Whether Kenny Golladay works out or not, Giants (with Joe Judge) are finally

The Giants pulled it off. They got their No. 1 wide receiver.

They signed Kenny Golladay, the best available free agent at the position. Daniel Jones shouldn’t be the only one celebrating this weekend.

Giants fans should, too.

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Sure, there was a reason why Golladay was still available a few days into free agency, and that they were able to host him for a three-day visit without any real fear of losing him to another team, but that’s all part of the reason why this signing is such a positive step in the right direction.

Golladay is the latest, biggest and best example that the Giants process in (and approach to) free agency has changed for the better. Joe Judge deserves a lot of the credit. It wasn’t like this before he arrived, and it doesn’t only have to do with Golladay, though let’s start there.

In 2018, the Giants went into the offseason with a desperate need for an upgrade at left tackle. So they quickly offered Nate Solder — widely considered an average player, at best — a record-setting $62 million contract. That obviously was a mistake in retrospect, but the Giants were desperate.

In 2019, the Giants had just traded Odell Beckham and general manager Dave Gettleman felt like he needed to replace him at wide receiver. So he offered Golden Tate a contract (four years, $37.5 million) far above his market value, thinking he’d help improve the locker room culture. Spoiler: He didn’t. Tate was a disaster: Suspended, benched, unproductive and cut after two years. The signs were there, too. Tate was 30 years old and coming off an awful half-season with the Eagles.

In 2021, the Giants waited. Everyone knew they needed a wide receiver. Everyone knew they inquired about Golladay at the trade deadline. But they didn’t jump the gun and offer him a huge deal right away. They watched as other top free agent receivers (Corey Davis, Curtis Samuel, Will Fuller among them) signed for less money than projected. Golladay’s market was never robust as expected, though he did have offers from the Bengals and Bears.

The Giants made it clear: They would only sign him on their terms.

When actors are being considered for movies, some are “offer only”, some are willing to audition for roles to get the offer. Golladay should’ve been offer-only as the top receiver available in free agency. But the Giants forced him to audition anyway.

He obliged.

“I think it’s really just they just wanted to lay eyes on me, taking a different approach about this whole process,” Golladay said on Saturday. “It worked out for both sides –– I was able to come in and see what they’re all about, I was able to see how the facility was. And they had a chance to pick my brain. I think it worked out.”

So he stayed in East Rutherford for three days. Thursday, he took a COVID-19 test and got dinner with Judge and other coaches. Friday, he took a physical and met with Judge, Dave Gettleman and other brass for a full-day get-to-know-you session. Saturday, after the Giants decided they liked what they saw, negotiations began in full.

The Giants wanted to make sure he was a culture fit. Golladay’s willingness to jump through hoops appealed him to the organization even more.

“To be honest,” he said, “I was really just being patient.”

Golladay had to convince them that he was worth signing. Not the other way around. At any point, Golladay could’ve signed the Bengals or Bears offers, or another team could’ve swooped in, but the Giants didn’t relent despite that risk. And it was a risk.

So, Golladay became a very rich man. He signed a four-year, $72 million contract — with $40 million in guarantees — which was slightly above what some around the league thought he would get in a declining market.

If they’d have come out empty-handed, the fan base wouldn’t have forgiven them. Understandably. There are no other No. 1-quality wide receivers still available, and the NFL Draft is a crapshoot.

It was a bold strategy to take with the player many considered the top free agent wide receiver available, one of the best players at his position in the NFL in 2018-2019, and again in 2020 before he got hurt. He’s the perfect fit for the Giants, as a Plaxico Burress-esque receiver that makes contested catches better than just about any receiver in the NFL. He had 18 catches thrown 20-plus yards downfield in 2019, tied with Stefon Diggs for the most in the league.

Jones should be salivating.

But the Giants wanted to ask questions, and it seems Golladay gave them the right answers.

A not-so-quick aside: The questions about Golladay’s maturity seemed a bit overblown anyway. The two issues being brought up:

1. His public disdain for for Matt Patricia. By “public” and “disdain”, he simply liked an Instagram post that saying Patricia was fired as Lions coach in November. It’s not as if he was the…