Giants are sending strong signals they will draft a quarterback

The Giants are committed to Eli Manning as their starting quarterback of the present, but they want to find his successor in this year’s draft.

Most NFL teams are determined to keep their peers guessing about their intentions ahead of the draft. Evidently that philosophy doesn’t extend throughout the Giants’ organization. They are making it blatantly obvious that they intend to take a quarterback in round one.

Both GM Dave Gettleman and co-owner Steve Tisch both describe the team’s plan as the “Kansas City Model.” The Chiefs famously drafted Patrick Mahomes to learn for one season behind Alex Smith before handing him the controls of their offense. All Mahomes did in his first season as the starter was win the league’s MVP award.

The Giants, of course, have their own veteran quarterback in place. Eli Manning has led the team to glory in years past, but it’s obvious to anyone paying attention that his skills are diminishing. There is a very logical argument that New York should be looking to replace him this season. That’s not Gettleman’s style though. He’ll want to play things much more conservatively with a player who’s meant so much to the franchise.

This will likely be Manning’s last season in charge though. The Giants suffered through an ugly 2018 regular season, but the silver lining to that black cloud is that they’re armed with the No. 6 overall selection in April’s draft. That’s a prime spot for Gettleman to grab his quarterback of the future.

Most mock drafts seem to believe New York is destined to tab Dwayne Haskins as that player. He didn’t play a ton of football during his collegiate career at Ohio State, but he flashed a lot of NFL traits in big games. He’s a signal caller who can really benefit from a year of learning as well.

It’s also fair to wonder whether or not Kyler Murray can throw a wrench into things here. While he’s frequently compared to Russell Wilson due to his lack of size, there’s a fair bit of Mahomes in his game too. Both passers show a lot of creativity when it comes to finding throwing lanes behind big offensive lines. There’s a healthy debate over whether or not Murray is the best quarterback in the class.

Gettleman’s conservative nature still makes Haskins the smart bet though. He fits the mold of a traditional NFL quarterback much better than Murray. Look for the Giants to give him the nod on draft night. No matter what, count on New York finding their quarterback of the future with the No. 6 pick.