If you watched the New York football Giants for even two minutes last season, you know their offensive line was pretty bad.

After losing out to the Jaguars on highly-rated guard Andrew Norwell, they directed their attention, and money, elsewhere:

A big get indeed, and a lot of money to pay a lineman. But starting-quality left tackles are hard to find, so can you really put a price tag on keeping your quarterback upright while giving your running game some push?

I dunno. This is a league that’s handing out ridiculous money to Sam Bradford and Kirk Cousins, so I really don’t know what to think.

Solder had played his entire career in New England and won a pair of Super Bowls protecting Tom Brady’s blind side. The 29-year-old has never been named to a Pro Bowl and gets mixed reviews from pundits. Some see him as a steady and productive guy while others say that Brady’s elite ability to get rid of the ball quickly made his line look better than it really was. Either way, Eli Manning is capable of the same thing, as Eagle fans saw this year.

Solder isn’t Jonathan Ogden, and I don’t think he’s worth $15 million, but when you look at what the Birds are doing with their defensive line and consider who the Giants are lining up on the other side of the ball, Solder goes a long way in helping the situation. Feels like a bit of supply and demand, a bit of desperation, and a bit of common sense all smushed together into one free agent signing.