2021 NFL Draft: Giants draft Georgia EDGE Azeez Ojulari in 2nd round

After trading back from No. 42 overall, the Giants selected Georgia edge rusher Azeez Ojulari at No. 50 in the second round.

Many expected the organization to scoop an edge rusher in the second round in order to improve an outside linebacker unit that doesn’t possess a great deal of talent, and Dave Gettleman surely delivered.

At No. 50 overall in the second round, the New York Giants have selected Georgia edge rusher Azeez Ojulari.

The Giants were selecting at 50 because they traded down eight spots with the Miami Dolphins, the second time in as many rounds that Gettleman traded back (after never doing so in his previous drafts).

Ojulari combined for 15 sacks over the last two seasons with the Bulldogs and some consider him the best pure pass rusher in the 2021 draft class.

How will Azeez Ojulari fit into the Giants roster?

The Giants didn’t need a generational edge rusher in this draft — they already possess a dominant pass rusher in Leonard Williams, who they re-signed to a three-year contract this offseason.

Instead, what they needed was a talented and reliable individual who can fill a specific role and be a significant component of the edge rusher rotation.

The fact that that person ended up being Azeez Ojulari is fantastic — this is a steal by the Giants.

Ojulari is talented enough to shoot up the depth charts and could end up seeing more playing time within the edge rusher rotation than both Lorenzo Carter and Oshane Ximines, who are coming off injury-plagued 2020 campaigns.

Given the creativity of coordinator Patrick Graham, the Giants defensive staff will surely find the correct role for Ojulari this coming season.

To effectively disperse the talent within the front seven, Ojulari could line up on the opposite side of Williams and thus force opposing offensive lines to focus on either end of the field. The Giants will then be hoping to receive great production on the interior with Dexter Lawrence, B.J. Hill, as well as free-agent pickup Ifeadi Odenigbo.

This is a great pick by the Giants, who desperately needed edge rusher help in this round. The fact they were able to trade back and still snag a guy like Ojulari is fantastic and further proves that this has been a great draft for Big Blue thus far.