The New York Giants are willing to do something drastic in order to fix their current quarterback situation. According to ESPN's Jordan Raanan, the Giants have prioritized adding a franchise passer in the upcoming NFL Draft and would likely need to trade up to do so.
Drake Maye? J.J. McCarthy? Jayden Daniels? Strengths, weaknesses and how they would actually fit with the #Giants.
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) April 21, 2024
https://t.co/E1YOkV4bID pic.twitter.com/p1kntyIcN3
Per Raanan's sources, quarterbacks are expected to be selected with each of the top four picks: the Chicago Bears, Washington Commanders, and New England Patriots are all expected to draft new passers first, second, and third, and the Arizona Cardinals are expected to trade out of the fourth overall pick.
USC's Caleb Williams is the consensus first-overall pick, but North Carolina's Drake Maye, LSU's Jayden Daniels, and Michigan's J.J. McCarthy all have their champions around the various scouting departments across the NFL.
The Giants currently hold the sixth pick, but trading up would still be enormously costly given the premium teams put on the quarterback position. The sheer volume of teams vying for new starters is also a problem for the Giants: The Minnesota Vikings (11th pick) and Denver Broncos (12th pick) should both be desperate to find franchise quarterbacks. Raanan believes it would take at least next year's first or second-round pick just to move up to the Cardinals' spot, let alone higher.
Nothing can transform an NFL franchise's prospects like a trade-up for a quarterback: the Kansas City Chiefs dramatically traded up from the 22nd overall pick to the 10th overall pick in the 2017 draft to land Patrick Mahomes, and that move alone elevated them from a perennial postseason disappointment to the NFL's latest dynasty.
That, of course, is the best-case scenario. Yet history has shown even regrettable trade-ups for quarterbacks haven't totally sabotaged teams. The San Francisco 49ers traded up to the third overall pick to draft Trey Lance in 2021 and only got 102 passes out of him before trading him; they were in the Super Bowl this past February. The Los Angeles Rams traded up to the first overall pick to take Jared Goff in 2016, only to give up on him following the 2020 season; they won the Super Bowl the next year.
Still, the Giants' brass likely haven't earned the goodwill to survive bungling this big a swing. Head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen share a 15-18-1 record, and legendary Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is reportedly open to joining the team in 2025. The stakes couldn't be higher: If the Giants flame out again this year, Daboll and Schoen could easily be shown the door. If they're bold enough to trade up, they better not miss.
Photo Credit: © Kevin R. Wexler / USA TODAY NETWORK
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