The series finale of HBO’s offseason edition of “Hard Knocks” revealed a lot of what occurred for the New York Giants during the NFL Draft, including an interesting trade offer from another team in an attempt to move up in the first round.
The Giants declined a blockbuster trade-down scenario in the 2024 NFL Draft
While the Giants were on the clock with the sixth overall pick, general manager Joe Schoen received a phone call from Indianapolis Colts GM Chris Ballard offering a haul of draft capital to move up to the Giants’ pick. The offer was picks No. 15 and No. 46 for this year, and a 2025 second-round pick in exchange for pick No. 6.
Schoen heard Ballard’s offer and when he hung up the phone, he immediately turned to his staff and said “That’s too far, I’m not going back.” From there, it was clear that the Giants were set on picking at No. 6, in which they took LSU standout wide receiver Malik Nabers, the second receiver to come off the board in this year’s draft and arguably the top receiver in the draft class.
The Giants wanted Nabers from the start and they got him
The New York Jets also made a call to the Giants to try to get the sixth pick, but details of what was offered were never disclosed. Nevertheless, New York appeared to be set on staying at pick No. 6 after the first five players went to exactly who they projected they would go, and they wound up with their top target.
If the Giants took the Colts’ offer, it could have changed the entire course of their draft plans, as the top receivers would have likely been off the board, same with their top quarterback targets. They were intent on upgrading the skill positions offensively with their first-round pick, whether that meant drafting Daniel Jones’ replacement or a playmaker for Jones to target. Trading down might have affected those plans.
New York reportedly attempted to trade up with the New England Patriots to land the No. 3 pick and draft UNC quarterback Drake Maye prior to the draft, but the Patriots were only willing to move the pick if they were blown away by an offer in which was described as a Ricky Williams-style deal in the Hard Knocks series.
However, the Giants will gladly take Nabers, who can transform this offense into becoming a more explosive unit with bigger plays. He has been impressive so far in training camp, giving all indications that the Giants made the right choice on draft night and have themselves a true difference-maker on the field.
