And, as you'll see in the paper and online later, the Giants filled their biggest area of need with a guy already on the roster.
Mathias Kiwanuka is their SLB, according to Jerry Reese. They want their 2006 first-rounder on the field as much as possible and they liked the way he dropped into coverage last season, so he's working the rest of the off-season as the SAM. Fourth-rounder Zak DeOssie and Reggie Torbor go in as Kiwanuka's backups, Chase Blackburn stays behind Antonio Pierce at the MIKE and Kawika Mitchell and Gerris Wilkinson will battle for the WIL.
Interesting... We still don't know what Kiwanuka thinks of all this, but we'll find out nine days from now.
Reese called his draft "solid" -- seems appropriate, with four offensive and four defensive players, no one that seemed like a real reach (except maybe for DT Jay Alford in the third round) and maybe a couple guys who might have a surprising impact right away that they found late. DeOssie is one, but TE Kevin Boss could be a find. He's got to learn to block better, but if he's got skills, he can help.
That's all for now. Send in your Giants draft grades and we'll go over them in the next few days.
Comments (23)
I give it a B-. I didnt like the Alford pick, the LT in round 6, or the HB in round 7. Alford will be a good backup and thats is it. The HB is a problem causer and not that fast, or strong, and cant catch the ball great. He wont make the team. I like the late round S he is big and is a pass cover guy, thats what you need at FS. i like this draft b/c they got guys that will make plays. Ross and Smith will contribute RIGHT AWAY, Alford, Boss, and DeOssie will be seen from every game as well. kiwi to LB? i dont think that is a good move. i think it will impeed his progess. i think he would have been a prbowl DE for many years if they just waited. i think they will do this and see it wont work and then move him back to DE next year and will have to start over. let wilkison develope and take his bumps. he wouldnt play on 3rd down anways. i dont know i hope it works out, he is a great athlete and did show he could drop back, he had 2 pick, but if he get match one on one with a TE he will get burnt. who knows. goodluck Gmen...with this draft i see a 10-6 NFC championship.
Good, solid draft -- the kind that would have made George Young proud. Reese got good value late in the draft with DeOssie, Boss, Johnson and Bradshaw. The Ross pick filled a need and the Smith pick might be brilliant. Also, the Kiwanuka move shows courage and willingness to think out of the box.
I liked the draft, but i think they should have taken a kicker. there was one in the draft who had a great leg, he was from colorado, i don't remember his name though. But other then that I wasn't too disappointed.
I think they made a big mistake not taking Reggie Nelson when he was available. Ross is a solid pick, but Reggie will be a hard hitting safety with an exceptional eye for the ball. He's always in the right place at the right time and would have been a great addition to their lackluster secondary of last year.
On first blush, I give the draft a solid B. I love the Ross and Smiths pick 1-2. It fills a big need on both O and D. Alford could be that nice steady clogger in the middle with a little push. Boss and Koets have potential and Bradshaw is shifty. I would have preferred Darius Walker than Bradshaw, but there must be a reason Darius fell out of the draft. Finally the guy I like is Michael Johnson. He sounds like he may project to CB for the Giants because he is tall, fast and is good in coverage.
Living in the Reading, PA area, the Philly guys on WIP gave the Giants solid marks while lambasting their own team for their boneheaded trade/picks. Dallas certainly got over on them and it is close to mutinous down here.
As with any draft it will be impossible to grade this one with any degree of certainty for about two years. I will say that the DeOssie kid seems to be a great fourth round pick but only time will tell.
The good news and bad news was that we didn't do any deals. The good news was that we didn't pay a rediculous price to move up in the draft as we did in 2004. The bad news is that we didn't take the great deal that was on the table for us to move down. I believe Cleveland offered us their first round pick in 2008 to move back to the #35 pick in the draft. I think it was a no brainer to take this deal especially since that pick will likely be in the top 5. It pains me to say this but I think Dallas did well taking the deal.
Joe, Reese has already stated that the Giants did not receive that trade offer, and would have accepted if it was extended. That said, I'd be very suprised to see that pick land in the top 5. 9-15 range more likely, still it was a trade to make if the opportunity had presented itself.
Alford is a solid player. Maybe a little high for a third round pick though. I watched him for 3 years at Penn State and he was a playmaker. He had a great Orange Bowl against FSU in 2006... He had a lot of speed in college but it looks like he put on 15 pounds. I think he will be solid. BYE BYE JOSEPH..
I'm thinking the Gints did a "B" job, Ross can be a game changer if healthy. Moving Kiwanuka to LB can work, he's got to play smart. S. Smith can do good thnings from the slot & push Moss. Alford - hope he's as good as advertised. Willie Joe, start packing.
I give the Giants a B- also.
While I love the first 2 picks. They still have 2 big holes to fill to help Eli Manning. OT & RB....I would have taken a few Offensive linemen b/c they really didn't have depth last year. They also don't have any speed or playmaking ablity at RB. Droughns & Jacobs are questionsable RB's. I hope they will sign some other free agent players after other teams make their cuts soon. They could also use a kicker - Jay Feely was consistent for 2 years. Who is their current Kicker?
Without any more moves this team is 6 & 10 at best.
If the Giants are really sold on Guy Whimper being the Left Tackle then the draft makes sense, if not, then I think passing on Joe Staley could be a mistake. It doesn't matter how good Eli is or how good he could be, if the guy guarding his blindside can't keep him off the turf he's going to struggle.
I like the Smith pick - gives the Giants a deep corps at the position with Toomer, Burress, Moss and Smith - in addition to the pass catching of Shockey. A little surprised that the Giants took another fast pass catching TE out of the Shiancoe mold since they never used Shiancoe that way.
I thought that the Giants had a very solid draft up and down; overally I'd give it a B- grade. They seemed to target people who can come in right off the bat and contribute whether it be on offense (Smith, Boss) or defense (Ross, Alford) or special teams (DeOssie).
The one thing that perplexes me is why the Giants did not take a kicker. Are they that comfortable with Josh Huston? Or are they targeting a June 1st cut such as Olindo Mare? I thought Mason Crosby was a fantastic kicker at Colorado, but apparently he was not as good as advertised on the basis that not only did he fall on the first day, he went in the sixth round. Maybe it was the thin air in Colorado. Contrary to others, I also thought the RB selection was solid. Everybody is touting up Derrick Ward, but what has he done? I'm not saying he is a bad RB, but he is a backup. Maybe this Marshall running back can come in and offer a cheaper alternative with more upside. Just some food for thought.
Arthur --
Please tell us whatever it is you might know about Guy Whimper that the rest of us don't. Are Reese and Coughlin really considering going into the season with this guy at LT?
Re: Guy Whimper,
All I know T. Leg is GW had the size & feet to contribute a bit last year,
he did play in a few games after Luke & also after the penalty machine. He needed to bulk up / get stronger. Mouse used to say you can coach technique & build strength but the feet were the ardest to get. From what I remember seeing he's got good sive , good arms and maybe the hardest to find, good temperment. we'll see how well he holds up in camp. I liked Staley myself and am not looking forward to moving Diehl.
If the Diehl move becomes necessary the NYG's should have gotten a guard. MR. Staple, encurage the Giants to bring in Dan Mozes, he could help at C & G.
Chip:
What are you doing in a non-Yankee blog? I also wanted Staley, although we had WR's running free on us all year.
Andrew:
Thanks for the scouting report on Alford - I feel better.
As an old Ivy Leaguer, I love DeOssie. The Giants have had 5 or 6 Ivy guys over the years:
Gary Wood, Pete Gogolak and Pete Larson from Cornell, Jim Finn from Penn, a QB from Princeton. Anybody remember any others?
Didn't Chuck Mercein from Yale play for us? George Starke of Columbia?
I'm sorry to see all the knocks on Alford. I don't have the knowledge of pro scouts nor the time studying college players, but if a local boy and childhood Giants fan was good enough to be considered to be taken in the mid-rounds, I think it's a good move.
Talk about motivation? (Something Willie Joe clearly seems to lack.) The guy grew up a GIANTS FAN!
DT was our weakest position going into last years draft and only a standout rookie effort from Cofield and a rejuvenated Robbins saved us from disaster. We still have NEED in pass rushing ability at the position (anyone see how much time opposing QBs had to throw last year?) and now we have a respectable rotation at DT.
For everyone out there that wanted Leonard, I'm with you. I grew up in Piscataway. Unfortunately he didn't fit into our apparent new run blast strategy, but Steve Smith is the best clutch receiver to come out of USC, possibly to date.
But, we got Alford and DeOssie, two picks that add desire to our roster and I think they are both good drafts.
I tend to agree with Mel Kiper who feels that the Giants had the second worst draft of all the teams. I would have liked them to have taken Joe Staley so that Eli would get the protection he needs on his blind side. When Eli had Luke last year the team was 6-2, when Luke went down the team went 2-6. Those are very telling statistics. Only time will tell whether Kiper or Reese are the smart of the two. To play it safe, the Giants should hirer Fran Tarkington to teach Eli how to scramble to save his life. How Eli goes is how the Giants go. He is the key and his needs where not addressed either in free agency or in the draft.
I agree about Joe Saley, we definately needed a good OT and Adam Koets just isn't cutting in my opinion. But face it, the Giants needed a good corner and a solid WR. Amoni's old and Sinorice Moss isn't proven yet. Plaxico is too important to show up for the offseason program so we need a dedicated wideout. I feel Steve Smith will be the #2 guy behind Pixyco.
Bob, I would agree with you about correlating Luke's injury and the Giants 2-6 finish except that EVERYONE got hurt. It wasn't just Luke. Amani went down that week and they were already without Arrington, Strahan, Osi, Tuck, etc. But I do agree that tackle was an area the Giants needed to address and they didn't do that.
I don't necessarily think the Giants had a great draft, but they did fill most needs (possible starting CB, K/PR, 2nd TE, 3rd WR) which was important. I think Kiper is just upset that his mock draft was wrong.
Mel Kiper dosent know that much. He has his own opinions on thing, if he was that great he would be getting payed by an NFL team to do what he does. He is just a figure head that remembers what to say. He is wrong about ALOT of people. He said Brandon Jacobs best position in the NFL would be TE in the pros. So dont always go by what he says. Staley would have been a terrible pick. He isnt ready to play right now and if he did start right away he would have been torn apart. This season Diehl is the better play, and Whimper is just slightly behind Staley. This draft filled lot of needs, and they got deeper. The only BAD pick was Koets, and the Bradshaw pick confuses me, but at that point you take chances.
Craig -
The Cleveland GM indicated he was pitching deals to every team after selection #12. Why would the price be less for the #20 pick versus the #22 pick? Doesn't make any sense.
I guess it is possible that Cleveland panicked and/or they upped the offer to the Cowboys because they liked Jerry Jones but I doubt it.
So either the Browns panicked and gave away the store to Dallas or our front office didn't press Cleveland sufficiently for the same deal. Clearly the Browns had the appetite for the deal because they agreed to it two picks later......we just couldn't get the deal done.
Personally I would have taken Quinn as an insurance policy in case our franchise gamble on Eli doesn't work out.
I'm a displaced New Yorker living in Cleveland and read Phil Savage's comments everyday. Dallas was the first team he offered a 1st and a 2nd to because he was afraid that the Chiefs were going to take Quinn at 23. I don't know if Reese could have gotten it out of him or not, but it was never offered.