The New York Giants currently hold the 25th pick in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. With this pick, most analysts predict the Giants will target a wide receiver or some other instant-impact player to thrust into their starting lineup at the start of the season. However, the Giants could also consider an alternative route of trading down into the second round to accumulate more assets.
Should the Giants trade back in the 2023 NFL Draft?
While Big Blue hopes to see one of the draft class’s top wide receiver prospects fall to them at the end of the first round, it is possible that none of the best prospects last until pick 25. USC’s Jordan Addison, TCU’s Quentin Johnston, and BCU’s Zay Flowers could all be off the board by the time the Giants are on the clock.
In this scenario, the Giants should not force themselves to pick the best receiver available with the 25th pick. If the Giants were to trade down from the 25th pick, they could kill two birds with one stone, drafting an impact player in round two and accumulating additional draft capital.
The Giants’ 25th pick is worth 720 points on the NFL Draft Trade Value Chart. The maximum value of a second-round pick is 590 points. Picks 33 to 43 descend from 590 points to 470 points. A team looking to move up to the Giants’ pick would need to make up around 200 points in value via additional mid-round picks.
Using the Giants’ 2021 trade-up with the Seattle Seahawks for DeAndre Baker as a reference point, New York could potentially field additional fourth and fifth-round picks by moving down to the top of the second round.
The New York Giants’ front office was able to find some solid prospects in the middle rounds of last year’s draft. As one of the youngest teams in the NFL, Big Blue could continue to build its foundation through youth by investing in more mid-round draft picks.
The Giants could still land a day-one starter if they trade down into the second round. Players like John Michael-Schmitz, Trenton Simpson, and Tank Dell will all likely be on the board for Big Blue at the top of round two. On top of landing one of those top prospects, they would also have extra draft picks to spend on developmental talent in the middle rounds.
The New York Giants might sacrifice some top talent by not utilizing their 25th overall pick, but the drop-off in talent between the prospects that will be available at the end of the first round and the beginning of the second round is not that significant. Trading down could add levels of value to the Giants’ 2023 draft class.