D-
New York Giants
The Giants bet the future on Williams. The board says D-.
by jkase ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 40 picks
· 16 steals
· 12 reaches
The Anim Dankwah selection is the head-turner. The Giants reached 50 spots for him, and it will define how this weekend is remembered.
The Laube pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged. Caleb Williams is the bet, and the class will be judged on how it pays off.
The dealing is the wound this class cannot quite close. The veteran additions, Zack Moss chief among them, give the class a floor the rookies alone would not.
The verdict is not kind, and fairly so; this class has a hill to climb.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 9th overall pick they get a long-term answer under center. A clean fit for the roster.
The board had Rome Odunze higher than slot 19, and the wide receiver fell to them anyway. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
In the Round 1 slot they get a disruptor off the edge at a price that makes it sweeter. A real need, handled.
They barely believed it either: Dallas Turner still on the board at pick No. 47. The roster fit checks out.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Jonathon Brooks at pick 59. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Xavier Worthy at No. 60 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Max Melton at the 68th overall pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A conviction pick on Kris Abrams-Draine at No. 69 that the board grades a round light. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They went early on Dadrion Taylor-Demerson in pick 71, and the value did not follow. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A tidy little value on Jeremiah Trotter Jr. in slot 72, a step better than break-even. A minor itch, scratched.
Cade Stover in Round 3, Pick 11 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Cole Bishop in the 88th pick is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Austin Booker at the Round 4 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Somehow Trey Benson was still sitting there in pick No. 107, and they pounced on premier running back value. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Zak Zinter at pick 112 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They did well to land Maason Smith in No. 115, just ahead of his grade. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Blake Fisher at pick No. 127 is money in the bank, a offensive lineman taken below his worth. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Value with a capital V on Spencer Rattler in the 128th overall pick, a genuine coup. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Good price on Theo Johnson in the 129th pick, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. A need, and now a little less of one.
A reach for Anthony Gould in Round 4, Pick 30; a little patience would have been rewarded. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
You do not let an interior defensive lineman like Tyler Davis reach slot 146 and blink. They did not. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They read the board right and Mohamed Kamara was the payoff at the Round 5 slot. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Kitan Oladapo in pick No. 157 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
The board had cheaper options than Kamal Hadden at the 158th pick, and it noticed. It fills a real need, too.
They took Walter Rouse at par in pick 159, which is nothing to complain about. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They reached into another round for Caedan Wallace, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Steele Chambers well ahead of where he belonged. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Joe Milton III this early at No. 173. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Circle this one: Jacob Cowing at Round 6, Pick 2 is a fall that decides a draft. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Cody Schrader in the Round 6 slot. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Luke McCaffrey at the Round 6 slot is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Taking Justin Eboigbe in the 183rd pick is close to grand larceny; an edge rusher that good had no business lasting this long. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A real head-scratcher, Ryan Flournoy in Round 6, Pick 9 is miles ahead of his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Marist Liufau in pick No. 218 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
They paid up for Trevin Wallace at the 221st overall pick when waiting would have done the job. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Nathaniel Watson in pick 227. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
A big swing on Anim Dankwah at No. 228, well ahead of any board in the building. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Cedric Johnson in slot 230 lands just on the right side of the ledger. A need, and now a little less of one.
Dylan Laube in Round 7, Pick 12 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A clean, defensible pick in the Round 7 slot with a little surplus value in Bub Means. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.