Ereck Flowers could be the key to Giants' offensive line

With five days left until the New York Giants report to training camp, our position-by-position breakdown looks at the offensive line, where much has changed from 2014.

Projected starters: LT Ereck Flowers, LG Justin Pugh, C Weston Richburg, RG Geoff Schwartz, RT Marshall Newhouse
Likely to make roster: G John Jerry, G/C Dallas Reynolds, G/T Brandon Mosley, T Bobby Hart
Injured (likely to start season on PUP): LT Will Beatty
On the bubble: C Brett Jones, G Adam Gettis, G Eric Herman, T Michael Bamiro, T Emmett Cleary, T Sean Donnelly

This is all in flux: The projected starters here are based on where they lined up in OTAs and minicamp. There's no guarantee this will be the alignment in Week 1. There's no guarantee this will be the alignment next weekend, after a month of thinking and evaluating what the coaching staff saw in spring. They could decide Flowers isn't ready for left tackle but is ready for right tackle, in which case they could swap him and Newhouse or move Pugh from guard back to one of the tackle spots. Schwartz is likely to be limited at the start of camp, which could mean right guard reps for Jerry and a chance for more playing time if he shows well. Mosley intrigues them and was getting right tackle snaps in minicamp. Tom Coughlin will undoubtedly tell us the Giants are tinkering with different combinations to try and figure out the best five starters, and he'll be telling the truth.

Tackle is where the questions lie: The projected guards and centers are as originally planned. The Giants decided before the draft that they wanted to move Pugh from right tackle, where he started the first two years of his career, to left guard. They moved Richburg to center, his true position, and released 2014 starter J.D. Walton. And they want Schwartz back from last year's toe and ankle problems to start at right guard, where he's comfortable. The Giants believe the interior of their line will be strong. But when Beatty tore a pectoral muscle lifting weights in May and had surgery that will keep him out until at least November, the plan at tackle had to change. Flowers' ability to handle left tackle will determine how well the Giants can stick to their original plan.


(espn.com)