Dane Brugler Mocks These Three Players to Giants in Two-Round Draft Projection
Welcome to mock draft season, where for the next several months, there will be projections galore about what the 32 NFL teams will do in this spring's NFL Draft.
Dane Brugler of The Athletic, one of the best in the business, recently came out with the second edition of his mock draft, a two-round projection, And his selections for the Giants represent an intriguing mix.
No. 5: Alabama OT Evan Neal
If the Giants don't go offensive line at least once with their first two picks, that will not go over well. Because right now, the only offensive linemen worth keeping are left tackle Andrew Thomas and, if they are cleared medically, guard Shane Lemieux and center Nick Gates, whose status is iffy at this point.
The Giants will almost certainly have to lean on both the draft and free agency to restock the offensive line, and it makes sense to use the draft for the more premium positions of tackle. Notes Brugler of his choice for the Giants at No. 5:
Neal has functional experience at guard and both tackle spots and would immediately improve the Giants’ offensive line depth chart. His balance will fade as the play progresses, but he has a rare mix of size, athleticism, and flexibility to make plays in pass protection and the run game.
The 6-foot-7, 350-pound Neal has been a brick wall for the Crimson Tide. In three seasons, he's allowed 36 pressures--to put that into perspective, Giants right tackle Nate Solder allowed 36 pressures this past season. Neal also has experience in zone and power/gap run blocking schemes, consistently playing at a high level throughout his college career.
Solder, who managed to hold off Matt Peart at right tackle, won't be brought back in 2022, not after tying for the team lead (with guard Will Hernandez) in pressures allowed. Peart might still end up being a solid backup, but a late-season knee injury will probably knock him out of the start of next year. Tackle is a high priority and in Neal is an intriguing option who has experience playing both tackle spots.
No. 7 (via Chicago): Kyle Hamilton, DS, Notre Dame
As Brugler noted, safety isn’t the most glaring need on the Giants’ depth chart, but if Hamilton, regarded as one of the best players in this class, is sitting there, he might be too difficult to pass up.
At 6-3 and 218 pounds, Hamilton is a super-sized safety with the range and length to be a matchup weapon in the NFL. Though his physical traits stand out, it is his football IQ that is most impressive, sensing what is about to happen and being disruptive.
Hamilton has been a dynamo in coverage. In three seasons, he's allowed 47.6 percent of the pass targets thrown against him to be completed and has given up one touchdown. He's also recorded eight career interceptions and 14 pass breakups for a 25.9 NFL coverage rating.
In just about every sub-category, the Giants' pass defense finished in the middle of the pack last year are unlikely to re-sign veteran Jabrill Peppers, who's coming off a season-ending injury.
While they figure to field Logan Ryan and Xavier McKinney again in 2022, it might be worth noting that Ryan, who has a $12.25 million cap hit in 2022, also has a trigger in his contract in which if he is on the roster as of March 19, his $9.25 million base salary becomes guaranteed.
The Giants will likely retain Ryan, but with Julian Love, "Mr. Do It All," entering the final year of his contract, the Giants might want to get a solid young player t this key position onboard now so that when Ryan does move on, the Giants don't miss a beat.
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No. 36: Desmond Ridder, QB, Cincinnati
Brugler mocks Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder to the Giants in the second round. (No explanation is provided by Brugler for his second-round picks, by the way.)
Ridder is 809 of 1,309 (61.8 percent) for 10,223 yards, 87 touchdowns and 28 interceptions. He's been sacked 100 times throughout his career and has a pedestrian-looking 99. NFL passer rating.
Ridder is a mobile quarterback with good athleticism and the ability to break tackles. He lacks consistency, though, in his accuracy, and that negative alone would give one pause to spend a second-round pick on him despite the other tangibles (not to mention the other needs on the team).
We can all probably agree that the Giants need to upgrade their backup quarterback spot. Still, I'm not so sure that I would go quarterback in Round 2, certainly not this year--and that's without knowing if Daniel Jones's neck injury will resolve itself.
The Giants have five of their nine draft picks in the top 100, and every single one of those players needs to make a contribution coming out of the chute. While I agree that Jones should not automatically be named the starter, I'd rather see the team invest in a veteran backup to do that than a draft pick that can otherwise be used on another offensive lineman or an edge rusher.
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