Ranking the Top Needs Giants MUST Address in the Draft

With the 2025 NFL Draft just days away in Green Bay, the long and tiring journey of scouting and evaluating college prospects has ended. It is time for general managers across the league to make their next important decisions regarding roster talent.

For the New York Giants and Joe Schoen, the task is just another extension of an important offseason for the regime that, as it stands, has no long-term future with the organization.

That is unless immense progress is shown in the upcoming season to entice John Mara to retain his two men in charge beyond the fourth year of their contracts.

What does that “progress” mean? Well, for some, it’s obvious that the Giants need to put more wins in the column in 2025 after they saw just three in their centennial season, which was anything but memorable and featured the worst-scoring offense in the NFL.

Much of that issue concerned the lack of strong play at the quarterback position. The Giants rotated through four different players, and none could provide the spark they needed to compete. So, that position remains a chief concern for the other side as they watch what unfolds on draft weekend.

How it will all unfold will depend on the priorities that Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll place before themselves and ownership once they enter the war room next Thursday to start building their newest players. Winning now is essential, but if no future is set up simultaneously, there may not be one for the current leadership when it’s all said and done.

From an outsider’s perspective, these would be the biggest positions I would like to see the Giants address in the coming days. Where it happens on the board doesn’t matter if they are convinced, as we’ve seen repeatedly how the game’s brightest talent can be dug up in any round, even down to “Mr. Irrelevant” at pick No. 257.

Quarterback

One of the biggest stories of the NFL Draft that has yet to be determined is if and when the Giants will take a quarterback to land their franchise guy for head coach Brian Daboll finally.

It’s been a decision that’s been waiting around for arguably three years, dating back to the 2023 season. The team was falsely wooed by former quarterback Daniel Jones's performance in 2022, which carried the Giants to nine wins, a postseason berth, and their first victory since 2011.

Schoen and Daboll agreed to hand Jones a lofty new four-year deal worth $40 million annually, one of the few steps to really going all in and accelerating what was supposed to be a rebuild under their watch. Instead, they put all their chips on the table, and it went completely south on them in the next two seasons as the signal caller and offense regressed down to three wins last fall.

The Giants regime couldn’t bail out of Jones’ deal until the end of his second year, and now they’re left with a long-term hole that is only patched up by temporary bridge options in Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston. They have only one year to truly resurrect their jobs in East Rutherford with a prospect that Daboll can mold.

The recent tale of the Giants pre-draft process has made it seem like they have pulled away from taking a gunslinger at the No. 3 pick, where Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders projects to be there for New York. Nothing is possible until we know for sure, including jumping back into round one or waiting till round two to snag another prospect in the thin group.

The Giants have also been linked to Alabama’s Jalen Milroe and Ole Miss’s Jaxson Dart as potential quarterback selections, but at least one of those two is coveted by other teams and could go in the latter half of round one.

Joe Schoen has made it clear that the team won’t rest on a quarterback unless they see the world of him to gamble one of their high picks on him. The only question is whether they will have their chance next year if they don’t act now?

There is no way to tell in the present moment, but if they can take a rookie, mold him, and have him jump in during the 2025 season if things don’t work with Wilson or Winston, it’ll impress the Giants brass enough to keep the ship together.

Interior Defensive Line

Nov 28, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97) lines up during the first quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. | Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images

The 2025 draft class is one of the richest regarding premier talent in the interior defensive line positions, and the Giants are nowhere near satisfied in that realm.

Veteran nose tackle Dexter Lawrence has finally become the lynchpin to the Giants' defense. He built a record-setting campaign before an elbow injury in Week 13 knocked him out of the trenches for the rest of the season.

After he left for the sidelines, the Giants' defensive front was practically treated like a bunch of cushy bean bags. They couldn’t stop the run well, ranking 27th in rushing yards allowed and 24th in average yards per attempt.

Stopping the run is critical to success in the NFL, and pinning defenses back to force long-yardage situations that are less easy to convert on third and fourth downs.

The Giants finished 10th in run-stop win rate by the end of 2024, but much of that came from the strength of Lawrence clogging up the lanes in the first half of the campaign.

Behind the former first-round pick, the Giants' depth isn't great. It mainly composed of inexperienced youth who couldn’t acclimate to the pro level quickly enough when thrown into the fire. The team needs a player who can step in and complement Lawrence in the middle to take some of the pressure off his shoulders.

How soon the Giants can address this position will depend on their intentions at quarterback. There are certainly a bunch of prospects that will go off the board in the first round, but solid leftovers should be there in round two if the Giants don’t pursue a young arm with one of their Day 2 choices.

I don’t see them prioritizing this at the top unless they trade down from No.3. The idea of stealing Travis Hunter or Abdul Carter at their first pick is too enticing to pass up on regularly.

Offensive Tackle

Despite making some moves to shore up the offensive line in free agency, the Giants’ unit is far from being adequately addressed this offseason, especially at the depth for the offensive tackle positions.

The Giants will get All-Pro left tackle Andrew Thomas back after he suffered a foot injury that derailed his 2024 campaign way too early. New York’s offensive line was blocking pretty well in the first several games of the year with Thomas on the left side, but it all went downhill as soon as the stalwart piece was removed from the equation.

The Giants’ first replacement, Joshua Ezeudu, has never been able to step into the starting line and provide even decent pass protection. He has allowed seven sacks in the past two seasons and 42 total pressures in three years, with a sub-62.0 grade in that same span.

Meanwhile, former first-round pick Evan Neal has lost his starting role at right tackle after the arrival of Jermaine Eluemenor last offseason. Neal has struggled in the reps he did earn this past season, getting penalized six times and allowing 17 pressures in 314 pass-blocking snaps, and he might not have a role unless he elects to move inside to the guard hole.

The Giants' offensive line has never been able to stay healthy in the last few seasons, so it is a priority to stack as many pieces as possible to avoid another in-season collapse that stymies the entire offensive operation. I expect them to dig into the current prospect pool to find their next candidate, who Carmen Bricillo can mold into a talented pass protector.

Regarding free agent moves, the Giants acquired two swing tackle players, Stone Forsythe from Seattle and James Hudson III from Cleveland. The two linemen have a decent dose of experience already, but neither has been overwhelmingly positive in their workloads, which boosts the team’s confidence in having good depth.

Some of the best prospects in the class will reside in the first round and find a new home before the draft is over, but the Giants can find a good option in the middle rounds if they look carefully.

One name to watch for is Arizona’s Jonah Savaiineaa, one of the brighter sleeper names featured in many mock drafts.

I wouldn’t discount the Giants possibly grabbing a guard prospect later in the draft, but it feels like the edges are the biggest priority for the offensive line before returning to action. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know New York needs to resolve that area for their offense to jive.

Edge

New York Giants outside linebackers Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns — Sep 26, 2024; East Rutherford, NJ, US; New York Giants linebacker Brian Burns (0) and New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (5) celebrate after sacking Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) at MetLife Stadium. | Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Speaking of the edges, the Giants had a good thing going with their crew of players rushing the quarterback, but that makeup could experience a shakeup depending on what happens in the draft.

For the past couple of weeks, the growing expectation across the league has been that the Giants were moving away from taking a quarterback at No. 3. If they did, it would come down to a choice between Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter, the remaining player that the Browns haven’t picked up with the second overall pick after they’ve seemingly turned away from an arm, too.

That notion isn’t quite dead just yet. The Giants have booked one last private workout with Shedeur Sanders and a couple of other signal-callers in the final week before the draft, which could indicate they aren’t dismissing the possibility of choosing Sanders at the third slot.

The final days will probably tell us more about the Giants’ thinking, but what is the best move for the franchise will likely dictate what they do. If they don’t love one of these quarterbacks to take them at No. 3, then most expect Carter, the arguable best prospect in the class, to have his card turned in and boost the talent on the defensive end.

The Giants have a nice pass-rushing duo in Brian Burns, whom they traded for last offseason and signed to a lucrative extension, along with Kayvon Thibodeaux. They combined for 13.5 sacks in 2024 and kept the Giants respectable with a 13th-ranked team pass-rush win rate.

However, Thibodeaux’s future with the franchise is up in the air ahead of an important contract year for the former No. 5 overall pick three years ago.

The Giants must opt into his fifth-year option by May 1st, or he will become an unrestricted free agent next spring, and the Giants won’t be able to get anything for his talents.

Assuming they would like to gain some draft capital in return for Thibodeaux, the league will keep tabs on whether that happens in a potential draft-day trade.

Otherwise, Carter's pick could open the door for the Giants to trade the veteran away at the deadline next season if he isn’t performing much better than he did in 2024 with just 5.5 sacks.

At the start of the season, though, assuming his health stays in check, Carter could help the Giants recreate that fearsome front that once defined their Super Bowl title teams in 2007 and 2011. He could get rotated into the line to give another player a breather or go the off-ball linebacker route that he flashed at the collegiate level with Penn State.

Then there could be those packages with all three and Dexter Lawrence rushing the backfield and causing complete chaos before the snap, not knowing which way each guy will go. If not for the offense, the Giants need their defense to step up and make the difference.

Inside Linebacker

New York Giants outside linebacker Bobby Okereke — Sep 26, 2024; East Rutherford, NJ, US; Dallas Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson (87) is taken down after catching a pass by New York Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke (58) at MetLife Stadium. | Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Giants also have an important decision looming regarding one of the underrated position groups on the roster: their current pairing of veteran inside linebackers.

Last season, Bobby Okereke and Micah McFadden continued their run as two of the highly productive members of the Giants' defense. The duo finished first and third, respectively, in total tackles with 14 for loss, five sacks, and four forced fumbles as the stalwarts of the unit.

However, both players have uncertain futures with the franchise. Okereke, who has notched 90+ tackles in four straight years dating back to his tenure with the Indianapolis Colts, missed five games with a back ailment and has been the subject of a cap casualty amid the possibility that the team wants to get his $14.4 million cap hit in the next two seasons off their books.

The Giants have a potential out in Okereke’s current deal, but it would charge them $13.9 million in dead money regardless of whether he is released or traded before or after June 1.

McFadden also becomes an unrestricted free agent next offseason, and the team will have to decide if they want to grant him a new deal for a former fifth-round pick.

McFadden seems like the more likely candidate to maintain his future in East Rutherford. He has exceeded expectations and risen to the 10th highest-ranked inside linebacker in terms of pass rush grade (79.6). The Giants also have Darius Muasau under a cheap contract for at least the next three seasons, and he ascended into a larger role, stopping the run late in the season.

So, if things don’t work out with Okereke, the Giants could look to part ways or use him as trade bait, similar to Kayvon Thibodeaux, to stock extra draft capital for a developing prospect who can grow as McFadden did at a lower price.

Perhaps that doesn’t happen during this draft, but a mid-season trade at the deadline. The Giants can snag a late-round prospect, emphasizing a run stuffer, where they suffered at the first two levels due to injuries kicking in.

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Quarterback

Interior Defensive Line

Offensive Tackle

Edge

Inside Linebacker

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