New York Giants general manager Joe Shoen is working in the first round of his first draft in the NFL as a chess grandmaster on Thursday night.
No one had to reveal the intentions of the giants. Everyone who paid attention to such things knew that the Giants MUST come out of the 1st round, where they had a fifth and seventh overall choice, with the right match. They also knew that the Giants, if they didn’t trade, wanted a first-class corner defender or full-back.
Schoen came out with an impressive package from the final Caivon Thibodeau and fought Evan Neal, transforming both the defensive front seven and the Giants’ offensive line in minutes.
“It turned out great,” Schoen said. “We are pleased with the two players we managed to buy tonight.”
As impressive as Shoen’s catch was, it was the way he did it.
Fans of the giants are accustomed to watching drafts get mixed up.
- In 2010, 2011 and 2012, the Giants did not select an offensive line player before Round 4, despite requests from offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride to do so.
- In 2012, they watched the Giants choose David Wilson. Ruben Randall and Jaron Hosley with their first three choices.
- In 2015, they watched the Giants reach for Erek Flowers’ No. 9 overall offensive, a move that turned out to be disastrous.
- In 2016, they watched the Giants stand helplessly aside as Tennessee Titans (offensive game Jack Conklin) and Chicago Bears (midfielder Leonard Floyd) swapped before New York to pick up the players they were targeting. The Giants took cornerback Ellie Apple and it didn’t go so well.
- In 2018, Dave Gettleman refused to even entertain phone calls for the general election № 2, ignored positional value and modern thinking, and chose Sakuon Barkley with his first choice for GM.
- In 2019, the Giants ignored the red flags for his attitude and work ethic and created a replacement for corner defender DeAndre Baker.
These are just some of the examples of how the Giants have mismanaged the draft in previous years. We have no idea at the moment whether Thibodeaux and Neal will live up to expectations and endure to be selected in the top 10 of the draft. What we do know is that it certainly feels like Sean and Giants ruled Round 1 as best they could. There is no confusion here.
The way the Giants unfolded the draft was in an interesting position at number 5. All three of the best attacks remained on the board, but both top defenders – Derek Stingley Jr. and Sos Gardner – had disappeared.
Knowing that he would still be able to choose between two of the three offensive strikes at number 7, Schoen took the player he thought was the best passer on the board. And he got Neil at number 7.
“We’ve been through these scenarios a million times,” Schoen said. “We had seven or eight cards and we just kept switching them back and forth based on different scenarios, and that’s a scenario we looked at. And if there were grips on board and a pass rocher, we would cross rocher, knowing we could get a grip at 7. We were ecstatic when this scenario came up. ”
Head coach Brian Dabol praised Schoen’s training.
“I told you he was prepared. There was not much talk at all (when the Giants were on the clock). It was calm, restrained, “Dabol said. “And I think you can be like that when you’re prepared, when you take the time to have conversations before they happen.
“Again, I can’t tell you how many different scenarios we went through last week, so we felt that no matter how it developed, you know, we would be ready for whatever decisions we had to make.
The work paid off. In just a few moments, two moves made the Giants’ offensive line and defensive front seven suddenly look much better.
Oh, and the Giants suddenly seem to be ruled by someone who knows what he’s doing.
I think that was really great
These were the reactions from the Giants’ draft party at MetLife Stadium when the election of Kayvon Thibodeaux and Evan Neal was announced. And, yes, it’s been a while since we’ve seen that kind of cheers from Giants fans.
Kayvon Thibodeaux, New York perfectly match?
I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Then I saw the interview below and really started thinking about it. The way his face lit up and as excited as it seemed about the possibility, I couldn’t help but think that Thibodeaux would really be inspired by the New York-New Jersey market game.
Asked Thursday night why New York was the right place for him, Thibodeau said:
“Because I’m hungry. I’m really competitive and hungry and I feel that New York is the top of the world of dogs that eat dogs. “
He also talks about how Michael Strahan, whose success after the NFL Thibodeau seems to be striving to emulate, has become a man he relies on.
“He is literally one of my mentors and he talked to me throughout this process. He actually came to visit me when I was visiting with the team, so seeing him there was really a drug because he gave me wisdom and he even managed to speak on my behalf because we built a relationship during the year, “said Thibodeau. “It’s really doping, because he literally followed in my footsteps and can show me the ropes on and off the field.
To me, Thibodeau looks like a young man who wants to be a star – in football and away from it. Being a star on the field can help him stay away from him, and the combination of Strahan plus the bright lights of New York can help him get there.
Smoked
The closer we got to the draft, the more we heard about the Giants’ love for the Mississippi offensive game against Charles Cross. In fact, there was so much that you really even thought that the Giants would choose Cross over Neil, although logically Neil seemed like a more natural fit.
I think this is just another lesson to remember
Options for the fifth year
I think the Giants handled both of their decisions for the fifth year in a row, refusing to opt for quarterback Daniel Jones while using the defensive option with Dexter Lawrence.
There was no good reason for the Giants to take Jones’ option for the fifth year. They seem committed to giving Jones the 2022 season, the latest of his rookie deal, to convince new GM Joe Shoen and new head coach Brian Dabol that he is the quarterback with whom the franchise must move forward.
Jones’ fifth year would cost $ 22.384 million. Sean was right not to spend that much money when he wasn’t sure Jones would be the team’s quarterback next season. If they want to move on, that turns out to be a $ 23 million mistake.
If the Giants want to keep Jones in 2023, they can either negotiate a long-term deal or use the franchise label at an estimated one-year price of $ 31.497 million for Over The Cap. Yes, that’s $ 9 million more than the option. However, the Giants would pay it to a player they decided they wanted, instead of spending more than $ 22.384 million on a player they didn’t want.
As for Lawrence, the Giants are spending $ 10.753 million to make sure the 17th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft is with them in 2023. That’s a good thing. Lawrence did not become a star, but he is a good player who still has an advantage in a team that needs more players who fit this description.
I told you
I told you that the first round of the draft would be unpredictable and that you would end up wondering what the hell just happened when it was over. Well, I think I was right.
- Honestly, I lost track of how many deals there were in Round 1. But there were a bunch. After the Giants election, I wrote, and when I looked, a whole bunch of teams were choosing or had chosen in places they shouldn’t have chosen. My head hurts trying to figure it all out.
[Chris here: By my count there were 27 total trades dating back to the Giants’ trade with the Bears last year. I think I think the NFL went to Vegas and was really feeling the venue.]
- Kenny Pickett (20th, Pittsburgh Steelers) was the only quarterback selected. Malik Willis, who some thought could become the No. 6 Carolina Panthers, will wait until Friday night to hear his name.
- Somehow, the Baltimore Ravens found themselves with the safety of Notre Dame Kyle Hamilton at number 14 and Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum at number 25.
- Quay Walker (22nd, Green Bay Packers) was the first midfielder offboard.
- Edge Jermaine Johnson, considered by many to be a player who will not come out of the top 10, became number 26 in the New York Jets.
- The center of Tennessee-Chattanooga Cole Strange, considered the average, was selected as number 29 by the New England Patriots.
Come on figure.
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