Dak Prescott has a 12-2 overall record against the Giants and has CeeDee Lamb as an elite go-to player. Jalen Hurts will be throwing to two young, high-ticket receivers. Heisman Trophy winner Jaden Daniels was drafted No. 2 overall as a two-way franchise quarterback for Dan Quinn and the Commanders.
Brian Barnes will help Dexter Lawrence and Kayvon Thibodeau rush the passer for Giants new defensive coordinator Shane Bowen.
However, with Xavier McKinney bringing his talent to Green Bay, there is a hole in the secondary that still lacks a CB2, and Giants GM Joe Schon has decided to fill that gap with second-round pick Tyler Nubin. I’m betting on filling the void.
Then, with Adoree’ Jackson on the outside, Schoen grabbed 5-foot-10, 191-pound cornerback Andrew Phillips from Kentucky with the 70th pick, moving up to lead off because he couldn’t rate the run on the corner. I decided to stand. his.
The secondary was, and should have been, the primary for Schoen and the Giants on Friday night.
The Giants have too many needs and too few picks (6) to go the “best available player” route, so at least their WR1, safety, and cornerback depth was checked off.
I asked Shane what he likes about his defense after all the moves in free agency and the draft.
“I’m excited about the young core of players we have together and the players we have on multi-year deals,” he said. “I think we have the pieces in place.”
Nubin cried when Shane and coach Brian Daboll told him the dream news that he had become a New York football giant.
“You just made the best decision in the entire draft,” a tearful Nubin told his new head coach.
Schoen called the 6-foot-1, 199-pound Nubin a leader and culture changer. He was the first safety drafted.
“I think he’ll get the ball,” Schoen said.
Phillips (zero career interceptions) did not.
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“He’s in position, he just has to work a little harder and finish,” Shane said.
The Giants liked his traits well as well.
“He’ll bring the wood now,” Daboll said.
The Giants were very impressed with Nubin, who played in six games despite suffering from a meniscus that required postseason surgery.
“All three players we’ve had so far really fit that mold in terms of being mentally and physically tough,” Daboll said.
Shane had no desire to pay a safety, even a talented 24-year-old straight-laced safety like McKinney, near his four-year, $68 million contract with the Packers, so he had no intention of paying Game 2. I waited to find a cheaper option on the night of the day. The draft was offered with the 47th pick. A cheaper option, Ballhawk (with a school record 13 interceptions at the University of Minnesota) could very well emerge as the opening day starter.
“Young and cheap, yeah,” Shane said and laughed.
The second round is where the Giants have historically targeted safeties. In 2015, the Tom Coughlin-Jerry Reese administration traded Landon Collins for the top of the second round, as he was disappointed not to have been selected in the first round.
“[It] I couldn’t think of a better situation considering this young man’s drive,” Coughlin said. “He’s going to compete for the starting spot. He’s a smart guy. He’s contributed in a lot of ways at Alabama, both as a leader and as a vocal player in the secondary. I’m excited about it.”
Reese: “Very high level of competition, very good performance at the highest level of competition. He was very productive there. He’s smart. We interviewed him and this is what he did. I think it will motivate him. I think a lot of people predicted that he would be in the first row, so to prove some people who didn’t put him in the first row, it’s very, very important. I think they’re going to get some motivated players here. They missed out on some good players.”
The Giants made a jumping jack when McKinney fell to the Giants in 2020 at age 36.
“We saw first-round value in him, so we’re really excited to get him,” then-GM Dave Gettleman said. “He’s a great kid. He’s smart, plays smart, sets up the back end for us, is versatile, can go down low, can cover tight ends, has ball skills. …One of the things that was important for us this year was getting a safety that could play deep down the field, and Xavier has definitely played well there. We’re very confident in that part of his game.”
Collins and McKinney spent four years with the Giants before becoming free agents.
A running back, defensive tackle and developing quarterback should be at or near the top of Saturday’s checklist.
Bowen’s defense is led by the defense. But that doesn’t mean Shane can be considered secondary, secondary, in the NFC East, in this league.
