Giants’ defensive line cohesion starts with Leonard Williams

Everyone, it seems, has an opinion on Leonard Williams.

Why is he still with the Giants? Why did they trade for him in the first place? Why did he not develop into a pass rusher with the Jets? Why, why, why?

Well, what about his still-new Giants teammates? Don’t they have a say in this?

“I love Leonard, he is a great guy,’’ defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson said recently. “I feel like we clicked off the field for the most part because we both love animated video games. We became instant best friends, I guess you could say. I love playing beside him, he is a great guy. He brings great energy. We have great chemistry. I’m looking forward to playing with him this upcoming season.’’

This comment in many ways is the reason why general manager Dave Gettleman shipped a third- and a fifth-round draft pick to the Jets at mid-season for Williams, even though Williams was headed for free agency and the Giants could have tried to sign him off the open market without giving up anything, other than money. Gettleman believed Williams would make an overwhelmingly positive impression and that would create an atmosphere beneficial to getting a long-term deal done.

That has not yet happened, and Williams was secured on the roster with the franchise tag, which will pay him $16.1 million in 2020. The goal for both sides is to find common ground on a contract extension before the July 15 deadline.

That Tomlinson is so comfortable with Williams leads to a larger factor within a Giants defense that, around the league, is routinely castigated and projected to be a terrible unit. Williams, Tomlinson and Dexter Lawrence figure to be the starters in the 3-4 defensive front new coordinator Patrick Graham will use as his base defense — although there will be many permutations on the field, dictated on a week-to-week basis by the opponent’s offensive strengths and weaknesses.

Recent Giants draft picks B.J. Hill, R.J. McIntosh and Chris Slayton are also on the roster, with one newcomer in veteran Austin Johnson signed in free agency. So, there is familiarity along the defensive line unlike anything any of the other position groups can muster.

“We’re all trying to build our brotherhood even stronger than it was before,’’ Tomlinson said. “Just continuing to improve as a unit so we can feed off each other.’’

As other units try to come together and learn about each other in this unusual remote offseason, the defensive lineman are able to concentrate on dissecting the ins and outs of the new system without also having to get to know their teammates.

“I feel like it gives us an advantage in learning the system more easily because we know how each other learns things and picks up things on a day-to-day basis,’’ Tomlinson said.

Tomlinson said any inherent difficulty bonding via Zoom meetings is not a big deal, considering the way he normally interacts with teammates and the hobbies and interests he shares with them.

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“Some of us FaceTime each other,’’ Tomlinson said. “A lot of us play video games together in a group. We all have been on Call of Duty lately, bonding with that. There hasn’t been anything strange, I guess you could say.’’

In the Call of Duty pecking order, Tomlinson puts himself in the top three among Giants players. He hears big things about the gaming prowess of Blake Martinez, the inside linebacker signed from the Packers.

“I haven’t played with Blake Martinez yet, but I’m looking forward to it,’’ Tomlinson said. “He might be No. 1.’’

It is quite an indictment of the Giants’ continuity that Tomlinson, 26, entering his fourth NFL season, is the longest-tenured defensive player on the roster. He has not missed a game in his three-year career and is entering the final year of his contact. As a useful run-stopping nose tackle, the 2017 second-round pick from Alabama now has a new coaching regime to impress.

“I’m not really focused on the contract because all I can do is try to get better and be as much prepared as I can for when we get back to training camp and get back to the facility as early as possible,’’ Tomlinson said. “I have been focusing on getting better and improving with my teammates as much as possible, that’s my biggest goal right now.’’