Not surprisingly, we have been getting numerous queries from our Giant fans friends the past few weeks asking when we’ll get some clarity regarding the team’s very chaotic QB situation these days. Unfortunately, we can’t say anything for sure, but there are certain realities that appear to be coming into focus.
Reality #1 The primary reality is that it now appears highly unlikely that the Giants will get a shot at either Cameron Ward or Shedeur Sanders in next month’s draft, either with the 3rd pick or thru a trade. Indeed, everything we are hearing is that Tennessee and Cleveland are pretty much locked into taking the QBs themselves. Which is what NFL teams do in their situation. In many ways the Giants are in the same situation as they were with the top 3 QBs last year. The teams ahead of them needed QBs, so the teams ahead of them took the QBs and while they took calls on possible trade options they weren’t moving without an outlandish offer.
Reality #2 The Giants probably figured out #1 a while back and are have been trying to sign a veteran QB to carry the load next fall. And they’ll get one, most likely Russell Wilson, once Aaron Rodgers decide to get off the pot and sign with the Steelers. And while Wilson obviously wasn’t the Giants first choice, or even second for that matter, they could also do a lot worse. Indeed, Wilson actually had the highest QB rating (95.6) of all the vet QBs the Giants have apparently considered this spring.
Reality #3 The Giants will almost assuredly be taking one of the very deep group of second-tier QBs in this year’s draft including Jaxson Dart, Jalen Milroe, Tyler Shough, Quinn Ewers, Kyle McCord, Will Howard, Dillon Gabriel and Kurtis Rourke with one of their second day picks.
Reality #4 And this may be the kicker on the whole deal. The reality is that the likelihood of a QB taken with a second day pick turning out to be a viable long-term solution at QB is pretty small. In fact, the last time that a team that really needed a QB took one with a second-day pick who turned out to be a franchise guy was, well never! Obviously, the odd second-day pick has turned out to be a quality pro QB like Jalen Hurts, but the Hurts’ of this world are actually few and far between. Plus, Hurts who was a quality college player, but with issues, was taken more as a project by a team that already had an established starter at the time. Stated another way, there’s a pretty good chance that one of the 8 second-tier QBs mentioned above morphs into a franchise type NFL QB, but the reality is that nobody anywhere inside or outside the NFL has any clue which of those 8 prospects is going to be THE guy. So you take one and hope!
Reality #5 Several correspondents have suggested the Giants would not be in this mess if they had taken a QB with the 6th pick last April. Maybe. But the goal here is not to get a guy you can plug into the position like you would do with an OG for example, The actual goal here is to try and get the next Jayden Daniels or CJ Stroud or dare we say the next Manning, because those are the kind of QBs you need to win championships. And Michael Penix, whom the rest of the league kinda told us was QB4 last year, just didn’t look that part as he completed under 60% of his passes and had as many picks as TD passes, although he’d be a guy the Giants could at least plug and play this season.
Reality #6 The bottom line is that the Giants just aren’t likely – and we hate to say never and one can always hope but hope is not a plan – to find their legit QB of the future this year. So in all likelihood that goal will be pushed back into 2026. Instead, they’ll do the best they can to win games with a vet like Wilson at the helm and focus on building up the rest of the team around the QB because that needs work too. In the end, the current situation kind of reminds us of the late 1990s after the Giants moved on from Dave Brown and cycled thru the likes of Danny Kanell, Jesse Palmer, Kerry Collins and Kurt Warner before landing on Eli.
