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Five Day 3 Draft Steals for the Giants
The New York Giants had a successful day three of the NFL Draft in 2019, given their selections of Oshane Ximinies, Julian Love, Ryan Connelly, and Darius Slayton, all of whom were found within picks 95 through 171.
After an active free agency, the front office now must finish the job by following up last year’s draft with another successful class in 2020.
To do so, they must find talent in the later rounds, as general manager Dave Gettleman has proven himself capable of doing with both the Panthers and the Giants.
Here are five potential Day 3 "steals" that would fit the Giants' needs.
Receiver Michael Pittman Jr., USC
The Giants could use another productive target in the receiving group for quarterback Daniel Jones to throw to, and USC’s Michael Pittman Jr. has loads of potential.
Pittman is a big-bodied target at 6-foot 4 and 220 pounds. He'd be a great addition to a Giants receiving corps whose tallest option is currently Darius Slayton (6-foot 1).
Pittman is coming off a monster season with USC, catching 101 balls for 1,275 yards and 11 touchdowns in 13 games as a senior. This productive year comes after a more-than solid breakout campaign in 2018, where Pittman hauled in 41 catches for 758 yards and six touchdowns.
Not only is it a positive sign that Pittman finished his USC career on a high note, but his numbers show he improved on a year-to-year basis, which is something teams look for in a young player’s development and ceiling.
Much like their fifth-round selection in Slayton last year, Pittman would be a steal for the Giants or any other team’s receiving corps if he is still available on day three of the draft.
Cornerback Damon Arnette, Ohio State
Despite being overshadowed by teammate Jeff Okudah, Ohio State cornerback Damon Arnette will be a more-than substantial addition to any team’s secondary.
Arnette has a reputation for being a physical corner, who's best suited in press coverage. His versatility also makes him an intriguing selection due to his ability to play inside and outside at the cornerback position.
In 2019, Arnette only allowed 279 yards through the air and a 45% completion rate in 13 games, according to Pro Football Focus' draft guide. The current projection is that he could be taken anywhere between the first and third rounds of the draft depending on how teams view his overall offerings.
If he remains unselected by Day 3, the Giants could snatch him up and put him at the slot corner position, which the team struggled to defend in 2019.
Tight End Thaddeus Moss, LSU
LSU star tight end Thaddeus Moss comes from an interesting gene pool as he is the son of NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss.
At 6-foot 3 and 249 pounds, the younger Moss played in 12 games on LSU’s historic offense, which captured the 2020 National Championship over Clemson.
Moss caught two touchdown passes in this game, and in two playoff contests, he hauled in nine receptions for 135 yards and three touchdowns.
Luckily for Moss, he had a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrow throwing passes to him all year. As a result, Moss set a school record for tight ends by catching 47 passes for 570 yards to go along with four touchdowns in a breakout 2019 campaign.
While Moss is a very talented receiving option at tight end, he could fall down some draft boards, as it was discovered he had a fracture in his foot last month that required surgery and an ensuing six-to-12-week recovery period.
This injury disallowed him from participating in the combine and is somewhat concerning after Moss underwent two previous foot surgeries back in 2018, which caused him to miss the majority of the season.
It is unclear whether Moss’s foot issues will continue to haunt him in the NFL, but this injury risk alone could see his stock tumble to Day 3 of the draft.
If he can shake that injury bug label, he'd be a solid contributor in the passing game.
Receiver Collin Johnson, Texas
Texas wideout Collin Johnson is a big-bodied target, who is a red-zone threat against defenses due to his 6-foot 6, 226-pound frame.
He is currently projected by several draft analysts to be selected between rounds four through six, but whoever winds up selecting him will have a human mismatch to attack pass defenses, especially near the goal line.
Johnson had 188 receptions, 2,624 yards, and 15 touchdowns in four seasons with the Long Horns.
But Johnson's tape suggests that he still needs to clean up his route running and improve against press coverage, the latter being an issue as physical defenders can knock the receiver off his route and disrupt the timing of the pass.
These issues are correctable--the knocks against Giants receiver Darius Slayton when he was drafted included route running and hands. Through hard work and taking to coaching, Slayton went on to have one of the most solid seasons of any receiver in his draft class.
Getting back Johnson, he uses that height of his very well in boxing out defensive backs and snatching the ball at the high point. Johnson's size makes him a very intriguing red zone option where space is a lot tighter and usually the more physical player wins.
After a 68-catch, 985-yard, seven-touchdown junior campaign, Johnson entered his senior season as a pre-season All-American candidate.
Unfortunately, he had a very disappointing year statistically speaking, recording only 35 receptions for 559 yards and three touchdowns in seven games before tweaking his hamstring.
With a chance to improve his draft stock in February’s combine, Johnson hurt his hip flexor during workouts and was unable to participate.
The past year for Johnson has been disappointing, but the potential is there. For a team like the Giants who could wait until later in the draft to add to depth to their wide receiver group, Johnson seems like the perfect fit.
Linebacker Terrell Lewis, Alabama
Alabama linebacker Terrell Lewis had a breakout year in 2019, with 31 tackles, six sacks, and 11.5 tackles for a loss in 10 games.
Lewis had some bad injury luck with the Crimson Tide before last year, including an upper arm injury and torn ACL, limiting him to just 14 career games at the college level.
The 6-foot 5, 256-pound linebacker came back healthy in 2019 and earned the honor of second-team All-SEC.
Lewis has yet to reach his full ceiling, which makes him an interesting Day 3 candidate. With the right coaching staff behind him, he can develop into a more complete edge rusher and can put his size to good use if he can make it a habit of getting his arms up into the passing lane.
But there is still work to be done in his game. According to The Draft Network, Lewis has impressive length and speed, which he uses to get around the edge with an explosive first step, but his pass-rushing counters need work, and he is a raw talent due to his lack of experience caused by injuries in college.
His durability is why he likely drops between the third and fifth rounds, but for a team like the Giants who are seeking pass-rushing help, he'd be a steal on the third day of the draft.
