Way-Too-Early Mock Draft Has Giants Selecting a Quarterback in First Round
The ink on the contracts for the 2024 draft class is barely dry, but apparently, it’s never too early to start running mock drafts despite not having played a single down in 2024.
Pro Football Network’s Ian Cummings released his “way too early” mock draft for 2025, and he’s already decided that the Giants will be in the market for a new signal caller after this season.
In Cummings' scenario, the Giants have the No. 2 pick and trade with the Carolina Panthers, the presumptive worst team in the league, for the first overall selection. The Panthers receive a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 third-rounder to go with the Giants' second-round draft choice.
And with the first pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, the New York Giants select quarterback Carson Beck from Georgia.
"The Giants make a slight trade-up to block other quarterback-needy teams and ensure they get the preliminary QB1 of the 2025 class,” Cummings wrote. “Carson Beck‘s ability to win inside the pocket with anticipation, pace, touch, and layering is unmatched.”
Beck started in all 14 games for Georgia in 2023 and led the SEC in passing yards with 3,941. That number finished third in the country. His 72.4 completion percentage was fourth in the country. Beck had 24 touchdowns to six interceptions. The coaches named him second-team All-SEC, and he was a finalist in the Manning Award.
If he keeps his draft stock high, Beck will make some team a fine signal caller. But in mocking Beck to the Giants at No. 2, Cummings’ scenario implies that Jones is not the answer at quarterback, but also that 2024 will ultimately be a season in which the Giants finish with the second-worst record in the league.
Cummings’ take is intriguing for several other reasons. Outside of tight end Darren Waller's retirement and the departure of running back Saquon Barkley and safety Xavier McKinney in free agency, the Giants arguably got better.
They drafted a potential star receiver in Malik Nabers and added a high-ceiling tight end with Theo Johnson. Edge rusher Brian Burns will pair with Kayvon Thibodeaux to wreak havoc on the edges, and Dexter Lawrence continues to be a load to handle int the middle while linebacker Bobby Okereke roams the second level.
The offensive line appears to have been upgraded with veteran depth, with Jermaine Eluemunor and John Runyan Jr. as potential starters at guard. And it looks like Daboll is going to be the team’s play-caller this season.
This isn’t to suggest that the Giants don’t have question marks. The young defensive secondary is one such question mark, and the offensive line needs to show it’s better. But all said, there are plenty of reasons to believe in Jones and the Giants in 2024, and early talk about drafting a quarterback first overall at this point is not only disrespectful to Jones but also to the team.
MICHAEL FRANCE