Getty Images The Giants could add another DB by grabbing Brian Branch in the second round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Deonte Banks is the newest member of the New York Giants.
Now which prospects will join the first-round cornerback in the new rookie class?
General manager Joe Schoen could go in any direction in the second and third round of the 2023 NFL draft. He could even trade up for another prospect after moving the 25th, 160th, and 240th overall picks to the Jaguars to take Banks one pick earlier.
That move left New York with eight total picks in the draft, including the 57th pick in the second round and the 89th pick in the third round.
With Banks in the fold, here are 10 names Schoen and the Giants should consider when the draft starts up again at 7 p.m. Eastern time on April 28:
Alabama Safety Brian Branch
Big Blue loves to pick Alabama safeties in the second round.
The Giants took Landon Collins with the first pick in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. And five years later, they circled back with the 36th overall pick for Xavier McKinney.
Branch met with the Giants during the pre-draft process. He’d be a natural fit to step into Julian Love’s vacated starting role or help McKinney’s recovery back from his hand injury.
The problem: A player of Branch’s caliber should’ve gone in the first round. It’s likely he won’t have to wait long in the second to hear his name called if this scouting report from NFL.com’s Lance Zeirlein is true:
“Plug-and-play defensive back with every ingredient necessary to become a high-performing starter early in his career. Branch has primarily handled nickel coverage at Alabama but has the range and instincts for single-high or split safety looks. He’s quick, fast and strong with the ability to match up with shifty slots, bigger possession receivers and pass-catching tight ends. He’s urgent and has a mind for the game… There are areas where he can improve but no real weaknesses, which could make him one of the safest picks in the draft.”
Wisconsin Center Joe Tippmann & Minnesota Center John Michael Schmitz
The bad news? New York’s biggest rival just added two Georgia stars to its defensive trenches.
The good news? Tippmann or Schmitz can help counterbalance the arrivals of Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith to Philadelphia with gritty play of their own.
The Draft Network’s Justin Melo named Tippmann as a top landing spot, saying he has “10-year starter qualities” in this scouting report:
“There’s a glaring hole at the center position that Tippmann could fill. Schoen lost starting center Jon Feliciano in free agency. Feliciano was a consistent performer that played 971 snaps at center last season… the Giants don’t have an appropriate in-house replacement on the roster.”
Schmitz would bring more of the same to the middle of Big Blue’s line.
The team recently hosted the Minnesota product on a top 30 visit — a good indicator of Schoen’s interest. And according to Pro Football Network’s Tony Pauline, Big Blue is “locked into Schmitz.”
“Offensive line coach Bobby Johnson privately worked him out, and the team brought the center in for an official 30 visit,” Pauline wrote. “I’ve had the Giants selecting Schmitz with the 25th pick in the only two mock drafts I’ve done this year.”
Ole Miss Receiver Jonathan Mingo
Mingo was tabbed as a “sleeper” option for the Giants at pick 25.
But he slipped beyond the first round — and if recent history is any indication, that’s good for Ole Miss wideouts.
Both DK Metcalf and A.J. Brown were second rounders in 2019. The crosstown Jets snagged Eilijah Moore in the second round two years later. All three have made a mark in the league.
Mingo’s talented enough to continue that tradition. And he brings a bigger frame and a brand of physicality that the current Giants receiving corps lacks.
Here’s the scouting report on Mingo from The Draft Network’s Keith Sanchez:
“As a receiver prospect, Mingo has a noticeable physical presence. Listed at 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, Mingo has a well-proportioned frame with a muscular upper body and a dense lower half. This frame helps Mingo be an effective receiver in multiple ways. As a route-runner facing press coverage, Mingo has shown the ability to use his strength and quickness to play through defensive backs in press coverage and quickly get into his route. Once Mingo has the ball in his hands, he also uses his strength to become a difficult receiver to tackle for defensive backs.”
LSU Defensive End BJ Ojulari
Why not stage an Ojulari Brothers reunion in East Rutherford?
New York already employs BJ Ojulari’s older brother, Azeez. The team selected him out of Georgia in 2021 with — you guessed it — a Day Two draft pick.
Azeez has 13.5 sacks in 24 career games. But his younger brother might end up as a better pass rusher when all is said and done, according to Zierlein’s scouting report:
“He plays contain as a run defender and has the pursuit speed to spill the run wide or make tackles in space, but needs to play with consistent effort on all run snaps. B.J. Ojulari possesses all the tools necessary to start for an NFL team once he adds a bit more polish to his game…. (he) will wreak substantially more pocket havoc once he builds a more complete rush plan.”
Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale can help BJ develop that plan. And BJ said he can lean on his big brother if they do, in fact, team up on the Giants.
“We’ve always talked about (playing together),” BJ told Giants team reporter Matt Citak. “When he went to college, he wanted me to come play with him. But I took a different route. This (time), I don’t have the power to choose that. So, if I end up with him, I think it would be a blessing as well, to be able to play with my brother again and dominate on opposite sides of the (line).”