The New York Giants‘ 2024 NFL Draft could decide the future of general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll. A big decision looms at the quarterback position: Whether to keep pushing forward with Daniel Jones under center or try to find his replacement, subsequently taking the out in his deal after the 2024 season.
Jones’s feature is certainly up in the air, but mock drafts have the Giants doing several different things. According to Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com, Big Blue ends up selecting Malik Nabers out of LSU, who may not be Jayden Daniels to fill the quarterback spot but represents one of the top playmakers in this upcoming draft class.
Nabers is an exciting receiver with WR1 upside and explosive potential. This past season for LSU, he hauled in 89 receptions, posting 1,569 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns. He averaged 17.6 yards per reception and put together some incredibly exciting and electrifying moments.
The Giants Need an Elite Playmaker, and Nabers is Exactly That
Not only is Nabers more than capable of attacking the deeper portions of the field, but he has excellent hands that should translate seamlessly to the next level. Nabers was a Biletnikoff Award finalist this past season and has a complete package of attributes. Tremendous acceleration and strength, paired with phenomenal route running, allow him to be a top receiver for a team like the Giants on day one.
Of course, Big Blue has failed to give Jones a genuinely elite receiver to work with despite signing Kenny Golladay in free agency. Golladay lost a step and was never able to maximize his potential after the scheme changed once Daboll took over in 2022. That signing was a complete dud, and the Giants may want to give Jones one more opportunity to leverage a premium pass catcher. However, his contract still stands in the way, and the Giants will likely have to move on if they want to have any chance at acquiring impact players in free agency.
The draft this year should have plenty of twists and turns, with Jeremiah having three quarterbacks off the board in consecutive picks to open things up. He has Caleb Williams going to the Bears, Drake Maye to the Commanders, and Jayden Daniels to the Patriots. The Arizona Cardinals land Marvin Harrison Jr. with the 4th overall pick, and the Chargers pass on Nabers to take Rome Odunze out of Washington.
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The draft never goes as people anticipate, but it is hard to argue that three quarterbacks could immediately come off the board, especially since all of the top teams need a new signal-caller.
The Bears could elect to stick with Justin Fields and move back, opening up an opportunity for the Giants to move forward and land an elite prospect who could change the course of the franchise.
However, it is rare to have top picks in consecutive seasons and the Bears have positioned themselves well to reset the rookie quarterback window and build around a young passer without giving up any additional capital. Alternatively, they could essentially overhaul their entire roster over the next few seasons with a trade-back, but that would assume Fields takes a big step forward, or they have to find a quarterback as the missing piece down the road.
For the Giants, it certainly poses some significant questions, and Schoen has his work cut out for him to figure out the best path forward for this team.