The New York Giants are having their final visits with prospects ahead of the NFL Draft. Each year, general manager Joe Schoen typically tends to favor prospects in the draft whom he and the Giants have met with on top-30 visits. Using that information, we might be able to crack the code on the Giants’ plans and strategy ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Predicting the Giants’ 2025 NFL Draft based on their top-30 visits
The Giants have hosted a plethora of top-30 visits in preparation for the crucial 2025 NFL Draft. The full list of Giants top-30 visits can be found here, courtesy of Art Stapleton of North Jersey.
They will address the trenches early
The Giants hosted just two offensive linemen on top-30 visits this year: Ohio State’s Donovan Jackson and Purdue’s Marcus Mbow. Both Jackson and Mbow are projected to go in Round 2 or Round 3.
New York also hosted three defensive tackle prospects: Toledo’s Darius Alexander, Texas’s Alfred Collins, and Florida State’s Joshua Farmer. Alexander and Collins are both projected to go in Round 2, while Farmer is projected to go in Round 3.
Based on this information, the Giants will likely take an offensive or defensive lineman with their second-round pick or the first of their two third-round picks (No. 65). Considering Alexander, Collins, and Jackson are all expected to be early Round 2 picks, they will likely target the trenches with pick No. 34.
The Giants will be drafting a running back — and probably pretty early
This year’s running back class is among the strongest in recent memory. Todd McShay of The Ringer went as far as to call it the best he has ever seen. The Giants seem intent on taking advantage of this deep class of talent.
They have had top-30 visits with five running back prospects. They also hosted one running back at their local pro day, and met with several running backs in private meetings at the NFL Scouting Combine as well as on the pro day circuit.
So, when might they draft a running back? That’s a little tougher to tell, but it seems like it will be on Day 2. While Schoen has typically undervalued the running back position, his mind seems to be changing.
Of the running backs the Giants have had in for top-30 visits, the majority of them are projected Day 2 prospects. UNC’s Omarion Hampton might even be a first-round pick, but the Giants would likely only draft him if he fell to their second-round selection, pick No. 34.
Hampton, Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins, and Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson are all projected Round 2 picks. Arizona State’s Cam Skattebo is projected in Round 3 or Round 4. Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon and Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai are the two projected Day 3 picks whom the Giants have met with at their facilities.
Based on which running backs they have brought in, it looks like the Giants are planning on drafting a running back on Day 2 of the draft, either in the second or third round. Most of the running backs they visited with are projected to be drafted on Day 2.
The one outlier in this equation is Miami TE Elijah Arroyo, who is the only tight end the Giants hosted. He is projected to go in Round 2 or Round 3, but if he slips, he could be taken later on, and potentially swap in for one of these running backs.
Expect a quarterback on Day 2 or early Day 3
The Giants didn’t even bother having Miami QB Cam Ward in for a top-30 visit, similar to how they didn’t bother wasting a 30 visit on Caleb Williams last year. They know he is going first overall. They did, however, have Shedeur Sanders in for a visit and flew out to Colorado for a follow-up. They could be interested in taking him in the first round.
Yet, it’s still tough to tell which quarterbacks the Giants do and don’t like early in this draft; however, they seem to prefer taking Penn State EDGE or Colorado CB/WR Travis Hunter with the No. 3 overall pick.
They got their visit done with Hunter very early in the process, likely indicating they had their mind made up on him pretty quickly and would favor him if available third overall.
Then there’s Carter, who they had in for two days during his top-30 visit. They also took him out to dinner and met privately with him at the Penn State pro day. Combine this information with the rumors and reports that the Giants prefer to take the best player available in the first round, and it’s easy to project one of these two at No. 3 overall.
However, Sanders could still be the selection. But if he isn’t, their 30 visits indicate that the Giants might wait on a quarterback.
The Giants had Alabama QB Jalen Milroe in for a top-30 visit, and he will likely be a Day 2 pick, and could go early on Day 2. However, they didn’t have a top-30 visit with Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart, though they did meet extensively with him at his Pro Day. However, this might indicate that, if it’s not Milroe, a quarterback won’t be the pick in Round 2.
The majority of the quarterbacks Big Blue has met with (four in total) have been quarterbacks projected to go late on Day 2 or early on Day 3. The likes of Syracuse’s Kyle McCord and Louisville’s Tyler Shough are projected as Round 3-4 selections. Milroe was also projected to go in Round 3 before he experienced a late rise in draft stock.
They haven’t met with many late-Day 3 quarterbacks, such as Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel or Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard. Considering their long-term need at the position, the Giants probably don’t want to late that long to take a quarterback.
The Giants have two third-round picks this year (No. 65 and No. 99). One of those could very likely be used to draft a quarterback. If not, it feels like their fourth-round pick, No. 105, would be the floor for them to draft a quarterback.
Final Predictions
After synthesizing all of this information, we can map out a clear picture of the Giants’ full draft plans, based on their top-30 visits:
- Round 1: Best Player Available (Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter or Colorado CB/WR Travis Hunter)
- Round 2: Offensive Line OR Defensive Line
- Round 3: Running Back, Defensive Line, OR Quarterback
- Round 4: BPA or Quarterback
- Rounds 5-7: Focus On Defensive Depth
It’s difficult to project what happens outside of the first four rounds, since that’s where teams begin to focus on depth. However, with the Giants having four top-100 picks and a fifth pick just outside of the top 100 with the No. 105 pick in Round 4, it’s easy to see Big Blue’s vision and predict which positions they might target.
However, it is worth noting that the majority of the late-Day 3 projected prospects whom the Giants hosted on 30 visits play on the defensive side of the ball. Prospects such as Penn State DB Jaylen Reed, Oklahoma State CB Korie Black, Oklahoma State LB Collin Oliver, and Texas DB Andrew Mukuba are all projected Day 3 picks. Expect defensive depth to be the focus for Big Blue in Rounds 5-7.
