Giants Will Evaluate “All Options” After Season, Says NFL Insider

In just a few short hours, the NFL world will have a better idea as to whether the New York Giants, who currently hold the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft, will still hold that distinction once the final score of Big Blue’s Week 17 game against the Raiders is in the books.

And if the Giants do indeed end up with the No. 1 pick in the draft–they would need to lose these remaining two games–there is no guarantee that the Giants will automatically look to trade the pick to a quarterback-needy team.

Such is what NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport is claiming. In Sunday’s “The Insiders” program, Rapoport said that the expectation is that the Giants will "evaluate all their options, including Fernando Mendoza” before deciding on how to proceed in the draft.”

The Insiders on @NFLGameDay with @MikeGarafolo: The latest on #Raiders edge Maxx Crosby, who was placed on IR yesterday despite wanting to play; When could we see #49ers star Fred Warner? #Steelers Pro Bowler TJ Watt (lung) will be back when it matters most. pic.twitter.com/2tl8uln0Jq
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 28, 2025

Mendoza, out of Indiana, has not yet, as of this writing, officially declared for the draft, though it’s widely believed he will do so.

Rapoport’s report comes as little surprise, as there are a lot of moving pieces to be considered here before the draft rolls around in late April.

For one, there is the question of whether Joe Schoen indeed remains in the team’s general manager's chair or if the Giants, who are moving on to a new head coach after the season, decide to start from scratch.

Dec 13, 2025; New York, NY, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza poses for photos with the Heisman trophy during a press conference at the New York Marriott Marquis after winning the award. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

And speaking of the head coach, that is probably the biggest unknown at this point. There is a good possibility that the next head coach might want his own quarterback in the saddle to run the offense and not want to be tied to Dart, who has long been thought to be the hand-picked signal caller of former head coach Brian Daboll, who was fired after the team’s Week 10 loss to the Chicago Bears.

Then again, such a move isn't always necessary. Mike Vrabel (Patriots), Liam Cohen (Jaguars), and Ben Johnson (Bears) have all made it work with quarterbacks they inherited.

The Giants, remember, set up Schoen and Daboll with Daniel Jones when they were both hired in 2022, a setup that, despite Jones taking the Giants to their first postseason berth since 2016, didn’t work out for the long run.

That failure is believed to serve as a cautionary tale, and it will be interesting to see whether the Giants make the same mistake in the year ahead or start from scratch across the board.

Dart, for what it’s worth, has been impressive despite missing his top receiver (Malik Nabers) and running back Cam Skattebo. He has proven to be a coachable kid, though the one area that continues to raise concern is his devil-may-care attitude when running the ball.

The Giants players and coaches, for what it’s worth, have said they’re not interested in tanking to ensure they have the No. 1 overall pick.

Fans might remember how last year they won a late-season meaningless game against the Colts that threw off their quest for the top spot in the draft order, so there is that history that could repeat itself.

And even if the Giants do end up with the first overall pick, there is no guarantee that the Giants, should they keep it, won’t use it on a glaring position of need, such as receiver.

There’s still a lot of dust to settle on what happens, but Rapoport’s report is a reminder that nothing is official until it’s official.

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