As rookie minicamps and the rest of the NFL's offseason program continue, the New York Giants are adding some veteran pieces to their roster. On Sunday, the club announced the signing of wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin and running back Corey Clement. The two participated at the team's rookie minicamp over the weekend on a tryout basis and have seemingly done enough to make the Giants brass want to see what else they may be able to offer.
Benjamin first entered the league as a first-round draft choice of the Panthers. The connection between Benjamin and the Giants centers around GM Dave Gettleman, who selected Benjamin back in 2014 when he was serving in the same role in Carolina. Given Gettleman's affinity for the player, it's no surprise to see him circle back to see if there is anything left in a talent he once took at No. 28 overall.
While the 30-year-old was able to put up some respectable numbers (1,008 yards receiving and nine touchdowns in 2014) out of the gate, he failed to truly live up to that first-round billing. Benjamin suffered a torn ACL in 2015, then played the entire 2016 season with the Panthers but was traded in the midst of the 2017 campaign and was out of the league by the end of 2018 after stints with the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs.
During this new stint with New York, it does look like Benjamin will be making a position swap as he tries to get his pro career back on track. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Benjamin will be working as a tight end with the Giants, which is something head coach Joe Judge spoke about on Friday when asked about his tryout.
"In terms of Benjamin working different position today, we're going to work different guys at a variety of things right now," he said, via the official team website. "He's a big guy. He's always been a big receiver. He'll work receiver. He's working a little bit flex tight end as well. I wouldn't really pin him down to any one position at this point. We're going to use the weekend to move him around to different spots and see how it works out."
As for Clement, he climbed the NFL ladder as an undrafted free agent in 2017 as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles. There, he grew to be one of the postseason heroes as the club went on to win Super Bowl LII. In that victory over the New England Patriots, Clement, a rookie at the time, piled up 100 yards receiving and caught a touchdown. He was also one of the cogs in the infamous "Philly Special" as he initially took the snap and handed it off to Trey Burton, who threw a touchdown to Nick Foles.
While he'll always live in Philadelphia sports lore, Clement hasn't been able to carve out a significant role in the backfield, playing in just 10% of the offensive snaps last season. With the Giants, he'll be joining a competitive running back stable that consists of Saquon Barkley, Devontae Booker, and others. His best chance of securing a spot on the Week 1 roster will be showing his versatility by continuing to show his prowess on special teams along with his talents as a running back.
