They needed one.
They got one.
There was no secret the Giants entered NFL free agency determined to find an inside linebacker to start and patrol the middle of coordinator Wink Martindale’s defense.
That position was a weak spot in 2022.
It should not be a weak spot in 2023.
The Giants on Monday wasted no time, agreeing to terms with Bobby Okereke on a four-year deal worth $40 million, with $22 million in guaranteed money, on the first day they were officially allowed to speak with free agents from other teams.
This could be the biggest-ticket player the Giants sign from the open market.
This was a priority for general manager Joe Schoen, who looked at the run defense his team played last season and knew major improvements were needed.
This is what Okereke can bring to the Giants: He generated 75 defensive stops in 2022, tied for 10th-most among NFL linebackers, according to NextGen Stats.
Giants linebackers last season as a group combined for 87 defensive stops. That was 19 fewer than any other defense.
Okereke, 26, fills several holes.
He is durable, having played in 16, 14, 17 and 17 games the past four seasons for the Colts.
He is productive, with 132 tackles in 2021 and a career-high 151 tackles in 2022.
Okereke was a 2019 third round pick out of Stanford and after four years in Indianapolis played his way into a strong deal.
Before the agreement was reached, three other inside linebackers came off the board.
T.J. Edwards left the Eagles for the Bears for a three-year contract worth $19.5 million ($12 million in guaranteed money).
Germaine Pratt remained with the Bengals with a three-year, $21 million deal.
Alex Anzalone stayed with the Lions with a three-year deal worth $18.75 million.
The Giants upped the ante with a contract for Okereke that surpassed most of the other inside linebackers that went on Day 1.
Another inside linebacker — one of the best of the bunch — changed teams, with Tremaine Edmunds going from the Bills to the Bears.
Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll know all about Edmunds from their time spent together in Buffalo, but the expectation was Edmunds’ price tag would rise above the Giants’ spending limit for the position.
That was indeed the case, as Edmunds got a mammoth four-year, $72 million deal.
The Giants in Week 17 last season thrashed the Colts 38-10 to clinch a playoff spot at Metlife Stadium and Okereke was one of the few bright spots for the visiting team.
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He was all over the field, piling up 17 tackles and he also forced a fumble on receiver Darius Slayton.
Why did the Colts let Okereke go?
They have a ton of money invested at linebacker with Shaquille Leonard and could not spend any more at the position.
Okereke stabilizes a position that was in flux in 2022. Last week, the Giants re-signed Jarrad Davis to a one-year deal.
The 28-year old veteran arrived late in the season and ended up starting the two playoff games. In the summer, Blake Martinez was released and rookie sixth round draft pick Darrian Beavers went down with a season-ending knee injury.
The Giants rotated players on and off the field and the defensive signal-calling duties were taken away from the inside linebackers and given to safeties Xavier McKinney and Julian Love.
Now, no doubt, Okereke will get to relay the calls from Martindale to his new teammates.
In another move to strengthen the run defense, the Giants agreed to terms with Rakeem Nunez-Roches on a three-year deal, $12 million deal ($7.5 million guaranteed).
Just like that, the depth on the interior of the defensive line is upgraded.
Nunez-Roches, 29, is an eight-year veteran, playing in 102 games (38 starts) for the Chiefs and Buccaneers.
He has 3.5 career sacks.
Clearly, he is a run-stopper and not a pass rusher and the Giants are fine with that, as their run defense in 2022 finished 27th in the NFL, allowing 144.2 yards per game.
The Giants are set with their starters on the interior of their defensive line with Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams.
They took a hit in 2022 when Nick Williams hurt his biceps and was put on injured reserve at midseason.
In 17 games (10 starts) in 2022, Nunez-Roches had 33 tackles and two sacks. He won a Super Bowl with the Bucs after the 2020 season.
The 6-foot-2, 307-pound nose tackle has a reputation as a tough, hard-nosed, trash-talking defender.
