Things got quite a bit more interesting for the Giants ahead of Thursday’s NFL Draft.
Last week, the team shipped disgruntled nose tackle Dexter Lawrence to the Bengals. They got back the No. 10 pick. The Giants now select fifth and 10th in the first round. It’s the second time in four years they’ve had two Top 10 picks in the same class.
The Giants have eight selections over the three days, including three within the first 37. Things officially begin at 8 p.m.
The Lawrence trade came with an added bonus as the Giants created some much-needed cap wiggle room. They now have $18.1 million, per OverTheCap.com. The figure does dip to $3.198 million in effective money, which takes into account what they must pay their rookies.
Expect the Giants to do some cap gymnastics after Saturday. A restructure for safety Jevon Holland ($12.9 million base salary), tackle Andrew Thomas ($15.9 million) and corner Paulson Adebo ($17.2 million) makes sense. The Giants plan on signing defensive tackle DJ Reader and had wideout Odell Beckham Jr. take a physical on Monday. They’ll need that money to accomplish those things.
First round (No. 5), first round (No. 10), second round (No. 37), fourth round (No. 105), fifth round (No. 145), sixth round (No. 186), sixth round (No. 192), sixth round (No. 193)
Jaxson Dart (QB), Cam Skattebo (RB), Patrick Ricard (FB), Malik Nabers (WR), Darius Slayton (WR), Calvin Austin (WR), Isaiah Likely (TE), Andrew Thomas (LT), Jon Runyan (LG), John Michael Schmitz (C), Daniel Faalele (RG), Jermaine Eluemunor (RT)
Abdul Carter (EDGE), Roy Robertson-Harris (DE), Sam Roberts (NT), Darius Alexander (DE), Brian Burns (EDGE), Tremaine Edmunds (LB), Micah McFadden (LB), Paulson Adebo (CB), Tyler Nubin (S), Jevon Holland (S), Greg Newsom (CB), Dru Phillips (NB)
Jason Sanders (K), Jordan Stout (P), Zach Triner (LS), Gunner Olszewski (RET)
EDGE Abdul Carter (first round, No. 3), QB Jaxson Dart (first round, No. 25), DL Darius Alexander (third round, No. 65), RB Cam Skattebo (fourth round, No. 105), T Marcus Mbow (fifth round, No. 154), TE Thomas FIdone (seventh round, No. 219), CB Korie Black (seventh round, No. 246)
There are two early for the Giants. Either the draft starts Fernando Mendoza (Raiders), Arvell Reese (Jets), David Bailey (Cardinals) and Sonny Styles (Titans), or Mendoza (Raiders), Reese (Jets), Jeremiyah Love (Cardinals) and Styles (Titans).
The best player in this year’s draft is Love, the star running back out of Notre Dame. He had 1,372 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns a season ago. There is a path to getting him to New York, but it involves the Cardinals and Titans going elsewhere.
The second doesn’t give the Giants Love, but it puts Bailey there at No. 5. SNY touched base with almost two dozen sources leading into the draft (head coaches, general managers, executives, assistant coaches and agents), and Bailey is the consensus top pass rusher.
The Giants already have Brian Burns and Abdul Carter. It’s highly unlikely they draft Bailey, but there will be teams (plural) wanting to come up for him if he’s there. John Harbaugh and Joe Schoen would link arms and do heel clicks down the hallways of the renovated 1925 Giants Drive.
Keep an eye on the Saints (selecting eighth) and Chiefs (selecting ninth) if that plays out.
Most sources SNY touched base with, unaffiliated with the Giants, believe their pick at No. 5 will be Ohio State safety Caleb Downs (assuming Love is gone). It’s hard to foresee any situation where one of Downs or Love isn’t there. They’ll at least get that.
The Giants also want a receiver early in the draft. There are concerns about Malik Nabers’ availability for Week 1. That room looks ugly without him there (Darius Slayton, Darnell Mooney, Calvin Austin). Jordyn Tyson is the consensus top pass catcher (from a talent perspective) in this class. His injury issues are real (missed parts of the last three seasons), but he’s a different caliber player than Carnell Tate when healthy.
The Commanders (seventh), Saints (eighth) and Chiefs (ninth) won’t all take receivers, but all could use one. The Jets (picking 16th and with seven picks after that) need one, too, and could look to trade up.
If Washington, which would need to be blown away to move, per sources, takes Tyson, then the Saints grab Tate, there really isn’t another guy worth a Top 10 pick. The Giants might be forced to pivot to Penn State guard Vega Ioane. Not a bad consolation prize, but also not as helpful as a receiver might be.
Wan’Dale Robinson left the Giants for the Titans in free agency. There’s uncertainty regarding when Nabers will return from his surgically repaired knee. The Giants want to help Dart reach his potential. It’s hard to do that if he’s taking the field with just Slayton, Austin and Mooney to begin the year.