Giants GM Joe Schoen suggests potential ‘trade up’ in 2023 NFL Draft

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New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen, left, gestures to head coach Brian Daboll before taking on the Chicago Bears at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in East Rutherford. Nfl Ny Giants Vs Chicago Bears

With the 2023 NFL draft just a week away, the New York Giants are preparing their board and ranking system. Ultimately, this draft class is expected to be weak, and there aren’t many first-round grades, so there should be tons of movement at the back end of the first round, opening up an opportunity for the Giants.

Over the past six seasons, the 25th overall pick has been traded in each draft, so the Giants could follow suit and look to collect more capital. However, it depends if other teams are willing to move up and grab a player of their choice, which could be unlikely given the status of the class.

Nonetheless, it does present a perspective that some of the players the Giants would like to add could end up slipping to the 25th selection. If similarly graded prospects are still on the board and they have an opportunity to move a few spots back, they should certainly jump at the chance.

The Giants may have an opportunity to move up as well:

Schoen did indicate during Thursday’s press conference that they have enough draft capital to move up if need be, which could happen in any of the seven rounds. Given the lack of talent, I don’t think Big Blue will be looking to move up in the first round, but their 57th overall pick in the second round certainly offers plenty of opportunity.

The Giants traditionally haven’t moved up in the draft over the past few years. One of the more prominent moves was during Dave Gettleman‘s tenure when he acquired DeAndre Baker out of Georgia. We all know how that panned out, and if the class isn’t regarded highly, I highly doubt the Giants will be making any moves early on, but the mid rounds are a crapshoot and if they have a specific need with a highly graded player still left on the board, it’ll be much cheaper to leapfrog a few teams.

The Giants need to find a few starters this year, even if there is a lack of talent across the board. This is when talent evaluation ultimately shines through — some of the decision-makers on the team have to put their best foot forward. Luckily, the Giants overhauled their scouting department and primary evaluators, bringing in some of the best in the game.