Of course, it actually takes several years to get a real read on a draft, however, with the 2009 draft now in the books the Giants have to be reasonably happy with their haul this year. In fact, despite picking near the bottom of each round, the Giants 2009 has scored very well in early grades posted by the top draft analysts around the league. Indeed, there we saw one composite rating were the Giants were considered to have had the third best draft in the NFC and the 5th best in the NFL overall.
At least in the short-term, though, the 2009 draft may be remembered mostly for the guy the Giants didn’t get. Speculation prior to the draft, including here at the GBN, was that the Giants were just that close to landing veteran WR Braylon Edwards from Cleveland such that a deal seemed almost assured. As of today, though, Edwards is still a reluctant Brown and the Giants still don’t have a proven go-to receiver, although they obviously hope that the combination of rookie WRs Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden, taken in the 1st and third rounds respectively of this year’s draft, can in some way help make up for the loss of Plaxico Burress.
One of the sticking points in negotiations with the Browns for Edwards appears to have been the Giants reluctance to part with their #1 pick this year. In the end, though, it appears that the real deal-breaker may have been the contract demands of Edwards, who is currently signed only through the 2009 season. Before making any trade, especially a deal involving a high pick, the Giants would have wanted the parameters of an extension in place. However, Edwards was reportedly asking for a major salary increase, something the Giants were reluctant to agree to, particularly given his wildly uneven production the past couple of years.
With Edwards no longer apparently on the radar the Giants then set their sights on Missouri WR Jeremy Maclin, one of the top two wideouts in the 2009 draft, who got caught up in the numbers game early in the draft, and dropped into range for the Giants. . The Giants had reportedly worked out the parameters of a trade with Detroit to move up to the 20th pick if Maclin was still on the board, however, division-rival Philadelphia beat them to punch by leapfrogging the Detroit in a trade with Cleveland. The Eagles ultimately gave up a 6-round pick to move up two spots from #21 to #19 and selected Maclin themselves.
The Giants also reportedly talked with Cleveland about the 19th pick, but the Browns apparently had their hearts set on selecting California C Alex Mack with their opening round pick and didn‘t believe he would still be on the board at the 29th pick. What had to annoy the Giants just a tad, though, was the fact that the Eagles were able to get Maclin pretty cheaply. According to the trade value chart used by most NFL teams, at least those outside the Cleveland area code, it should have cost a 4th round pick to move the two spots from the 21st to the 19th picks, however, the Browns made the deal with the Eagles for just a 6th rounder. The Browns, though, had been running something of a fire sale all day. They sent the 5th pick to the Jets for the 17th for not much more than a song and then sent the 17th to Tampa Bay for the 19th pick, which again should have cost at least a 4th rounder, for another 6th.
Meanwhile, it is still possible, of course, that the Giants still deal for a veteran wide receiver sometime before the season starts. The Browns did take WRs Brian Robiskie and Mo Massaquoi in the second round of last week’s draft and likely are still open to moving Edwards, who really doesn’t want to play in Cleveland, however, unless he dramatically modifies his contract demands isn’t likely to wearing Plaxico’s old #17 in blue anytime soon. Same story for Arizona’s Anquan Boldin, whom the Cardinals also have on the market. The Cardinals, though, reportedly had only one nibble for Boldin - Chicago reportedly offered a mid-second round pick - during the draft. Again, the problem is the player‘s contract demands. Indeed, if the Giants couldn‘t stomach Edwards request to double his salary, they would positively gag at Boldin‘s demand for a contract in the 9-10M per range.
It appears at least for the time being that the Giants will be content to see what they have in their rookie receivers. Certainly, the receiver corps could have a very different look next fall with the addition of Nicks, Barden and TE Travis Beckum, the Giants’ other third round pick this year. The Giants, in fact, claimed after the draft that they actually had Nicks rated only slightly than Maclin. Indeed, while Nicks lacks Maclin’s explosion and big-play potential he may actually be the more polished receiver. Nicks is a wide-body - he’s listed at 6-1, 212 - receiver who has good body control and uses his size well to shield DBs off the ball; Nicks is also a physical WR who can get off the jam at the line of scrimmage and is fearless going over he middle; he also has long arms and big hands and also runs crisp routes and can find the soft spot in coverage. Nicks also has a nice burst when coming out of cuts and has a bit of an extra gear when the ball is in the air, but is not a burner with a 40 time in the 4.50 range, although he does appear to play faster. Indeed, while he isn‘t considered to be a deep threat, Nicks did average 18 yards per catch in 2008 and scored 12 times. Nicks also isn’t going to run away from defenders with the ball in his hands, but is tough to tackle; however, while a very physical receiver, he isn’t much of a blocker. In terms of his pure skills, Nicks has all the tools to be a top NFL receiver; the issue is how much he wants it; he’s had trouble keeping his weight under control in the past, for example, and has been known to take plays off.
Nicks, in fact, is most often described as the closest thing to the Cardinals’ Anquan Boldin in the 2009 draft; indeed, Nicks may be the closest thing to Boldin to come out of college in a while. And while the real Boldin has been on the market, the Giants have only been lukewarm in their interest in acquiring him, reportedly preferring the big-play threat of the Browns’ Edwards. Ironically, in taking Nicks, the Boldin-clone, with their opening round pick, the Giants passed on Rutgers’ WR Kenny Britt, who actually reminds people both physically and in style of play to Edwards. For the record, Britt was taken by Tennessee with the pick immediately following the Giants selection of Nicks.
On the other hand, the rangy Barden, taken with the 91st pick overall, is physically much more similar to the late-lamented Plaxico Burress. At 6-6 and almost 230 pounds, Barden looks a little bit like a TE. However, while he looks a lot like Burress, Barden lacks Burress’ overall athleticism. Barden, though, is another huge wide receiver with long arms and big hands. He is also an excellent red zone target who scored 50 career TDs, a large share of them on fade routes on which he simply out jumped overmatched corners at the D1AA level. Indeed, Barden dominated at that level catching 67 passes for 1,257 yards and 18 scores last season. Barden, though, struggled to get separation when he was invited to the Senior Bowl, however, he was also apparently slowed by an ankle injury in Mobile. Still, Barden is somewhat limited as an overall athlete in that lacks the speed to run away from defenders and isn’t all that quick or fluid running routes. Barden, though, is a good leaper with excellent hands who, like Nicks, will catch the ball in traffic. He is also tough to tackle and is a better than average blocker; he‘s a also a smart kid who should be able to pick up the nuances of the Giants’ offense, although he is still somewhat raw and may take some time to develop. On balance, though, Barden was good value taken at the end of the third round.
The jewel of the Giants’ 2009 draft class, though, may ultimately turn out to be Wisconsin’s Beckum. While nominally a TE, Beckum is in reality is just a big pass-receiving wideout who will most likely play a hybrid TE/H-back role in the NFL. Beckum was actually rated as a possible late first-round pick prior to the 2008 season after he led all collegiate TEs in receiving yardage the previous fall, however, his stock fell after he broke his leg four games into the 2008 season and required season-ending surgery. Indeed, the only real concern with Beckum is durability as he also had shoulder surgery in 2007. If healthy, though, Beckum is a potential match-up problem waiting to happen; at almost 245 pounds he is too big for most corners to handle, while he’s too fast for most safeties and LBs to stay with in man coverage; Beckum runs very good routes with a nice burst out of his cuts; he also has good hands and adjusts well to the ball when it’s in the air; he is also a good runner with the ball after the catch.
In fact, the Giants have had pretty good success in recent years drafting players whose draft stock fell because of injuries in their senior season such as Justin Tuck and Corey Webster and hope they have another in Beckum. Giants‘ fans expecting Beckum to be the second (or third to be exact) coming of Mark Bavaro or Jeremy Shockey as a prototype two-way TE, though, will be disappointed. Beckum is limited as a blocker and is neither very aggressive nor physical in that aspect of the game. What Beckum has, though, is the potential to be a dynamic receiver, especially on 3rd downs. Hopefully, the Giants will line Beckum up all over the field - they can split him out, put him in the slot, put him in motion, line him up as a second TE, or even slide him in at FB - and force other teams to account for him. We stress the ‘hopefully, part, though, because for some reason while the Giants have been one of the most innovative teams in the league when it comes to defense, and especially rushing the passer, the Tom Coughlin-Kevin Gilbride offensive brain trust has never been overly creative and have in the past tended to try and force players into their system rather than finding ways to exploit singular skills of individuals players.
Speaking about hybrids and third downs, the Giants may have gotten the 2009 draft’s best specialists in Virginia DE/LB Clint Sintim who was selected with their initial second round pick, one of the two selections acquired from New Orleans in the Shockey trade last summer. Sintim actually played as an OLB in a 3-4 scheme in college, where he led the country in sacks by a LB with 13. Sintim will get some reps at SSLB in practice, but was drafted primarily to bolster the Giants pass rush packages. Sintim has good size for a LB type at around 6-3, 255 with long arms and a solid lower body. Sintim, though, only has average speed for a LB/De with a 40 clocking in the 4.75-4.80 range. Sintim, though, does have a very quick first step; gets good leverage once he gets a step into the backfield and is relentless in pursuit. Whether he is able to make the adjustment to play as an every down LB, though, may be somewhat of a longshot. Sintim does have the size and strength to anchor at the point of attack, and is a physical tackler who had almost 250 career stops at Virginia; however, he doesn‘t use his hands all that well to shed blockers and doesn‘t have a lot of lateral range. Sintim is even more limited in coverage as he is somewhat stiff and really can‘t turn and run in man coverage and again has limited range in a zone, although he has done a decent job of stacking TEs at the line of scrimmage in the past.
And continuing the 3rd down theme, the Giants have probably already penciled RB Andre Brown, the team’s 4th round pick, in as the team’s primary 3rd down back replacing Derek Ward who signed with Tampa Bay this off-season. Brown is a physical 225-pounder who is both an excellent blocker and very good pass receiver out of the backfield; he’s also an effective runner on draws and screens working out of a shotgun. Indeed, the Giants are probably very happy that Brown was there late in the 4th round; in fact, we had the Giants taking him late in the second round in our final mock, while the Giants reportedly seriously considered taking Brown with their late third round pick before settling on TE Beckum.
Brown actually came to NC State as a star recruit, but had a somewhat disappointing career at NC State where he put up decent numbers, but never had that real breakout year. Brown, who did have a very good Senior Bowl week in Mobile this year, is a no-nonsense type of runner with good patience and vision; he also keeps his pads low in the hole and has a thick lower body and doesn’t go down easily. Brown, though, isn’t going to make people miss in the open field and has never been that effective going to the outside. And while he has decent 4.50 speed, Brown isn’t a real home-run threat although he does have something of a burst when he finds a crease. There are also some durability issues with Brown after he missed large chunks of the 2007 season with a broken foot that was slow to heal. In fact, durability questions have some people doubting whether Brown will ever be a feature back in the NFL as he never had more than 125 carries a year in college; at the same time, he also wasn’t beaten up at NC State, and certainly the physical skill set to ultimately be a better pro than collegian. Sort of like another RB selected by the Giants in the 4th round named Brandon Jacobs.
So far so good. If there was a pick in the first four rounds that we had a problem with and that was the selection of UConn OT William Beatty with the team’s second second rounder. Hard to argue that Betty, who many had rated as a possible late first rounder, was good value at that point. He was also arguably the most athletic LT in the entire 2009 draft class. Beatty is exceptionally light on his feet, changes direction with ease and can get out and make a block in space; he also is a rangy sort with very long arms who can cut off the edge. Beatty, though, just doesn’t seem to fit the mold of a Giants’ offensive lineman. Beatty actually played at only around 290 pounds in college and while he bulked up to almost 310 for the draft and may struggle to maintain that bulk over the strain of a 16-game NFL season. Beatty also isn’t much of a drive blocker and doesn’t get a lot of movement in the ground game. Beatty also can be bull-rushed and doesn’t anchor all that well. Beatty is also quiet kid from a very respectful family and while he is a hard worker may have other options in life than football and may lack the real passion for the game.
As such, it says here that it wouldn’t be a total shock if the Giants ended up having to re-address the LT situation with another high pick at the position, possibly as early as 2010. And because Beatty appears to be a pure LT he may not even be all that effective backing up at other positions along the offensive line including RT. Indeed, if there was a criticism overall about the Giants’ draft this year, it may be that rather woeful lack of depth on the offensive line wasn’t really addressed.
Overall, though, the Giants appear to have done a pretty solid job through the first four rounds of the draft. They got at least one potential starter (at some point during the year) in WR Nicks, while as many as 5 of the 6 guys taken in rounds 1-4 look like they have the potential to contribute in a significant way in some of the team’s sub packages. Meanwhile, while we have some questions about OT Beatty‘s fit with the Giants, there is no question that he does have considerable future upside.
While the Giants first rounds were more than solid, the final three may have been something of a letdown to many fans. QB Rhett Bomar, taken in the 5th round, looks like another value pick, but its hard to see a situation where he does much more than hold a clipboard for the next several years. The pick is also a little odd in the sense that the Giants, who only carried two QBs last season - Eli Manning and David Carr - appear to have gone out of their way to talk up how hard Andre’ Woodson, the development QB taken in last year’s 6th round, has been working this winter. That said, there have been some pretty good QBs taken in that part of the draft including the Patriots’ Tom Brady, arguably the game’s best QB these days who was a 6th round pick in 2000. There is also the chance in the draft.
And Bomar, once the future at QB at Oklahoma before getting the boot when he got caught up in a scandal in which he and another player were found to have been well-paid for a summer job for which they never showed up, has some tools to work with. He has a strong enough arm to make all the throws at the next level, has a quick release and throws a very catchable ball, however, he needs to improve his accuracy after completing barely 56% of his attempts last season. Bomar, at just a tad over 6-2, isn’t very tall by current NFL standards, but he has a thick lower body and can take a hit in the pocket. Bomar also has surprising mobility and throws the ball well on the run; he also has nice touch on deep passes. However after two years at D1AA Sam Houston State, Bomar doesn’t have a lot of experience against top competition, although the Bearkats did play Kansas last fall in a game in which Bomar threw for 340 yards, but had three interceptions. And that‘s the major knock on Bomar in that his decision making in the pocket is very inconsistent and he will try and force plays that aren‘t there resulting in costly interceptions including 13 in 2008.
Meanwhile, the Giants’ final two picks probably had more than a few Giants’ fans scratching their heads as neither New Mexico CB DeAndre Wright nor South Carolina DB Stoney Woodson, who were taken in the 6th and 7th rounds respectively, weren’t even listed in a lot of draft guides. However, both Wright (5-11, 198) and Woodson (5-11, 198) have decent size for a corner and while both were listed at running the 40 in around 4.55 seconds, both may actually be somewhat faster. Indeed, Woodson was considered one of the Gamecocks’ fastest players and had reportedly run as low as the 4.35 area earlier in his career, while Wright has run as low as 4.45 seconds.
Both were also reasonably productive college players. Indeed, Wright was considered a pre-season candidate for Mountain West defensive player of the year last fall after he intercepted 7 passes and broke up 20 others as a sophomore and junior. Wright, though, was another player whose play tailed off as a senior as he played the year with two damaged shoulders. In fact, he played out the Lobos final couple of games after suffering what was originally diagnosed as a season-ending dislocated shoulder. Wright is a physical defensive back who can jam receivers at the line of scrimmage; he also come up and make a tackle in run support. And while he lacks pure foot speed, Wright has some quickness, reads the field well and has excellent ball skills. As noted, though, Wright lacks the extra gear to run with top NFL wideouts in man coverage, but should be okay in zone and has a chance to make the final roster as a 5-6 corner.
For his part, Woodson’s greatest strength may be his versatility as he played both corner and safety in his South Carolina career. As a fifth-year senior in 2008, Woodson had four interceptions to give him 8 for his career; and while he does nothing exceptionally well Woodson is decent in run support and coverage, although he is also better in zone than in man as he is a little stiff and doesn’t turn and run all that fluidly. Figure, though, that with as many as a couple of back-up roster spots available in the secondary, both Wright and Woodson have a chance to make the opening day roster.
There should be some pretty good competition for the final secondary roster slots, though, as the Giants’ most promising undrafted rookie free agent signings were also DBs. Indeed, both former Miami CB Bruce Johnson and Vince Anderson of Webber International probably got more pre-draft ink than Wright and Woodson. In fact, Johnson had been rated as a solid mid-round prospect, while Anderson was considered to be one of the top sleepers in this year’s draft class. Johnson, at just 5-9, 170, isn’t very big and isn‘t going to be much in run support, but he is quick and fluid and with 4.45 speed covers a lot of ground. Meanwhile, Anderson from tiny Webber International - not to be confused with D1AA Weber State - played NAIA football, but is a terrific athlete who was a state high jump champion in high school in Florida; he also has nice size at 6-2, 205 and is versatile having played both corner and safety.
The Giants have yet to confirm their undrafted free agent signings, however, the other interesting player they have apparently agreed to terms with is Penn State DE Maurice Evans. Evans had been considered to be a potential first-round prospect at this time last year after a dominating 2007 campaign when he had 12.5 sacks and 9 other tackles for loss, broke up 3 other passes and forced 5 fumbles. Evans, though, was suspended for the first three games of the past season after he was arrested when marijuana was found in his apartment and struggled to regain a starting job once he did return. Somewhat surprisingly, Evans declared for the draft even though he had a year of eligibility left, but saw his stock literally fall off the charts when he had a horrible combine workout in which he barely broke the 5.00 second mark for the 40. For the record, that’s Rich Eisen territory. Go back to the 2007 tapes, though, and one sees a tough pass-rushing warrior with an explosive first step off the snap who was relentless in pursuit. Time will tell.
On balance, a very good draft for the Giants. Indeed, we have given them an A (A- to be exact) for the first time since we started grading drafts 10 years ago!
(Ed. Note… we had planned to run a couple of other features including how the rest of the division did but that would be overkill at this point so we should have a post-post draft follow-up next week to clear up the loose ends. In the meantime, have a great weekend.)
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