The New York Giants will need to decide whether they want to draft a quarterback in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft, or take one of the blue-chip wide receiver prospects who will be on the board with the No. 6 overall pick. If they opt to target a quarterback prospect, though, they will face fierce competition from other teams around the league.
The Minnesota Vikings are reportedly determined to land a top quarterback
While making the case for both wide receiver and quarterback in the first round for the Giants, ESPN’s Jordan Raanan shared some insight on the competition New York will face to land a top signal-caller:
“It seems more likely by the day that four of the top five picks end up being quarterbacks, especially with the Minnesota Vikings — who own the No. 11 pick — having made it clear in league circles that they are serious about landing one of the top quarterbacks.”
The Vikings hold both the No. 11 overall and No. 23 overall picks in the first round of this year’s draft. They could attempt to package both of those picks to trade up in the draft order and leapfrog the Giants for a top quarterback prospect.
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Could the Giants still land a top quarterback prospect?
In order to combat the Vikings, the Giants would likely need to make a move of their own up the draft order. Picking at No. 6, the Giants might have leverage over the Vikings in potential trade negotiations with other teams. The New England Patriots and the Arizona Cardinals hold the No. 3 and No. 4 overall picks, respectively. Moving down two or three spots with the Giants might be far more favorable than moving down seven or eight spots with the Vikings.
If those draft picks are made available for trade, a bidding war could ensue. As a result, however, either Minnesota or New York would wind up paying a premium to move up for their desired quarterback.
The Giants could, of course, stick and pick at No. 6 and hope to see a quarterback they like fall into their laps. However, that feels unlikely considering the supply and demand of quarterbacks in this year’s class. Four quarterbacks are expected to be off the board within the top five selections.
USC QB Caleb Williams is locked in as the No. 1 pick in the draft. And after that, LSU’s Jayden Daniels, UNC’s Drake Maye, and Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy are expected to fly off the board all before the Giants are on the clock at No. 6. The Giants could hope for one of those three to slide to the No. 6 pick, or they could settle for the consensus fifth-ranked quarterback prospect in the class, Washington’s Michael Penix Jr.
Needless to say, landing a top quarterback prospect will not be easy. But if the Giants are determined to find their next franchise signal-caller, they will need to be aggressive and outmaneuver the competition.