Big Blue Huddle

Quote from: AZGiantFan on Today at 01:17:05 PMYes and no.  One of the benefits of building through the draft is the fact that you can get quality players on very cost controlled contract.  I couldn't find a full list showing the rookie slotting for the #39 pick the Giants traded for him, but #32 gets around $12 million.  Burns signed for $141 million with $76 million.  So you really can't look at him as in any way comparable to a 2nd round drafted player.

I respectfully disagree. I see it as managing draft capital to maximize overall value to the team. There was no one in this draft that is in the same league with Burns. Maybe one of players in the draft will become a pro-bowl edge rusher, but there is no guarantee of that. Burns is guaranteed, young, and with his best years ahead of him

I'm cautiously optimistic that we can win 7–8 games, but instead of fretting whether we're a good team or not, I'm going to be more interested in watching the growth of last year's rookies (JMS, Hyatt, Gray, Hawkins III), and watching closely to see if bringing in Bricillo and a couple of veterans on the o-line will improve things (hopefully, a lot)...our new defensive scheme with a new coach...and of course, the newbies getting their first taste of NFL play and how they play, especially Nabers

I like that Schoen seems to have settled into building the team stick-by-stick. I think the worst thing that happened was a great first season with a low-talented team, that might have caused Schoen to think we're "almost there" and only required some tweaking. Season two was an in-yer-face reality check, an old-fashioned, "fist to the nose" wake-up call...especially out of the gate where the Cowboys utterly humiliated us because we didn't take offseason workouts seriously enough and came completely unprepared in game one. Stings just to talk about it   

So three things:

1) Schoen is forgetting about "win now", and building a foundation for the future instead of thinking we could make it to the playoffs with a few tweaks - that's a positive IMO

2) Daboll will NOT let this team have an easy offseason workout this summer and will come to game one ready to actually play like NFL players. I believe no one was more humiliated than Dabes in that Cowboy game

3) the addition of a stud ER across from Thibs will be exciting to watch and could have more of an impact on the defense than anything else

So I've got lower expectations, yet excited to see growth in players and overall play this season. If we only win 4 or 5 games, but they are close and we played well, I will be satisfied because I know we're still in building mode. We're not the Chiefs yet

I find Casey Rogers quite intriguing. He has some game to him and rates very high in his RAS score. That score shows he needs to add about 10 lbs of muscle I guess. Put horns on each side of a helmet and a fat sword in his hands, and he'd look like a feared Viking warrior. I will be watching this guy closely to see if he can make the team and be of use to us. His athletic scores are comparable to Braden Fiske's (although Rogers wasn't invited to the combine) and would have been second fastest of all DTs. He also plays on special teams, and I've included a clip of him on a trick play where he turned a 4th and punt into a 1st down (he's no. 98)

Interesting gossip in the news...made me laugh

From the Yardbarker

Minnesota Vikings tried trading up in 2024 NFL Draft for... Malik Nabers?

According to Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk), the Vikings tried to make a move that would have shaken up the entire first round and had our brains malfunctioning almost to the degree of what they are dealing with today in Atlanta. Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was reportedly trying to get to No. 5, where the LA Chargers were sitting.

During a live hit last night for ProFootballTalk, Florio said a source he trusts says the Vikings had serious discussions with Jim Harbaugh & Co, not to get a QB, but to try and snag LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers.

    "I've got a little something more to tell you, here. Something I've picked up, because I've got tentacles everywhere. I've got connections. I'm hearing things, and you know what I heard, and I'm surprised by this, but I trust my source. At No. 5, the Chargers, when they took Joe Alt, they passed on an opportunity to trade out of that spot. The team that wanted to move up to that spot, I'm told... the Minnesota Vikings. And not to take JJ McCarthy. The Vikings, I'm told, were trying to move up to No. 5 to get Malik Nabers." Mike Florio – ProFootballTalk

From there, Florio goes on to question what the Vikings' interest in Malik Nabers meant for Justin Jefferson. Could Minnesota really be concerned they might lose him or be forced to trade him this offseason (or next) should they not be able to reach a contract agreement.

Now, it's important to know that this ProFootballTalk report came after the New York Giants selected Malik Nabers with the No. 6 overall pick and after the Chargers had already drafted 'one of us' Joe Alt at pick 5. But it was before the Minnesota Vikings had traded up to No. 10 to take JJ McCarthy. Here's the rest of the transcript from the Florio clip above.

    "What does that tell you about the Vikings and Justin Jefferson? The Vikings tried to get to No. 5, apparently not to get McCarthy, but to get Malik Nabers. What an offense that would've been. They still would've needed a quarterback, they may get that quarterback in a few picks." Mike Florio – ProFootballTalk

What in the Mike Florio world is going on here... Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

We now know that the Vikings were able to land JJ McCarthy at No. 10. So, if we assume that Florio's source was correct, one has to wonder if Kwesi and O'Connell were really trying to stack the Minnesota receiving core to a level we haven't seen since Randy Moss, Cris Carter and Jake Reed all suited up in purple and gold.

Or... was the Vikings' call up to No. 5 a smokescreen of some sort? We know the Giants spent more time with JJ McCarthy than any other team in the draft and many thought he would be the pick at No. 6, if he was still available.

Instead, it was New York who passed on JJ and opted for Nabers at No. 6. We may never know the answer to these questions, or if this call up ever really happened. But Nonetheless, it is a 'what in the...' type of report that Mike Florio has become famous for.

The grades are all over the place, basically from A- to C+, depending on which of the dozens of sites one takes to heart. In the grand scheme of things, grades don't mean a damn thing. We all know that you can't grade a draft until a couple of years down the road, but that's neither here nor there. It also does not take into consideration how the pieces chosen fit neatly into the puzzle of what the team is trying to put together

The bottom line is this, each team is awarded a certain amount of draft capital, that varies depending on a won/loss record or "horse trading". If I may use an allegory here, it's like 32 people are given a different amount of money and told to go into a store and spend it however they see fit (the person with the most money getting first dibs on an item), and then when the money is all spent, evaluate who comes out with the most value for their money

Schoen made a point yesterday in his post draft meeting with reporters that I have said to myself repeatedly throught the last 3 days of the draft. His words almost went (or did go) completely unnoticed, but he said quietly offhand, "don't forget we used a 2nd round pick on Burns"...BINGO

The 2024 Giants' draft should look like this, and THIS IS HOW OUR DRAFT SHOULD BE GRADED:

RD 1 WR Malik Nabers
RD 2 ER Brian Burns
RD 2 S Tyler Nubin
RD 3 CB Dru Phillips
RD 4 TE Theo Johnson
RD 5 RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.
RD 6 LB Darius Muasau

Brian Burns is only 25 yrs old and already has been to two Pro-Bowls at the NFL level. This MUST be taken into consideration when grading this year's draft class!!!

After I posted this, I saw a couple of rooms that still had the stickies all over their walls. I'm sure they have hard copy backup in case massive electrical failure or computer glitch

Potential?

Quote from: Jclayton92 on April 27, 2024, 06:11:45 PM9 spots to fill, who you got?

Most of the ones I had...went in the last pick of the 6th, and the others in the 7th. I've been away from the TV for a while so I don't know if Christian Mahogany is still available, but he's one I'd like

Potential if available at end of draft:

DE Myles Cole
RB Carson Steele
TE Brevyn Spann-Ford
RB Emani Bailey (had a great Senior Bowl)
OT Ethan Driskell
OT Andrew Coker


Really wanted Stiggers and thought he might slip through the cracks. Apparently more known than I thought

Quote from: MightyGiants on April 27, 2024, 05:57:24 PMhttps://x.com/giants/status/1784337003368092036?s=46&t=1vcQIN8GqF5J2oLdxEVEJQ

Makes me emotional to watch things like this...I couldn't be happier for the kid. He got his chance of a lifetime, and it's setting in

I hope Okereke takes him under his wing. The tenacity of Okereke's play rubs off on teammates. If he can help Darius get to a the next level, he might be good

I think Theo will be found to be a TE stud who slipped through the cracks

Well...my only disappointment was the lack of pursuing OL help. If C/RG Beaux Limmer (Arkansas) goes undrafted, I want him!
Another player I'd like to get (assuming he goes undrafted) is RB Carson Steele (UCLA)

From the Eagles' "Cheat Sheet"

"Darius Muasau (UCLA) – A four-year college starter, first at Hawaii and then at UCLA, Muasau has played more defensive snaps than any linebacker drafted in the last decade, and the production has followed him despite that high amount of reps. An outstanding blitzer who stacked up sack production, Muasau was a disruptive force downhill for the Bruins and has been a forceful presence on special teams as well throughout his career. It's easy to see the role he can carve out for himself in the league."

Special Teams - I'm beginning to see a pattern

LB Darius Muasau 

Didn't see that one coming. Never even heard of him

Well...there goes my special pick I thought would fit in the Giants well as OG/Swing T...Walter Rouse