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Perhaps no young player on the Giants roster (other than draft picks) has generated more fanfare than offensive lineman Kyle Murphy, who signed as an undrafted Rhode Island free agent last year.
Murphy wasn’t just another offensive lineman / camp fodder for free agents. This young man has offered versatility in every position and has done so at an impressive level throughout his college career.
He played 43 games with 36 starts in 4 seasons for Rhode Island — 21 games on the left tackle, nine on the left guard, five on the right tackle, and one in the middle.
During his junior season, Murphy was named first team of all conferences in the Colonial Athletic Association. As team captain, Murphy received the Associated Press All-American second-team and All-CAA first-team awards after making 12 starts in the left tackle as a senior.
As a senior in 2019, Murphy was team captain and 11-game starter at Left Tackle, part of an offensive line that allowed only 2.2 bags per game, despite the team averaging 42 passes per game in the league.
What he brings with him
Although Murphy has played every spot on the offensive line, it is better suited for internal offensive line play at the NFL level. A smart player who adapts quickly, Murphy joined the Giants’ 53-man roster on November 13, but has been inactive for the team’s last seven games after joining the active roster.
Here’s what NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said in his first scouting report on Murphy:
Murphy is a small school attacking lineman with good athleticism, core strength, and positional flexibility. Murphy has initial tackle, guard, and center experience but is likely to be a center / guard projection. His size and strength were good for his level of competition but could be an early challenge in the NFL. He’s an average drive blocker, but could be fast enough to get into challenging angles as a move blocker. Murphy’s pass protection is a strong point as anchor and slide speeds work in harmony with different rush styles.
One thing about Murphy that stood out at last year’s training camp, along with his meanness and consistency in finishing his blocks, was his lack of bulk. Although he’s not an uncommon problem among rookie offensive linemen, it, combined with his small school background, led to a stopover on the practice team.
His contract
Murphy signed a two-year contract valued at $ 1.39 million. He’ll offset the cap at $ 780,000 this year.
Roster projection / expectations
The Giants added veteran domestic offensive linemen Jonotthan Harrison and Zach Fulton to one-year contracts in the off-season just in case players like Murphy aren’t ready for the next level.
But don’t be surprised that Murphy took a long look this summer as a possible “substitute” for either of these two veterans.
Find all of our training camp player previews in one place. New profiles are added every day until we reach the bottom of the list.
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