The New York Giants added C.J. Okoye on Saturday, sending a 2028 seventh-round pick to the Baltimore Ravens in a deal that gives them another body for the interior of their defensive line.
That matters now because NFL teams had to get to the 53-man regular-season roster limit by 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, and the Giants had been searching for more help inside. Okoye, 24, is 6-foot-6 and 365 pounds, a size profile that fits the kind of player John Harbaugh described as a run stopper and pocket pusher.
Harbaugh said Okoye was a developmental player when the Ravens got to know him recently last year, after he had spent a couple of years with the Chargers in the international program with Jim. He also said Okoye did not play football growing up, then made major progress last season working with Dennis Johnson, when he had what Harbaugh called a really good season. That track record helps explain why the Giants were willing to give up a future seventh-round pick for him instead of spending more immediate roster capital.
But the deal does not close the door on more movement. Harbaugh was blunt that the Giants are still looking for defensive tackle help, which means Okoye may be one answer rather than the answer as the deadline arrives. He is the sort of inside defender they had been pursuing, a player for A gap and B gap work, but the market around him is still open and the next move, if there is one, will tell more about how much interior depth the Giants think they still need.
For Okoye, the trade is a chance to turn a late-round pick into a real roster foothold. For the Giants, it is a small but clear wager that size, growth and a year of development can matter more than the draft slot they sent away.
