The New York Giants’ season is almost over, and we are almost in to the 2019 off-season.
It isn’t yet officially draft season, but thanks to the Giants’ 1-7 start to the season, we had good reason to get started early.
I put out my own mock draft what feels like an eternity ago, way back when the Giants held the number one overall pick. At the time, it didn’t look like the Giants would win another game this year. Then they ran into a stretch of games in which they faced teams which were injured, bad, starting back-up quarterbacks, or some combination of the above.
Now, it looks like the Giants will be drafting somewhere in the latter part of top ten.
And with Christmas looming (somehow it seems like it is way too early, and this season has taken forever to get to this point) I decided it was a good time to take a peek ahead to Draftmas and see what could be in store for the Giants.
Before we get to the various picks themselves, I should note that the draft position of these various mock drafts will depend on when they were made. There are currently five teams tied with the Giants for record and draft position is incredibly fluid right now. Case in point, when I put together the post for the Giants’ current draft position on Monday morning, they held the eighth overall pick. Tuesday morning, following Monday Night Football, the Giants held the ninth overall pick. I noted the date of the various drafts just to try and avoid confusion.
8. New York Giants: Justin Herbert, QB, Oregon
If the Giants finish behind the Jaguars in the draft order, they’ll closely be waiting on Herbert’s pro decision. Herbert has until Jan. 14 to decide whether or not he’ll return to Oregon, but most rumors have centered around him returning. If he goes back to school, the Giants might seriously have to consider a trade up to finally get their quarterback of the future, even if Eli Manning is back in 2019.
The Draft Network
Jon Ledyard’s mock draft (12/17/18)
8. New York Giants
Jonah Williams, OT, Alabama
I believe that protecting Eli Manning will be the top priority for the Giants this offseason, rather than selecting a quarterback in the draft. Jonah Williams is the best offensive tackle in the draft, the only question will be how comfortable the Giants feel selecting him to play on the right side opposite Nate Solder. Given the fact that Williams started and excelled there as a true freshman at Alabama, the move seems like a natural one.
Round table mock draft (12/14/18)
10. New York Giants
Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State
“While the actual Giants may not yet be interested in grabbing the quarterback of the future, I’m on board. Haskins honestly needs time to develop — he’s only a redshirt sophomore with one year of starting experience, and will turn 22 shortly after the draft. With Herbert off the board, Haskins is unquestionably the best remaining option at quarterback — and he will benefit from the 2019 year of sitting as Eli Manning starts (and the Giants don’t make the playoffs, again!)”
– Benjamin Solak
10. New York Giants – Ed Oliver, DT, Houston
After a brutal first half, the Giants have won four out of their last five games since their Week Nine bye. In that span, their offense has averaged 31.4 points per game. Keep in mind the Giants did not score 30 points or more a single time over the two prior seasons! As this surge continues, you can argue that with each quality offensive game the likelihood of Eli Manning being the starting QB in 2019 for the Giants increases.
Wisely, Eli and the Giants are leaning heavily on 2018 RD1 pick Saquon Barkley. Saquon is the first rookie in franchise history to crack 1,000 rushing yards (1,124 through 13 games) and has a franchise-rookie-record 13 touchdowns. Barkley has finished with more than 100 yards of total offense 12 times this season, tying former Colts’ running back Edgerrin James’ rookie mark of 12 in 1999. Only Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson (13) has more games of 100 yards or more as a rookie than Barkley, dating back to 1950.
The Giants could go in several directions in the draft. Eli Manning has been sacked over forty times, and the team could use upgrades at C, RG, and RT. Eli also turns 38 years old, and despite recent success, the Giants could still be in prime position to land his eventual successor. The pass rush remains weak, tallying just 24 sacks thus far this season. Nobody knows for sure what draft direction the Giants will take as we hit the home stretch of the 2018 regular season. We do know there will be premium talent available at positions of need when the Giants are on the clock.
– Kevin McWalters, Giants Analyst
Final Thoughts
I’m not going to offer my own thoughts on any of these picks. You can go click through to the various drafts and see which players are still on the board. Personally, I’m waiting until after the deadline for underclassmen to declare (January, 16th), to make my second attempt at a mock draft. Which underclassmen declare (and which choose to return to school) can have a huge effect on the draft board. Best example? Both Justin Herbert and Dwayne Haskins are mocked to the Giants up above, and both could return to school (and would certainly benefit from doing so).
So, in the spirit of the coming holiday, I put the question to you Big Blue View: Which of these presents would you prefer for Draftmas?
