Josh Rosen could stop the Giants from drafting a quarterback

The Giants might not draft a quarterback this season after all. Josh Rosen could become the heir apparent to Eli Manning in New York.

A year ago quite a few NFL teams were salivating over the prospect of drafting Josh Rosen in the first round. Now the Cardinals seem ready to give up on his career after just one season. The Giants could be the franchise to take a chance on buying low on the second-year signal caller.

Arizona’s front office hasn’t made a firm determination of whether or not they’ll put Rosen out on the trade market, but if they do, expect the Giants to be aggressive suitors. Reports emanating from New York claim that New York will “explore a trade” for Rosen if he is made available.

If Rosen does head to the Big Apple, it would likely take pressure off of General Manager Dave Gettleman to draft a quarterback in the first round. The Giants have been strongly linked with both Dwayne Haskins and Kyler Murray in the last few weeks. Dealing for Murray might require the Giants to move up to the No. 1 pick while Murray would likely be available with the No. 6 selection the franchise currently owns.

The upside to trading for Rosen is that he can be had for a much lower price than any of the blue-chip signal callers in this year’s draft. The Cardinals would likely want draft compensation in exchange for Rosen, but they aren’t going to be in a position to recoup a first rounder. As such, the Giants would be free to fill another need on their roster with the sixth-overall pick.

The potential downside for the Giants is pretty obvious. There’s a reason the Cardinals are ready to give up on Rosen after just one season. Arizona General Manager Steve Keim and new head coach Kliff Kingsbury have made the decision that he’s not a franchise quarterback. It’s possible that Rosen can rehabilitate his career in New York, but the Giants aren’t exactly blessed with the receiving talent to make that job easy for him.

In all fairness, Rosen wouldn’t be expected to play right away for the Giants. Gettleman seems determined to stick with Eli Manning as his starter this season. That would give the franchise another offseason to provide Rosen enough weapons to be successful.

No Giants trade for Rosen is imminent, but it’s a situation fans should watch very closely. Gettleman would love the opportunity to scoop up a distressed asset for a bargain price. Whether or not it would be the right move for the Giants is another question altogether.