EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- NFL rosters will be trimmed from 75 to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET Saturday. With kicker Josh Brown set to land on a reserve list as he serves a one-game suspension, that means the New York Giants will cut or waive at least 21 players.
In the process, there will be difficult decisions. Four or five running backs? Five or six wide receivers? Six or seven linebackers? And which ones?
Those will admittedly be the most difficult choices general manager Jerry Reese and coach Ben McAdoo will encounter Friday evening into Saturday morning.
"We have some tough decisions to make," McAdoo said. "Probably the receiver group will be a challenge. The running back group will be a challenge. The linebacker group. We've got some tough decisions to make."
A look at some of those decisions:
Wide receiver: Odell Beckham Jr., Sterling Shepard, Dwayne Harris and Victor Cruz appear to have spots. McAdoo has done nothing but express optimism about Cruz's long-term prospects in recent weeks.
Tavarres King dominated the preseason finale and has played himself onto the final roster. If he doesn't make it, there never really was a fair competition. King outplayed everyone aside from Beckham in training camp and preseason.
Geremy Davis is interesting. He started strong again this summer, before a hamstring injury slowed him down. He also hasn't developed into the special teams player the Giants envisioned when he was drafted. So Davis could draw debate, although his chances remain strong.
Undrafted rookie Roger Lewis is the other possibility. He flashed at times in training camp and saved his biggest play for last with a leaping touchdown grab late Thursday night against the New England Patriots.
"I needed it," Lewis said. "[Have] made a lot of plays in practice, but to make it in the game is big time."
Was it enough? Well ...
The best guess here is that the Giants put Beckham, Shepard, Harris, Cruz, King and Davis on the final 53-man roster. Lewis goes to the practice squad.
Running back: Rashad Jennings and Shane Vereen have been the first-team options all summer. They're the Giants' primary backs. Despite rookie mistakes this preseason, fifth-round pick Paul Perkins has a roster spot. It's between Andre Williams, Orleans Darkwa and Bobby Rainey for the remaining spots.
The Giants have been stubborn on Williams. They believe he can be an effective runner with his size, power and speed. The slimmed-down Williams has looked better this summer. Darkwa had limited opportunities in the preseason but ran well Thursday night and is a strong special teams player. Rainey excelled as a returner and made the most plays of any running back in the preseason.
The best guess here is that the Giants take five running backs since they're not going to have a natural fullback on the roster. Rainey remains the odd-man out.
Linebacker: Devon Kennard, Jonathan Casillas and fourth-round draft pick B.J. Goodson have roster spots. Veteran Jasper Brinkley also appears in good shape after being held out with the starters Thursday night. Brinkley had been battling Kelvin Sheppard for a starting spot most of the summer and was guaranteed $1.7 million this offseason.
That puts Sheppard's spot in jeopardy. Keenan Robinson, another offseason signing, is the top choice as a nickel/cover linebacker alongside Casillas. And Herzlich remains a staple on all the special teams units and has versatility.
J.T. Thomas spent most of the summer on the physically unable to perform list because of a hamstring injury. That hurt his chances, especially given his injury history. He was up and down against the Patriots, with missed tackles being his most egregious errors.
Brad Bars and Ishaq Williams are intriguing options as converted defensive ends, but they appear to be practice squad options.
The best guess here is that Kennard, Casillas, Brinkley, Goodson, Robinson and Herzlich make the roster. If the Giants take a seventh linebacker (possible) it would be between Sheppard and Thomas, with Sheppard the favorite.
