D
New York Giants
The Giants left with their quarterback, and a D to match.
by jkase ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 24 picks
· 15 steals
· 4 reaches
When a board-topper like Michael Penix Jr. slides to the 108th overall pick, you do not overthink it, and the Giants did not. The math is unkind, and the D follows.
If Knox pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about. The whole projection now runs through Caleb Williams; hit there and everything else looks smarter. Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere.
The imported veterans give this class a floor the draft picks could not on their own.
In the end, a class the front office will want to grow past quickly.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 11 they get a passer to set the clock by, and a steal at that.
In No. 15 they get a true top target at a price that makes it sweeter. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In No. 17 they get a double-digit-sack hope at fair value. A clean fit for the roster.
Steal is underselling it; Nate Wiggins at Round 2, Pick 7 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. It fills a real need, too.
Fair-plus on Tyler Nubin, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Circle this one: Jer'Zhan Newton at the Round 2 slot is a fall that decides a draft. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
No edge and no loss on Xavier Worthy in pick 55; it is a wash and a sensible one. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Payton Wilson at the 70th pick is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
You do not let a quarterback like Michael Penix Jr. reach slot 108 and blink. They did not. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They did well to land Matt Goncalves in the 118th overall pick, just ahead of his grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Maason Smith at pick 119 is money in the bank, a DT-EDGE taken below his worth. A fine player at a spot low on the priority list.
A quiet steal in the 120th overall pick: Cole Bishop for less than the market said. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Isaac Guerendo at Round 4, Pick 21 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Renardo Green slid further than he should have, and No. 122 is lovely value for the safety. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Anthony Gould in slot 140 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They read the board right and Isaiah Adams was the payoff at the Round 5 slot. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They talked themselves into Caedan Wallace at the 146th pick, and the board did not agree. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A real head-scratcher, Walter Rouse in pick No. 151 is miles ahead of his ranking. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A market-rate tight end, with the board and the slot shaking hands on AJ Barner. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They robbed the room for Cedric Gray here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
Johnny Wilson at the 162nd overall pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Cody Schrader is a better player than pick No. 172 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Trey Knox well ahead of where he belonged. A need, and now a little less of one.
They barely believed it either: Nehemiah Pritchett still on the board at No. 194. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.