Is Canty a cap concern for Giants?

The Giants are a better defense when DT Chris Canty is healthy and playing. That’s by no means a stretch.

But he missed most of the first half of the season coming back from offseason knee injury, and though he played very well at times down the stretch, he also re-aggravated that knee. Canty carries a salary-cap value of $6.5 million into next season, and the team finds itself nearly $5 million over the cap. That’s not a significant number, and cuts will be made to alleviate it.

Will Canty be one of them? It depends mostly on the health of his knee. If he checks out medically, and the Giants determine that he still has some good years left on his body, they’ll keep him in tow. If not, or if they feel like he is in decline physically, the Giants could opt to slice his salary.

The cap number does weigh heavily. Many of the players on the roster with higher cap numbers are likely too valuable to mess with. QB Eli Manning is the franchise bedrock. S Antrel Rolle might have to tweak his number a bit, but he’s a valued leader and performer. ORG Chris Snee might not be as dominant as his reputation suggests, but he’s a fixture.

CB Corey Webster, with a $7 million cap figure, is very much in trouble. He had a surprisingly poor season. Would the Giants consider whacking Canty, too? As of now, the feeling is no. But that could change over time if the feeling is that his knee is not up to snuff and he no longer can have that positive impact on the unit.