The New York Giants hold the sixth and 17th picks after trading Odell Beckham Jr., which means the G-Men (along with the Raiders) are going to be the storyline of the first round of the draft. And the Giants also currently own five selections in one 50-pick range, the 95-145 portion of the draft, and if this class is going to help build the foundation of a playoff contender in future years, it could hinge on what happens there.
You can check out which picks the Giants currently have below, along with our projection of their top positional needs. I'll then build a war-room big board based upon players I think have some kind of chance of making it to their first pick before sharing multiple draft classes that make sense for the team from myself, Ryan Wilson and Chris Trapasso.
As for the actual draft, you'll be able to stream our live coverage right here on CBS Sports HQ (or download the CBS Sports app for free on any mobile or connected TV device) breaking down all the picks and everything you need to know during draft weekend.
Current draft picks
| Round | Overall | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | |
| 1 | 17 | from Cleveland |
| 2 | 37 | |
| 3 | 95 | from New England through Cleveland |
| 4 | 108 | |
| 4 | 132 | from New Orleans |
| 5 | 142 | from San Francisco through Detroit |
| 5 | 143 | |
| 5 | 171 | Compensatory |
| 6 | 180 | |
| 7 | 232 | from Minnesota |
| 7 | 245 | from Los Angeles Rams |
Team needs
The CBS Sports NFL writing staff recently compiled positional rankings to identify needs for each team heading into the draft. A helpful guide: any position group that had an average ranking worse than 16.0 (on a scale of 1 to 32) was considered a "need," while any that ranked worse than 23.0 (bottom-third of the league) was considered a "pressing need."
| QB | RB | WR/TE | OL | EDGE | INT DL | LB | DB |
| 29.6 | 4.4 | 25.2 | 23.4 | 31.0 | 31.0 | 29.0 | 29.0 |
Needs: QB, WR/TE, OL, EDGE, INT DL, LB, DB
Pressing: QB, WR/TE, OL, EDGE, INT DL, LB, DB
As a Cowboys fan, I think it would be pretty awesome if the Giants kept passing on quarterbacks and taking players at low-value positions like running back or a run-stopping interior defensive lineman. As the person writing this column for CBSSports.com, I feel I should note the Giants absolutely need to draft a quarterback and get Eli Manning out of the lineup. But it's not like the rest of the roster is much better. This team has needs basically everywhere after trading Odell Beckham, Jason Pierre-Paul, Olivier Vernon, and Damon Harrison over the past year-plus, and letting Landon Collins walk. They have two first-round picks and could go pretty much anywhere with them, knowing Dave Gettleman. We mostly have the Giants looking at the defensive line and wide receiver.
War room big board
The Giants have parted with a large amount of talent in recent years, but with three picks in the top 40 this year and 12 picks overall, the opportunity is there to build the next championship core in this draft. Here's how I'd project the Giants' draft board for their first pick, considering only players I feel have some chance of making it in range:
- DL Quinnen Williams, Alabama
- EDGE Josh Allen, Kentucky
- LB Devin White, LSU
- DL Rashan Gary, Michigan
- OT Jawaan Taylor, Florida
Seven-round mock drafts
| Round | Overall | Player | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | ILB Devin White, LSU | |
| 1 | 17 | OLB Clelin Ferrell, Clemson | from CLE |
| 2 | 37 | OT Greg Little, Ole Miss | |
| 3 | 95 | DE Renell Wren, Arizona State | from NE |
| 4 | 108 | G Michael Deiter, Wisconsin | |
| 4 | 123 | TE Foster Moreau, LSU | from BAL* |
| 4 | 132 | CB Jimmy Moreland, James Madison | from NO |
| 5 | 142 | to Baltimore | from SF |
| 5 | 143 | WR Stanley Morgan Jr., Nebraska | |
| 5 | 171 | to Baltimore | |
| 6 | 180 | OLB Carl Granderson, Wyoming | |
| 7 | 232 | G Paul Adams, Missouri | from MIN |
| 7 | 245 | QB Jacob Dolegala, Central Connecticut St | from LAR |
White is a game-changer in the middle of the defense who stood out at the combine as one of the best prospects in this class, so if he gets by the Raiders and Buccaneers I can see the Giants hopping all over him and leaving their edge rusher need for later. With White in tow, the Giants can feel good about moving on from Alec Ogletree's big cap number in 2020. With their other first-round pick, the Giants land the last of the top-tier edge rushers in Ferrell, who might not be the perfect fit for the 3-4 but who should dominate in nickel packages and still be a force on all three downs.
The Giants' second-round pick lands them a tackle prospect in Little who has been passed over a bit during the pre-draft process but is still an early starter at his position and could eventually transition to the blindside once Nate Solder becomes too expensive to retain, which could be as early as 2020. The Giants then add another body for the trenches in Wren, who didn't put up big stats at Arizona State but should be better at the next level with a staff that can groom him for success.
With eight Day 3 picks, it would be no surprise if the Giants move up at least once, and after drafting a depth guard who could develop into a starter eventually the team does make a trade up to get a great blocking tight end in Moreau who could have unlocked potential as a receiver. If they can find a prospect like Moreau, I can see the Giants offense running more two tight-end looks to protect Eli Manning better. Moreland is a smallish corner a lot of people like, while Morgan could go far earlier than this but should fit well in the team's underneath passing attack. Granderson and Adams provide more depth at positions of need, while Dolegala is a small-school project who's nonetheless on the radar as a developmental option at quarterback.
More seven-round mocks:
(*) indicates pick acquired via trade
Check out more first-round mocks from CBS Sports.