The 2020 NFL Scouting Combine is in the books, and teams’ draft boards and experts’ player rankings finally begin to truly take shape.
With quarterbacks unsurprisingly being the talk of Indy, the New York Giants sit at arguably the best spot in the entire draft. Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa, and Justin Herbert all have a legitimate shot of hearing their names called within the first five picks of the NFL draft. While Utah State’s Jordan Love appears to be inching closer and closer to top-10 status.
With their quarterback of the future already in the building, the Giants have the benefit of setting their sites on either landing likely one of the top two players on their draft board with the fourth pick, or opting to trade picks with a QB-needy team, acquiring more draft capital, and still coming away with a legitimate blue-chip prospect.
One expert sees the Giants sitting tight at four and selecting the most polarizing prospect in the entire draft class.
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Giants Select Isaiah Simmons in Matt Miller’s Latest Mock Draft
Many have proclaimed that the best way for the Giants to attack their 2020 first-round pick would be to help shore up their offensive line, in return putting soon to be second-year quarterback Daniel Jones in the best position to succeed.
Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller agrees with that sentiment but feels that after talking to league sources, Giants GM Dave Gettleman may have different plans with the fourth overall pick, instead opting for a fan favorite and defensive puzzle piece with the selection.
The Pick: LB/S Isaiah Simmons, Clemson
General manager Dave Gettleman should use this pick to draft an offensive tackle to protect Daniel Jones and open up holes for Saquon Barkley, but most league sources believe his love for athletic defenders will result in the Giants selecting the scariest linebacker prospect the league has seen in a long time.
Isaiah Simmons can play anywhere on defense, something he showed often at Clemson, and would give the Giants an athletic playmaker who can be a matchup problem for any type of offense. He’s fast enough with a 4.39-second 40-yard dash to run with tight ends, cover slot receivers, chase down quarterbacks and generally make life miserable for offensive coordinators.
While linebacker might not be the team’s biggest need, Simmons is a position-less player with excellent ability to change a game defensively.
Simmons’ Combine Performace Was One For the Ages
Isaiah Simmons clocked in at an absurd 4.39 40-yard dash at Saturday’s NFL combine. The time goes down as the second-fastest forty by a linebacker in combine history, 0.01 slower than Seattle Seahawks linebacker Shaquem Griffin.
However, his 40-time doesn’t even begin to do justice to describe the type of athletic freak that Simmons truly is. Standing at 6’4″ and weighing in at 238 lbs, Simmons’ forty, vertical jump (39″), and broad jump (11’0”) each ranked within the top-three at his position at this year’s combine.
If that’s not enough to get Giants fans’ mouths watering, take into consideration that Simmons clocked in faster on the forty than Saquon Barkley (4.40) did at the 2018 combine.
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Giants Snag Combine Star in Expert’s Latest Mock Draft