On Wednesday in his latest mock draft, ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has the New York Giants taking Saquon Barkley with the second pick in the draft.
While many feel the New York Giants will take a quarterback with the second pick since Eli Manning is 37, taking Saquon Barkley would make a ton a sense for Big Blue. He is arguably the best player in this year’s draft and would make defenses respect the Giants running game once they bolster the offensive line.
If the Giants take Barkley at two, they could then use the rest of the picks on the offensive line and linebackers.
The top five in my Mock 2.0:
1. Browns: Josh Allen
2. Giants: Saquon Barkley
3. Colts: Bradley Chubb
4. Browns (from Texans): Minkah Fitzpatrick
5. Denver: Sam DarnoldFull 1-32: https://t.co/3rIWDMFIWM
— Mel Kiper Jr. (@MelKiperESPN) February 21, 2018
Mel Kiper Jr. isn’t the only person who feels the Giants will pass on taking a quarterback with the second pick. Sports Illustrated’s Peter King also feels the Giants won’t draft Manning’s successor at two. Our very own Alex Jordan weighed in our King’s prediction on the Giants not taking a quarterback (click here to read more on this).
In other news:
On Tuesday, former Giants wide receiver and Super Bowl 42 champion, Domenik Hixon, believes the Giants will thrive under new general manager Dave Gettleman and offensive coordinator Mike Shula.
Hixon has ties to Gettleman and Shula having played with the Carolina Panthers in 2013. His endorsement of Gettleman is good news for Giants fans as some felt his personality would clash with some players as it did when he was the Panthers GM click here to read more).
Also on Wednesday, the Giants re-signed offensive guard John Greco. Greco played in five games for the Giants last season but was primarily used on special teams.
Greco has ties with head coach Pat Shurmur having played for Shurmur in Cleveland in 2011 and 2012. In those two seasons, he appeared in 29 games.
The #NYGiants have re-signed Guard John Greco. pic.twitter.com/DabLfxMQTQ
— New York Giants (@Giants) February 21, 2018
Two of the Giants offensive guards, Justin Pugh and D.J Fluker, are free agents. So signing Greco as insurance in case the Giants can’t bring them back makes sense.
