If Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll don’t draft their own quarterback now, they may never get another chance to do it.
If the Giants GM and coach don’t plant their flag on a rookie’s talent and upside in April, they will be pushing all of their chips to the middle on Daniel Jones.
It would be fair to argue that Schoen and Daboll already went all-in on Jones when they signed him to a four-year, $160 million contract extension last spring.
Still, Schoen and the Giants structured Jones’ deal to give themselves an out after the 2024 NFL season. Jones’ two neck injuries are impossible to ignore.
And with their backs against the wall, Schoen and Daboll would be foolish not to explore all avenues to upgrade at the sport’s most important position — and do everything in their power to get their man — before their time in New York runs out.
Not that they should force a pick at No. 6 overall if they don’t believe in any of this year’s top prospects. If they’re not smitten with a QB, recent history shows NFL teams can find quarterbacks all over the draft.
This year’s NFC playoff field included a seventh-rounder (the 49ers’ Brock Purdy), a fourth-rounder (the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott), a second-rounder (the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts) and a late first-rounder (the Packers’ Jordan Love).
There will be talented wide receivers available at the Giants’ No. 6 pick, too, who might help Jones a great deal.
But if Schoen and Daboll identify a clear upgrade to Jones, they have to take the swing. If they fall in love with a prospect and believe he has the ability, makeup and upside to win a Super Bowl, they have to go get him.
That’s why NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah mock-drafted LSU Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels to the Giants at No. 6 on Tuesday with the comment: “I wouldn’t rule out the Giants trying to move up for a quarterback.”
It’s now or never. Schoen left the door open to drafting a QB when he spoke at the Senior Bowl. And no one doubts that he would be aggressive to get his guy.
Trading up to the No. 1 pick with Chicago doesn’t seem realistic, with the Bears in position to draft USC’s Caleb Williams. Acquiring the No. 2 pick from division rival Washington, which has a new GM and a need at quarterback, feels like an impossibility.
Prying the No. 3 pick away from New England seems like it would be a chore, too, regardless of what the rumor mill says about the Patriots being open to options.
However, if Schoen and Daboll believe in a specific quarterback, they have to call Bears GM Ryan Poles and drive a hard bargain. They have to bend the ear of Commanders GM Adam Peters. They have to get on the horn with Patriots personnel czar Eliot Wolf to find out what it would take.
Sliding up to Arizona’s No. 4 pick or the Chargers’ No. 5 selection on draft day could even be in play to protect their turf from another team trying to charge over the Giants at No. 6, if the top 3 picks aren’t for sale and the Giants’ quarterback is still somehow on the board.
Of course, if Schoen does trade up, he should try to dip as deeply into the 2025 NFL Draft as he can, while preserving assets to improve the 2024 roster and his roster’s depth immediately.
He’d have to use some of this year’s premium assets as part of the package, no doubt, like that No. 6 pick, one of his two second-round picks and a player on the Giants’ roster.
But the Giants GM needs the cost-control and ability of this 2024 rookie class to improve and reinforce his roster now.
He can’t empty this year’s vault for a QB while not meaningfully improving the team in the short term, especially without an enormous amount of cap space ($19.4 million as of Tuesday).
Remember: there is no tomorrow for Daboll if the Giants don’t show meaningful progress in 2024. That’s partially why he’s expected to call plays on offense. Pressure has built for Schoen, too.
Winning and hitting on the next franchise quarterback would be the two most effective ways for Schoen and Daboll to get this rebuild back on track and buy themselves more time.
But if the 2024 season features so much losing that the Giants have another top-10 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Daboll won’t be around to scout the next class of quarterbacks — and Schoen might not be, either.
Maybe drafting a quarterback doesn’t mean taking one at No. 6 or trading up into the top 3. Maybe Schoen and Daboll will fall in love with a QB they can acquire for value with a trade into the late first-round, instead.
If a team believes in a quarterback to its core, though, there is no pick that is too high to use on that player. And they often go in the top 10.
So get familiar with Williams, Daniels, North Carolina’s Drake Maye, Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy, Oregon’s Bo Nix, Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. and the entire 2024 QB class.
Because if Schoen and Daboll don’t take one for the Giants in April, they might never get a chance to do it. And that increases the likelihood that if they identify a clear favorite, they will.
