A
New York Giants
The Giants let McCaffrey fall into their laps, and walked away with a A.
by jkase ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 26 picks
· 23 steals
· 1 reaches
This is the pick they will still be bragging about in July: Luke McCaffrey, the No. 143 name on the board, stolen at the 184th overall pick. Very little went wrong, and the A is earned.
Every deal seemed to tilt their way, which is not luck. The Wilson pick reads as want over need, and the roster will feel it at interior defensive lineman. The interior defensive lineman hole is the one line item this class does not answer.
Add it up and few war rooms did better this weekend, Rome Odunze and all.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 19th pick they get a true top target, outstanding value to boot. Exactly the need they had to hit.
In the Round 1 slot they get juice off the edge. A real need, handled.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Kamari Lassiter at Round 2, Pick 7. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A tidy bit of business in pick 40, where Tyler Nubin graded well above the range. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Bo Nix at the 41st overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A top-tier wide receiver at a bargain, Brian Thomas Jr. in slot 47, plain and simple. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They robbed the room for Troy Fautanu here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Circle this one: Ennis Rakestraw Jr. at pick No. 67 is a fall that decides a draft. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Xavier Legette in pick 70 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They let Edgerrin Cooper come to them and pounced at slot 71. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
The board fumbled Brenden Rice all the way to the 88th pick, and they scooped it up. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A curious use of the 90th overall pick. Interior defensive lineman needed the pick; a linebacker in Payton Wilson did not.
Value with a capital V on Spencer Rattler in pick No. 98, a genuine coup. The roster fit checks out.
Johnny Wilson in the Round 4 slot is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Khyree Jackson at Round 4, Pick 20 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Matt Goncalves in No. 121 is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Ray Davis at the Round 5 slot is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A offensive lineman of that caliber at the 141st pick is the definition of value, full stop. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Luke McCaffrey in pick No. 184 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They barely believed it either: Jaylen Wright still on the board at pick 185. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
You do not let a running back like Braelon Allen reach the 195th overall pick and blink. They did not. It fills a real need, too.
Omar Speights at Round 7, Pick 5 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Somehow AJ Barner was still sitting there in slot 230, and they pounced on premier tight end value. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Sam Hartman slipping to No. 234 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Phil Jurkovec at Round 7, Pick 17 is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. A need, and now a little less of one.
Steal is underselling it; Jawhar Jordan at pick 238 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A need, and now a little less of one.