The New York Giants received some worrying NFL draft news on April 14, as NFL insider Jordan Schultz furthered the rumors that the division rival Dallas Cowboys are pushing for a trade up into the top four. Just ahead of Big Blue.
“There’s a belief among teams at the top of the draft that the Cowboys, who have picks at #12 and #20, are a team to watch in trade-up scenarios, according to multiple league sources,” Schultz reported on April 14.
He then added that “several teams have said they believe Dallas is targeting a player the Giants also covet, and getting ahead of them would be ideal if the price makes sense.”
That’s obviously not ideal news for head coach John Harbaugh and general manager Joe Schoen, who might have to weigh whether they’d be willing to trade up to block a rival like the Cowboys.
Who Might the Cowboys Be Targeting in NFL Draft Trade-Up Rumors Over the Giants?
The immediate reaction to Schultz’s report is: Who might the Cowboys be targeting? SNY’s Connor Hughes tackled that question after seeing this NFL draft news.
“Lots of teams [are] interested in moving back,” Hughes commented. “Specifically ahead of the Giants: Jets, Cardinals and Titans. Belief in league circles (at this point) is the Giants covet LB Sonny Styles & RB Jeremiyah Love, if one is there at five.”
Dallas is unlikely to trade up for Love. They just signed a quality starting running back to a contract extension, agreeing to terms with Javonte Williams.
Not to mention, they have needs all over the place on defense.
While a Love pursuit would be surprising from the Cowboys, a Styles, Arvell Reese or David Bailey pursuit would make a ton of sense. And Styles and Reese, in particular, have been connected to the G-Men.
That creates a real scenario where Dallas moves up and swipes a prospect that the Giants had their eye on, somewhere between No. 2 and No. 4 overall.
Would Giants Consider Trade to Block Cowboys?
Presumably, if a team wanted to pit the Giants and Cowboys against one another, they’d call Big Blue before accepting any trade offer from Dallas.
After all, they might get less in return, but falling to No. 5 is much better than falling outside the top 10 to the Cowboys’ spot in the order. In that scenario, a team like the Jets, Cardinals or Titans could still land a top-five prospect and get something back in return.
So, the Giants likely can block the Cowboys. The real question is: Would they?
Schoen discussed the idea of a trade down on April 14, but the Giants haven’t really talked much about moving up from No. 5.
“We’ve gotten a couple of calls [from] teams sniffing around about potentially coming up,” the Giants GM admitted ahead of the NFL draft. He added that the franchise will “just have to wait and see” what prospects are still on the board before making a decision.
That doesn’t sound like a general manager who is actively eyeing a trade-up.
Of course, draft season is smokescreen season. So, you never know what conversations are being had behind closed doors.
Giants Rival Pushing for Blockbuster Trade to Leapfrog NYG: Insider