New York Giants mock draft: What trading down with the Minnesota Vikings looks like

Well, I guess I lied. Last week I said I was pretty much done with ‘scenario-driven’ mock drafts. This week, though, we have another scenario-driven mock draft for the New York Giants.

Since the Minnesota Vikings traded up to acquire pick No. 23 in the first round they now have picks 11 and 23. It is apparent they are preparing to trade up for a quarterback, probably trying in fact to get ahead of the Giants.

What, though, if the Giants at No. 6 were the Vikings’ trade partner? Would the Giants do that? I don’t know. But, hey, let’s run the scenario and see how the draft would turn out.

I used the Pro Football Focus mock draft simulator. I actually had to use the simulator’s ‘Force Trade’ function to make this happen. The deal:

Giants receive:
Picks 11 and 23 in Round 1

Minnesota receives:
Pick 6 and a 2025 fourth-round pick (I tossed in the 2025 pick just to make the trade charts happier.)

Here is how the trade charts graded the value:

Round 1 (No. 11) — Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia

Full disclosure: Had I stayed at No. 6, Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy was available. In the real world, I’m taking McCarthy and not making this trade. For the purposes of discussion and a look at what the options for the Giants might be were this type of deal to happen, I made the deal.

With the top three wide receivers off the board I went ahead and selected Bowers. I don’t know if Darren Waller will retire, but for our purposes I’m not counting on Waller being a Giant. Bowers could be what the Giants hoped Waller would be. Generally speaking, selecting a tight end this early is not my favorite thing to do. But, it’s what I did.

Other players considered: Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa; Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo; Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon State; Troy Fautanu, OT, Washington

Round 1 (No. 23) — Adonai Mitchell, WR, Texas

Yes, I doubled up on adding pass-catching weapons. And, yes, I like Mitchell more than Brian Thomas of LSU. I thought seriously about grabbing an offensive lineman here, but what the Giants did in free agency took the pressure off there. Weapons for Daniel Jones, and maybe Drew Lock, was my priority.

Other players considered: Jackson Powers-Johnson, iOL, Oregon; Graham Barton, OL, Duke; Brian Thomas, WR, LSU; CB Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama; CB T.J. Tampa, Iowa State; Tyler Guyton, OT, Oklahoma

Round 2 (No. 47) — Braden Fiske, DL, Florida State

Some help for Dexter Lawrence. To be honest, all things being equal I would have taken one of the edge defenders here. I know the Giants have shown interest in both Adisa Isaac of Penn State and Marshall Kneeland of Western Michigan.

With Kayvon Thibodeaux, Brian Burns and Azeez Ojulari on the roster I just couldn’t justify the premium investment in another edge defender.

For those of you who are fans of his, Michael Penix Jr. was still on the board here.

Other players considered: Javon Bullard, S, Georgia; Adisa Isaac, edge, Penn State; Marshall Kneeland, edge, Western Michigan; Kiran Amegadjie, OT, Yale; Jonah Elliss, edge, Utah; Ruke Orhorhoro, DL, Clemson

Round 3 (No. 70) — Spencer Rattler, QB South Carolina

Once I traded down in Round 1, I was targeting Rattler in this spot all along. I think it is in the Giants’ best interest to give themselves an option in the draft as a long-term Daniel Jones replacement. It’s an unknown, but if Rattler can reach his ceiling he can be that guy. I will take the swing, given the situation.

Other players considered: Kiran Amegadjie, OT, Yale; Jaylen Wright, RB, Tennessee

Round 4 (No. 107) — Cam Hart, CB, Notre Dame

When I think about mid-round cornerbacks who could turn into good NFL players, I keep coming back to the 6-foot-3, 204-pound Hart. Here is a scouting report from Draft Network.

Need at cornerback undoubtedly played a role in this pick. I could easily have taken running back Trey Benson or edge Javon Solomon and been happy, but cornerback is a premium position that needs to be supplemented.

Other players considered: Trey Benson, RB, Florida State; MarShawn Lloyd, RB, USC; Jacob Cowing, WR, Arizona; Javon Solomon, edge, Troy

Final thoughts

PFF likes this draft more than I do, to be honest:

I passed on McCarthy, which is a violation of my own draft rules. I think the Giants need a long-term answer at quarterback and I think McCarthy could be that guy. He is 21, I like the skillset, and I think there is a chance that he turns into a better NFL quarterback than he was a college quarterback.

I also passed on Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze. That hurt. If you have been following our draft coverage, you should know by now that I prefer Odunze to Malik Nabers of LSU.

This draft haul might be perfectly fine, especially if Rattler hits, but I don’t like what I passed up on at No. 6.