Getty General Manager Dave Gettleman of the New York Giants
Dave Gettleman doesn’t come off as the most likable character in the land of evolving, forward-thinking NFL front offices. From hiring “computer folks“, to burning bridges with numerous former stars that have played under him, it’s understandable why some may not be the fondest of his GM’ing skills.
Being just 9-23 during his first two seasons with the New York Giants certainly doesn’t help his cause. Yet, despite the team’s struggles in the win-loss column, he has drafted numerous cornerstones for the foreseeable future. Saquon Barkley is arguably the best running back in all of football, Daniel Jones appears to be, at the very worst, a middle-of-the-pack starting quarterback in this league, and Dexter Lawrence just finished his 2019 campaign as Pro Football Focus’ fourth-rated rookie defender.
Still, despite his list of successful draft day gets at the helm of the G-Men, he continues to be slammed from numerous angles, whether it be passing up Sam Darnold in 2018, drafting Daniel Jones too high in 2019, or most recently, not trading down.
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Peter King Calls Dave Gettleman Negligent
NBC Sports’ Peter King took to his most recent Football Morning in America column to throw shade at what he perceives as Gettleman’s inept ability to maximize a seven-round draft to it’s fullest. Mainly due to Gettleman’s “negligent” failure to use his high draft picks as a way to move back and accumulate more draft capital.
I think of all the things I read about the draft in the past week, this, from Paul Schwartz of the New York Post about the general manager of the Giants, was most fascinating:
“Dave Gettleman has presided over seven drafts as a general manager — five with the Panthers and two with the Giants — and has never traded down. Never. He selected 28 players with the Panthers and 16 in his two drafts with the Giants (plus one more in the supplemental draft).”
“Think of that: A GM who has made 45 picks has never traded down to accumulate more picks from any of the 45. That is borderline negligent. Maybe not even borderline. I am incredulous about that. As I documented last week, GM John Schneider of the Seahawks used last year’s 21st overall pick and traded down six times to accumulate six picks, one of whom was wide receiver DK Metcalf, who, as it turned out, produced better value than a 21st pick in most drafts as a rookie. And four other players from the trade played for the Seahawks last season. Trying to not make too much of that, but wow. Just wow.”
King makes some valid points in his argument. The fact that Gettleman has not once traded down in seven years of overseeing an NFL team’s draft is almost unthinkable, and it seems like you’d have to forcefully try not to trade.
However, there’s also something to be said about knowing the player you want, and not being scared to snag them when you see fit.
Many hammered Gettleman for selecting Daniel Jones sixth-overall a season ago, believing he would be available later on in the draft. Yet, no one truly knows that for certain. So instead of hedging their bets, New York grabbed the quarterback they perceived as the best in the class, and the one they feel will be best served to lead them back to relevance.
Only time will tell, but if players like Jones develop into legitimate starters in this league, where the Giants opted to select those players won’t matter.
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