderson can still help a team when healthy, especially on early downs in a 3-4 defense.
In four seasons with the Washington Football Team, he racked up 78 tackles, 6 sacks and 5 forced fumbles. His most successful season came in 2019 when his defense was still running a 3-4 base. He played on almost half of the team’s snaps (559), collecting 44 tackles, 4 sacks, 5 forced fumbles and 9 QB hits.
When the defense switched to a 4-3 base alignment last season, Anderson’s snap share and overall usage dipped drastically, which is why he was looking for work elsewhere this offseason. Despite his limitations as a pass rusher, he should eventually latch onto a new team because of what he can provide on early downs.
Follow Clint Lamb on Twitter @ClintRLamb.
