The New York Giants currently hold the No. 5 overall pick in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft and, with one week left in the regular season, have a very slim chance of moving up into the top three. As a result, the Giants may be out of range of drafting their desired quarterback prospect with other quarterback-needy teams picking ahead of them.
The best way for the Giants to ensure that they draft their guy would be to trade up to the first-overall pick in the draft. However, making such a daring blockbuster trade would not be easy. The Chicago Bears would need to be willing to trade down and the Giants would have to offer them a king’s ransom that’s strong enough to convince the Bears to move off the first pick.
Based on recent trades for the first-overall pick, a potential price tag can be projected. If the Giants want to make this move, they will need to prepare to sacrifice a lot of valuable assets.
Last year’s trade sets the price tag for a similar deal in 2024
Just last year, the Chicago Bears were in a similar situation to the one they are in now. They held the first-overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft but felt motivated to trade it away due to the rising performance of QB Justin Fields, who they drafted in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
Fields is once again making his case as QB1 in Chicago and has earned the trust of his teammates this season. This could prompt the Bears to trade away the No. 1 pick again this year.
Last year, the Bears traded down with the Carolina Panthers who held the ninth-overall pick in the draft:
- The Carolina Panthers received: No. 1 overall pick
- The Chicago Bears received: No. 9 overall pick, No. 61 overall pick, 2024 first-round selection, a 2025 second-round pick, and WR DJ Moore
The Bears took a king’s ransom from the Panthers but moved down eight spots in the first round in the process. The Giants would not be asking Chicago to move down quite as far, but this year’s No. 1 pick reportedly has a higher value.
According to Jeremy Fowler and Courtney Cronin of ESPN, NFL execs believe “the price to get to No. 1 could be two future first-rounders on top of this year’s pick, along with a variation of a Day 2 pick and/or a premium veteran player on a manageable contract.”
What would the Giants have to give up for the No. 1 overall pick?
To match the price tag of last year’s trade that the Panthers made, the Giants would need to give up their first-round pick in this year’s draft, a second-round pick in this year’s draft, a first-round pick in next year’s draft, a second-round pick in next year’s draft, and a high-impact player.
Sacrificing two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and a starting-caliber player may be a tough ask for many Giants fans. However, this is the historical price to pay for the top pick and a top quarterback prospect.
In this scenario, the Giants would have their pick of the litter and the opportunity to choose between USC’s Caleb Williams, UNC’s Drake Maye, or LSU’s Jayden Daniels.
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Could the Giants make a cheaper trade-up in the draft order?
But maybe the Giants could move up in the draft to take a quarterback without sacrificing so many assets for the first-overall pick. Trading up from five to one is a far distance, but the price to trade up maybe two or three spots instead of five spots would be much cheaper.
Last year, the Giants traded up one spot from the No. 25 overall pick to the No. 24 overall pick to draft Maryland CB Deonte Banks. This move only cost New York a fifth-round pick and a seventh-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Back in 2018, Giants general manager Joe Schoen was the assistant GM for the Buffalo Bills when they made a first-round trade to move up and select QB Josh Allen. The Bills traded the No. 12 pick and two second-round picks (53rd and 56th overall, respectively) to move up to No. 7 overall and select Allen. The Giants just so happen to own to second-round picks in this year’s draft, too.
In such a quarterback-rich draft class, there are bound to be several teams vying for the top picks in the draft order. Any trade that gets made will be completed at a high price tag. The Giants will need to weigh the pros and cons of such a deal before pulling the trigger.
