It has been a week since the 2023 NFL Draft. Let’s review where the NY Giants are right now.
- Am I wrong on the WR model? I believe that a team should have a mix of tall/big WRs plus smaller slot/possession WRs. Schoen and Daboll are moving toward a model where WRs simply need to get “separation.” We saw this bluntly with the 3.73 pick of Jalin Hyatt by the Giants and the 3.74 pick of Cedric Tillman by the Browns. Hyatt is 6’0″ 188 lbs. Tillman is 6’3″ 213 lbs. While I do not think it is fair to judge this by a single 1 on 1 comparison, we will watch this set of two players nonetheless. It will be interesting to watch how the Giants do, filtering on speed over size.
- The NY Giants’ 1.24 pick, Deonte Banks, said all the right things. He got hurt in college- now he wants to take care of his body. He was asked about working/living in the biggest city in the country- his quick and blunt response was that he was here to work. LOVE THIS.
- We heard that John Michael Schmitz was the hardest working player on the Minnesota Gophers. I harken back to Jerry Rice and Michael Jordan. These were 2 of the greatest professional athletes in history. They also were 2 of the hardest working players ever. They practiced relentlessly. The great ones have great skill and work their tails off. I am not implying that Schmitz can project as the greatest Center in the history of mankind because he works so hard. I am simply excited to have a hard working player on my team. If both him and Banks are singularly focused on their jobs, then the team is going to be served well. A former Round 2 Pro Bowl player remarked privately that he was surprised at how varied the effort was from the best (Round 1) athletes when they became pros. The important message for readers of this NY Giants blog is that they understand that just because you arrive with great skills does not mean you will put in the work. The draft is about potential. The NFL is about delivering on the field. What is your desire? What is your effort? These are the intangibles that we hope that Schoen’s staff is looking at in addition to the athletic/college performance evaluations. On Banks and Schmitz, so far, so good.
- More interior offensive linemen are wrestling. As the success of Tristan Wirfs and Creed Humphrey grows, the secret is out. John Michael Schmitz was asked about his wrestling experience and what role it has played in his development. “Yes, understanding your body position, the leverage you have, your hand placement. That was probably the big thing, as an offensive lineman.”
- I thought it was interesting that 2 different prominent tweeters that are in my timeline left out Jamison Crowder in their post-draft review of Giants WRs. Blind spot? As a contrarian, maybe it means he can not only make the final roster but be a meaningful contributor. The price tag is cheap enough. Lezzgo.
- Everyone has uniformly praised Schoen for his trade-ups. Giving up a R5 and R7 pick to secure Banks and remove any risk of someone fronting us? Cheap. Giving up a R4 pick to move up 16 spots from 3.89 to 3.73 to get Hyatt? Great, because he was a R1 pick on some mocks. Well, the only pushback I will offer is that everyone loved moving up everyone also asked for more help at other positions (specifically LB and Safety). You can’t have everything. I will stick by what I said in the recap last week- that when you trade up for a player, it increases the investment and accuracy required for that decision. Banks was a R1, R5 and R7 selection. Hyatt was a R3 and R4 decision. Schoen has great conviction. I am glad he does. You just need to be right. On draft day in 2019, we were critical of Gettleman for trading up from Day 2 to Day 1 to get CB DeAndre Baker. It was an unmitigated disaster. I am not lumping Banks and Hyatt into that bucket in the slightest. In fact, by all accounts, the process that Schoen used was much more sound and disciplined, given that Baker had red flags and Banks and Hyatt do not. It is just a bigger bet that came with a cost. Nothing is free.
- The Ringer asks aloud, when the Eagles took Carter and (this blog’s guy) Nolan Smith, “they can’t keep getting away with this.”
- There were reports that the Giants were considering trading up for WR Zay Flowers. Let’s see where Flowers, Banks and Smith are in 5 years.
- We have covered the evolution of RB as a destroyer of positional value in today’s NFL too many times to count. It is great to see the Giants and Jets both taking RB in Round 5. This is drafting the RB as a disposable plastic razor. You get them in R5-R7-UFA, you play them until they get hurt/lose their ability, and then move onto the next R5-R7-UFA pickup.
- Paul Schwartz noted that beyond the Giants offering Barkley 12.5/yr and him turning that down, that the Giants also sweetened it later during the bye week with a 13/yr offer. If the Giants paid 13/yr I would have been disappointed. They need that kind of money to pay…
- Dexter Lawrence, who signed a 4 yr 90MM deal, 60M guaranteed.
- Next up, Andrew Thomas.
- Saquon Barkley, your bus is leaving. Do a deal already. If you think you deserve more, shorten the term of the contract and test the free agent market. Not recommended however, as the RB market has been exposed and it not likely to improve until/unless rules change.
- There is a revolution taking place underfoot. Artificial Intelligence is already at a website/app near you. If you think that it is not going to change forever how draft picks are selected, think again. If you are challenging this idea, ask if you challenged analytics. AI is analytics on steroids. Human beings make emotional decisions. Wink Martindale “loves” Banks. Gettleman was in “full bloom love” for Jones and he was gushing about Barkley. A dynamic model that has different weightings for work ethic, talent, measurables, accomplishments in college, college played at, need, desire, and other inputs is analytics. When that model can change from Round to Round, from position to position, weighing other available options in future picks, etc… that is AI. It is coming. The GMs who embrace it will get better results. Resistance to change is futile. GMs who ignore AI will be run over.