For Bobby Okereke, the offseason was a time to continue healing his back from a disc injury that cost him the final five games of what was a brutal 2024 season, for himself and the team.
It was also a time for the brainy inside linebacker to sit back and watch as the Giants brought in an influx of talent on defense.
A starting cornerback, Paulson Adebo, was signed in free agency. A starting safety, Jevon Holland, was signed in free agency.
A possible starting defensive end, Chauncey Golston, was signed in free agency.
And then, in perhaps the most impactful move of all, with the No. 3 pick in the draft, the Giants selected edge rusher Abdul Carter.
The man who lines up in the middle of it all might as well have been a doorman, happily ushering in all the newcomers.
“I’m excited,’’ Okereke said Wednesday after organized team activity practice No. 2. “It just shows the emphasis, the front office putting on this defense, the championships of this organization have won. They’ve talked about how prolific those defenses are, so that’s where we’re starting those building blocks. Setting the foundation for that.’’
It all looks highly promising, and it is up to Okereke to pick up his game as the on-field orchestrator.
Not long after the Giants ended their 3-14 season, Okereke revealed to The Post that he did not succeed in forming a connection with new defensive coordinator Shane Bowen the way he meshed so neatly in 2023 with Wink Martindale.
In his first year with the Giants, Okereke had 149 tackles and set career highs in forced fumbles (4), sacks (2.5), tackles for loss (11), pᴀsses defensed (10) and quarterback hits (6).
He and Martindale were of one mind and Okereke was sorry to see him go — Martindale got into a disagreement with head coach Brian Daboll and is now running the defense at Michigan.
Okereke’s production was down across the board in his first season playing for Bowen.
Okereke continued to wear the green dot helmet to get the defensive calls from Bowen, but said he needed to do a better job understanding what Bowen wanted from him and admitted he needed to work harder at developing a closer relationship with Bowen.
“Every coordinator has a vision for the type of player they want, so as a player the best thing you can do is be flexible and mold yourself to that vision,’’ Okereke told The Post before the start of the offseason program. “I think it definitely would benefit me and this team to get a clear picture of how Shane envisions me playing in this scheme.
“Just developing that rapport, especially being a guy who’s a green dot player, you and the defensive coordinator should really be on the same page. The better our connection is, the better our relationship is, the better this defense plays and the better I’ll play. That’s a big reason I believe I played so well in my first year. Me and Wink were on the same page a lot, and I feel that improved my play style. The more work I can do to build that relationship, the better for everybody.’’
Okereke, 28, did not require surgery to quiet the nerve pain in his lower back that prevented him from sitting for a few weeks.
“I feel back and better than ever,’’ he said.
Asked for a first impression of Okereke, Holland — who spent his first four NFL seasons with the Dolphins — said “Bobby’s the leader, man. He’s loud. He’s in control of everything.
He’s the man in the middle, so he encompᴀsses everything that I would see a middle linebacker, him and Micah [McFadden] both.’’
This is the first time since his second season in the NFL with the Colts in 2020 that Okereke will run the same defensive system from the previous year.
He has increased his communication with Bowen, and the hope and plan is he and his defensive coordinator will coalesce more seamlessly than they did their first season together.
If they do, Okereke believes the results will be readily apparent.
“It is fun,’’ he said. “Less thinking, more playing.’’
