When reports surfaced that veteran tackle Cam Fleming signed a one-year deal with the Giants in free agency, it simply made sense.
The Giants needed a new right tackle with Mike Remmers gone, Fleming knows three coaches on staff, and it was a cost-effective deal for GM Dave Gettleman.
So Fleming joined Big Blue, a rival of his last team in the Dallas Cowboys, at $4 million for next season. And the 27-year-old is now slated to take over that right tackle role -- a starting job he's been looking for since he broke into the league with the Patriots back in 2014.
"I saw an opportunity that I could go compete for a position and really have a chance to play," Fleming told The New York Post's Paul Schwartz. "I feel comfortable with that playbook after doing it for two years already. I think it increases my chance to play even more."
Fleming is talking about playing under new offensive coordinator Jason Garrett's offensive system. Garrett might be new to the rest of the Giants players, but Fleming can walk right in knowing exactly what he needs to do on each play. He even has his Cowboys offensive line coach in Marc Colombo, who followed Garrett to New York.
But his new head coach Joe Judge is someone Fleming got to see in action in New England during his Super Bowl-winning years with the Patriots as well. He called Judge and Garrett "both incredibly hard-working and knowledgeable," adding "I think they are going to work well together."
Now Fleming knows there's a very strong chance the Giants might select an offensive tackle with their first-round pick at the end of April in the 2020 NFL Draft. That's why he said "go compete" for that starting role. Someone like Iowa's Tristan Wirfs, an uber-athletic right tackle, could be right next to Fleming on the depth chart competing for that starting job.
"I don't know what their plans are for the offensive line beyond what they have now," he explained, "but I know there is an opening there that hasn't been filled yet, and I'd like to go in there and try to take it."
Fleming might have been a depth tackle in Dallas, but injuries to La'el Collins and Tyron Smith over the past two seasons gave him ample opportunities to showcase his skill in blocking for Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott. He had 28 games with six starts for Garrett, and performed well enough for his former head coach to want him back on his O-line.
Now Fleming will be blocking for another young quarterback/running back combo: Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley. But if an emphasis needs to be put on either run blocking or pass blocking, it's definitely the latter with Jones still needing a little more time to develop in his sophomore campaign and make sure he's protecting that ball.
Good thing Fleming loves to pass block.
"Hopefully, they are getting a smart, tough lineman who can get down and dirty in the trenches and pass-protect his [butt] off," Fleming said about himself.
It was a great acquisition that just felt right for both sides, and that's been the theme of GM Dave Gettleman's signings so far this spring. The Giants still might want to find a new center with questions surrounding Jon Halapio and Spencer Pulley.
But, for now, the Giants can go to sleep happy at night knowing a solid, hard-working right tackle has joined the ranks in Fleming.