This Quarterback Prospect Could Make for an Intriguing Developmental Prospect for Giants
The New York Giants have Daniel Jones under center for at least two years, but that hasn’t stopped the front office from eyeballing quarterback prospects.
Naturally, with the wagon officially hitched to Jones, such a prospect would be a mid-round, late-round pick, or an undrafted free agent. Also, they’d be a long-term option, not being in the team’s immediate plans but expected to develop over time.
One of these players the Giants are reportedly paying attention to is Max Duggan from TCU. Duggan's 2022 season saw him finish as runner-up for the Heisman Trophy and unexpectedly take TCU to the National Championship Game.
After his breakthrough senior season, Duggan declared for the NFL Draft and received an invitation to the NFL Combine. Although he’s considered to have a limited ceiling by NFL Analysts, he has good athleticism and is a generally good dual-threat quarterback.
But Duggan is an interesting prospect to other teams because of his “intangibles.” NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein described Duggan as “a scrappy quarterback possessing the attitude, toughness, and leadership that teams love. Duggan has proven himself to be capable of overcoming adversity and finding ways to help his team win with his arm or legs.”
Duggan’s competitive mentality is further supported by his own words:
“Just knowing myself, I know that I compete, and I think that’s the best thing I do,” Duggan told the media at the Combine last month. “I think at this level, everybody can run, everybody can throw, everyone’s a good athlete. But I think just the competitive nature of the game, wanting to be under the lights, wanting to have the ball in your hands, wanting a group of men to lean on you, I think, will help me going into this next stage of my life.”
Currently, Duggan is working on his mechanics and footwork in the pre-draft stage; his inconsistent mechanics was a strike against him during the player-grading process.
“That’s something I never really honed in on throughout college; I’ve never had a private coach for my entire life,” Duggan said. “So in the offseason, I was just grabbing a bag of balls and going to throw with my receivers. This time, it’s been great for me to specialize in footwork and my mechanics to clean up on.”
Several of the questions that Duggan received had to do with his conversations with several teams, including formal meetings with the Cowboys and Steelers and an informal interview with the Buccaneers.
But no matter where he gets selected (or even at all), Duggan believes it doesn’t matter; what matters to him is capitalizing on the opportunity as soon as it arises.
“There have been first overall picks that have had a lot of success, and there have been guys that have been picked last or gone undrafted that have had a lot of success,” Duggan said.
“So I think it ranges and varies depending on the situation you get put in. But it also comes down to the fact that it doesn’t matter where you get picked. Whatever team you end up with, make the most of it.”
Duggan himself is projected to be a mid-or-late-round pick, as his physical limitations (such as his below-average size and unimpressive arm strength) prevent him from being a can’t-miss-prospect. However, several quarterbacks throughout history aren’t the most physically gifted or statistically dominant, but their abilities to find ways to win games made them legends.
Perhaps Duggan could achieve something great with his competitive mindset and spirit, coupled with his ability to improvise plays and decent dual-threat potential.
The Giants already have a good runner and improviser in Jones, but if his current contract doesn’t work out for the long term, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take a flyer on Duggan.
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