At least on paper, the Giants had an outstanding draft at the end of last month as they were able to add some quality prospects at a number of positions. The consensus before the draft, though, was that it was highly unlikely that they would be able to address all of the issues that John Harbaugh and company were focused. Indeed, while it is probably safe to say they have closed most of the gaps in the roster that left unfixed would cost them games, there are still a number of other areas that are still in need of some kind of upgrade.
Let’s start with defensive tackle. The Giants, of course, had issues on the interior defensive front even before they traded Dex Lawrence to Cincinnati for the 10th pick in this year’s opening round. The Giants did add bulky run-stuffing NT Bobby Jamison-Travis with one of their 6th round this year, while they have apparently cornered the market of free agent DTs signing veterans DJ Reader, Shelby Harris and Leki Fotu. And while those guys will help stop the run, none provides the presence on the DL that Lawrence did. Plus, they’re all on the wrong side of 30. And other than Darius Alexander, who did have 3.5 sacks in somewhat limited snaps in his rookie season last fall, none of the DTs currently on the roster has ever done much rushing the passer. Unfortunately, though, finding a big-time DT to pair with their aggressive outside edge rushers at the 2027 draft maybe something of a longshot as the position is considered to be something of a weak spot, although there are several DTs that could help including A’Mauri Washington of Oregon, Oklahoma’s David Stone and Ahmed Moten of Miami.
Needless to say, the Giants got a huge get along the offensive front last month when they selected G/T Sisi Mauigoa with that pick they got from the Bengals for Dex Lawrence. However, while Mauigoa looks to lock down one spot upfront – most likely RG to start – the Giants still have older guys at both LG and RT, not to mention what looks to be a career journeyman type at C. And while the Giants do have a couple of promising younger players upfront in Marcus Mbow and 2026 6th rounder JC Davis, nobody should be shocked if they went back to the OL in the first round next April, especially to take one of what looks to be a strong group of more prototype OTs headed by Trevor Goosby of Texas, LSU’s Jordan Seaton and Indiana’s Carter Smith who could initially combine with Mauigoa to give the Giants a potentially dominating right side, but then possibly slide over to the other side if and when Andrew Thomas moves on.
The Giants may have also got themselves something of a steal when former Tennessee corner Colton Hood was still on the board when they made their 2nd round pick last month. He was a legit first-round quality prospect with the tools to emerge as a true shut-down corner something that’s been in short – very short – supply for years in New York. In fact, a pretty good case could have been made pre-draft that even with the free agent signing of Greg Newsome this off-season, CB was still arguably THE Giants’ weakest overall unit. So, again, it should not be a shock if the Giants go back there early in 2027, especially given that the position could be fairly strong next spring with the likes of Leonard Moore and DJ McKinney of Notre Dame, Mississippi State’s Kelley Jones, Chris Peal of Syracuse, Ellis Robinson of Georgia and Alabama’s Zabien Brown.
One also can’t rule out the Giants going back to wide receiver with an early 2027 pick. We made the case prior to the draft, for example, that the Giants top priority heading into this year’s draft was to get another quality receiver to pair with Malik Nabers. The way the draft played out, though, they weren’t able to do anything there until the 3rd round when they parted with a couple of picks, including a 2027 4th rounder, to move up to get Malachi Fields. At 6-, 220, he’s a potentially imposing target who could be a real match-up problem for opposing secondaries, although he’s still a 3rd rounder who lacks real track speed so time will tell. However, if the Giants did want to go back there, WR could be another strength with a group featuring Jeremiah Smith of Ohio State who is generally considered to be the #1 non-QB prospect for 2027, if he doesn’t end up as the #1 guy overall, along with Cam Coleman of Texas, Clemson’s TJ Moore and Bryant Wesco, 6-6 Duce Robinson of Florida State, Nyck Harbor of South Carolina and Indiana’s Nick Marsh.
Of course, so much can and will happen between now and next April as players get hurt, while others slump and others emerge. Then there’s free agency where the Giants should finally have some legit cap space to make something of a splash. Plus at least at this time it does not look like the Giants will have a myriad of holes to fill just to be barely competitive, but maybe be finally in a position to draft to strengths.
