The New York Giants have gotten off to a rather strange start in 2023.

They kicked off their season in dreadful fashion, suffering a horrendous 40-0 loss at the hands of the NFC East division rival Dallas Cowboys. Then, in Week 2, the Giants rallied from a 21-point deficit to come away with a season-saving 31-28 win over the Arizona Cardinals.

New York is coming off of a rather surprising 2022-23 campaign in which it went 9-7-1 and stunned the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. Big Blue would then go on to fall to the Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round, but the fact that the Giants actually won a playoff game was a major step forward for a franchise that had not done so since last winning the Super Bowl in February 2012.

Taking into account how impressive New York looked a year ago, it is surely serious about making another run this season.

But if the Giants want to do that, they may need to add another piece to what is clearly a flawed roster.

Here are three names New York should monitor in the lead-up to the Oct. 31 NFL trade deadline.

Tee Higgins

Tee Higgins’ time with the Cincinnati Bengals may be coming to a close. Higgins and the Bengals failed to come to terms on a long-term deal prior to the start of the season, and Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer recently reported that Higgins, who is in the final year of his contract, does not figure into the club’s future plans.

With the Giants in desperate need of a No. 1 receiver for quarterback Daniel Jones, Higgins would be a fantastic target.

The 24-year-old has logged eight catches for 89 yards and two touchdowns through the first two games of 2023. Now in his fourth season, Higgins posted back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns in 2021 and 2022.

Higgins would be the clear No. 1 option for Jones in the aerial attack and would make life much easier for the young quarterback.

Mike Evans

If the Giants aren’t able to land Higgins, perhaps they should turn their attention to Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide out Mike Evans?

Like Higgins, Evans is in the final year of his deal and was unable to reach a long-term agreement with the Buccaneers going into the season. Tampa Bay could opt to trade Evans to try and recoup some value before he ultimately walks in free agency.

If the Bucs do in fact put Evans on the trade block, New York should come knocking.

The 30-year-old has started off his NFL career with nine straight 1,000-yard seasons, setting a league record. He hasn’t appeared to show any signs of slowing down thus far in 2023, as Evans has tallied 12 receptions for 237 yards and a pair of touchdowns through two games.

At 6-foot-5, Evans would represent a big end zone target for Jones much like Plaxico Burress once did for Eli Manning.

Brian Burns

Big Blue is clearly in dire need of a pass rusher.

Through two games, the Giants are the only team in the NFL that has not yet registered a sack. For a franchise that has long prided itself on dominant pass rushers like Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck and Jason Pierre-Paul, that is unacceptable.

Carolina Panthers edge rusher Brian Burns could help solve that problem.

In the same vein as Higgins and Evans, Burns is in the final year of his current contract and could not strike a new deal with the Panthers before the season began. Burns is seeking $26-28 million annually, which is a steep price to pay, but for a New York squad that has been unable to ground opposing quarterbacks thus far, it might be worth it.

Burns has already recorded nine tackles, a couple of sacks and a forced fumble in the Panthers’ first two games of 2023. He is coming off of back-to-back Pro Bowl appearances.