The 2021 NFL Draft is just around the corner. The draft will take place in about a month and teams are doing their due diligence on prospects. The New York Giants were one of the teams represented today, doing their due diligence, at Penn State’s Pro Day. Pro Days are ever more important this year with no official NFL Scouting Combine.
There are two key Penn State prospects that the Giants could target early in the 2021 NFL Draft. Linebacker Micah Parsons and edge rusher Jayson Oweh are both athletic freaks on the defensive side of the ball that could fill positions of need for the Giants next month.
Micah Parsons and Jayson Oweh dominate Pro Day
What is in the water at Penn State? It seems like every year one of college’s top football programs, Penn State, turns out freakish, superhuman athletes. This year, those two athletes are Micah Parsons and Jayson Oweh, two defenders that dominated at their Pro Day today.
Micah Parsons is one of the top prospects in the 2021 draft class. He was once considered to be a top-ten lock, but some off-the-field allegations have pushed him down draft boards. But Parsons’s insane measurables at his Pro Day might have shot him back up those same draft boards.
Parsons came in at 6 feet, 3 inches, 246 pounds. He has ideal size to play linebacker at the next level. But his game-changing 4.39s 40-yard-dash speed caught everyone’s attention today. Parsons also had a 39.5″ vertical leap and a 134″ broad jump. Micah Parsons is a specimin.
But so is his teammate, Jayson Oweh. The Penn State edge rusher ran an even faster 40-yard-dash than Parsons. The 6 foot, 5 inch, 257 pound pass-rusher looked like a mini cooper during his 40-yard-dash, clocking in at 4.36s. Oweh put up vertical leap and broad jump numbers identical to Micah Parsons’s.
Of course, everyone is advised to take these Pro Day 40 times with a grain of salt. But one thing to take note of is the Giants’ front-row viewing of these Pro Day performances.
Joe Judge at the Penn State Pro Day
New York Giants head coach Joe Judge was in attendance, “front and center,” at Penn State’s Pro Day today. The Giants are reportedly interested in a few Penn State prospects, such as Oweh, Parsons, and tight end Pat Freiermuth. But Judge’s interest in Micah Parsons has been discussed heavily after he got an “up-close” look at Parsons’s workout today.
The New York Giants have not drafted a linebacker in round one of the draft since 1984 (Carl Banks). Will 2021 be the year the Giants finally take a linebacker in the first round? With Micah Parsons drawing significant interest from the Giants’ brass, it very well could be.
The Giants also have a clear-cut need on the edge of their defense. Jayson Oweh is an intriguing prospect for New York to consider. He had 0 sacks in 2020 and was not productive on the stat sheet. But Oweh is a freak athlete that could make for an exciting, high-ceiling prospect that Patrick Graham could groom into an elite edge rusher.
The beauty of the Giants’ 2021 offseason is that they have left every option open going into the 2021 NFL Draft. New York addressed its biggest needs: cornerback and wide receiver. Now, they can get creative in the NFL Draft. The Giants could still add an offensive playmaker. But they could also take a chance on one of Penn State’s potentially game-changing defenders in round one. The Giants’ options are limitless.