New York Giants‘ GM Dave Gettleman spoke on a conference call about the state of the team and how evaluating prospects has been through virtual means.
The NFL Draft process is going to be far different than ever experienced in 2020, but teams have begun to adapt to an all-virtual evaluation process. Gettleman stated in Monday’s process conference that things were going okay, and he was happy to be able to see the prospects in some way. It does the trick for what the Giants needed regarding personality evals.
However, the most significant quote from Gettleman came in the form of the offensive tackle class this year, mentioning the relation between his free-agent signings and their plans in the draft.
“So we kind of marry the two,’’ he said. “We just felt with the depth of the tackle class in the draft we just felt like this was the best way for us to go.’’
One could make the assumption that Gettleman tipped his hand with this comment — considering the Giants’ GM has never allocated a first-round draft choice toward an offensive lineman before. The highest pick he’s ever spent on a lineman was the 34th when he snagged Will Hernandez in the second round two years ago.
Gettleman is one of the best offensive line evaluators in the NFL, and there’s no arguing his scouting abilities. If this draft class is deep at the tackle position, the probability of him taking one in the first round is low. The second round makes more logical sense, given the “depth” of talent. This doesn’t make passing on a tackle with the 4th overall pick the right choice, but it does allow the Giants to utilize Gettleman’s ability to spot potential and exercise his talents appropriately.
The 2nd round has plenty of quality to choose from, including Isaiah Wilson, Lucas Niang, Austin Jackson, and potentially Ezra Cleveland. Personally, I believe the Giants are better off trading back and securing more draft capital to fill holes of need. The roster has too many weak spots not to take advantage of the leverage at their disposal.