The New York Giants have a lot of work to do on its broken, underachieving roster, which has several glaring holes, particularly on the offensive side of the ball.
So, in coming up with a list of the best draft prospect fits for every one of the 32 NFL teams, it probably comes as no surprise that Pro Football Focus believes the Giants need to go quarterback in Round 1of the 2024 draft.
And which of the quarterback prospects did Trevor Sikkema select for the Giants? None other than North Carolina’s Drake Maye, of whom he notes: For as bad as it looked with Daniel Jones to start this season, if the Giants have a chance to draft Drake Maye, I’d do it.
Maye had by far the most big-time throws of any quarterback in the FBS over the last two seasons and would be the perfect new investment for Brian Daboll’s offense.
The Giants are currently slotted to draft fifth later this spring. Currently ahead of them are Washington and the Patriots, two teams that need quarterbacks.
If the Giants have their hearts set on Maye, they’d probably need to get ahead of one of those two teams, something that right now isn’t possible thanks to the Cardinals upsetting the Eagles last week to drop down to the fourth spot in the draft order.
But for now, let’s stick with PFF’s opinion that Maye is the right fit for the Giants. Back in November, our very own Brandon Olsen opined that Maye was his QB1, noting: Maye isn’t as athletic, although he can get the job done.
He’s also the best passer in the country, in my opinion. Where Maye thrives is as a vertical passer, pushing the ball downfield along the sidelines.
My concerns surrounding Maye are that his mechanics need work, specifically his footwork, and his processing is inconsistent. His offense, under the two coordinators for whom he’s played, has made him either make top-down reads looking for vertical routes or work with one-read concepts.
But Olsen also added that a team couldn’t go wrong if Caleb Williams was on the board, noting:
Both quarterbacks will likely need a little bit of time, whether that’s an offseason, preseason, or regular season games, to adapt to a more pro-style offense. Neither of the moves will be too drastic, and both quarterbacks should have offenses catered to their needs, featuring concepts they’re comfortable with from college but slightly adjusted.
The quarterback position is just one of many the Giants need to address on offense. They also need a legitimate No. 1 receiver and to fortify the offensive line. If running back Saquon Barkley departs via free agency, they’ll also probably have to address the running back spot unless they’re ready to roll with Eric Gray and Jashaun Corbin, who are under contract for next year.
The first 18 spots of the draft order will lock in after next week’s games. The Giants are currently fifth in the order,with a chance to rise to the second spot if they get a little help from some other teams. The lowest the Giants can fall to in the draft order is eighth.
