Did the New York Giants land 2 potential steals on offense and defense in 2020 NFL Draft?

New York Giants, Shane LeMieux, Darnay Holmes

2.) Defensive steal: Darnay Holmes

Darnay Holmes is one of the more exciting young draft picks from the Giants’ latest haul. As a fourth-round pick out of UCLA, Holmes is a fantastic athlete with great intangible traits. He is a phenomenal person and leader, having served as team captain in college during his senior season.

While his last season at UCLA was problematic due to a high ankle sprain that he returned early from, he projected as one of the best young nickel corners in the draft. He only played live reps at nickel during the Senior Bowl, where he stood out significantly and landed himself a nice draft spot because of it.

Holmes recently earned “The Conference Medal,” which is awarded to each Pac-12 institution’s outstanding male and female student-athlete based on “the exhibition of the greatest combination of performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics and leadership.”

As stated before, Darnay is a first-class human being and replicates that accolade on the field. He can be a staple on the Giants’ defense for many years to come, and he may earn a starting position on the team right out of the gate.

â€œHe might be the sleeper [defensive back] in the draft,â€ Rod WoodsonÂ told ESPN. â€œI know he was taken in the fourth round. But I like his mindset. No coach can measure oneâ€™s heart and oneâ€™s mind until you start playing. I think when Iâ€™ve seen him playing and talked to Carnell and his son, just the way he moves and how fluid he is and has that recall during the games when people are doing stuff to him that makes you kind of excited to watch a player like that.â€

At 5 foot 10 and 195 pounds, Darnay is a bit undersized, which is why he is better suited for the slot corner position. If he adds a few pounds of muscle to his frame and maintains his speed, all that’s left is to refine the mental aspect in his adaptation to the NFL.