The New York Giants missed on getting the star defensive end they were looking for in the 2019 NFL Draft. That’s not to say that the team’s pick for the offensive line, Andrew Thomas, isn’t capable. But there was definitely a big appeal in Chase Young and the skills he brings to the table.
The Giants were mocked to take Young for much of the year once their losing record grew worse over the season. However, picking up late season wins threw Big Blue just out of the spot they needed to be in to take the Draft’s highest rated pass rusher.
According to the latest 2021 mock draft from Bleacher Report, the Giants are going to take another swing at improving the defensive line next year.
Who’s mocked to the Giants for 2021?
The mock draft has the Giants taking Gregory Rousseau from Miami with the number five overall pick. Assuming the Giants will pick at number five is something of a pessimistic prediction, but what would the Giants be getting for the pick if they did go with Rousseau?
As a redshirt freshman, Miami’s Gregory Rousseau finished second at the FBS level with 15.5 sacks (one behind Chase Young) and tied for seventh with 19.5 tackles for loss.
The 6’7″, 253-pound Rousseau is far from a finished product since he needs to improve upon his first-step explosion and working off the edge to pressure opposing quarterbacks. But his length and athleticism make him difficult to handle, especially for interior offensive linemen when the defensive end moves inside during certain sub-packages.
The reigning ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year should continue to develop and mature, making him even more difficult to handle.
Sacks hasn’t been a friendly stat to the Giants in any of the recent past years. They tend to hang somewhere around the bottom of the league in the category and it’s regarded as one of the weakest points of the team. Leonard Williams was partly brought in to help with the problem but so far hasn’t added much in that regard, though his non-sack quarterback hits numbers are impressive.
The Giants could definitely gain something from adding another promising defensive player who was the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year.
However, the mock draft is still far out meaning things could change between then and now, and just about all the fans will be hoping that the team isn’t picking as high as number five overall when the draft rolls around again next year.