Getty The New York Giants can replace Jihad Ward by doubling down in the 2023 NFL draft.
Jihad Ward was one of many short-term signings who helped the New York Giants exceed expectations last season. Ward arrived from the Baltimore Ravens after being given a one-year deal because of his familiarity with defensive coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale’s schemes.
Now that deal is up, the Giants can replace free agent Ward with a more explosive, productive edge-rusher. They can do it by selecting Iowa defensive end Lukas Van Ness in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Van Ness is one of the many names to watch for the Giants in the first three rounds, according to Charlotte Carroll of The Athletic: “General manager Joe Schoen and coach Brian Daboll used their first Giants’ draft pick last year to select EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux. Would they really double down? It all starts in the trenches, and the powerful Van Ness brings a lot upside as someone who could replace Jihad Ward (a looming free agent) and bring more dynamic play to the position.”
Taking an edge-rusher with their first pick in back-to-back drafts has some merit for the Giants. Not least because 2022 fifth-overall choice Kayvon Thibodeaux is a rising star who needs more support.
Stockpiling pass-rushers has also served the Giants well as a draft strategy in the past.
Time to Get Kayvon Thibodeaux Some Help
Carroll used the Giants’ bitter NFC East rivals the Philadelphia Eagles as a prime example of the virtue of loading up on pass-rushers. The Eagles reached Super Bowl LVII largely on the strength of a deep and talented defensive line that accounted for 62.5 of the team’s NFL-best 70 sacks.
Those sacks came mostly from a cabal of edge-rushers featuring Haason Reddick, Josh Sweat and Brandon Graham. The Giants can’t match that trio, not when Thibodeaux, Azeez Ojulari and Ward combined for just 12.5 quarterback takedowns.
Thibodeaux logged four of those sacks, but his potential goes beyond numbers. Or at least, his true value lies within the hidden numbers, like 18 pressures and 10 knockdowns, per Pro Football Reference.
The most compelling reason to expect big things from Thibodeaux is that when he makes a play, it’s usually a splash one. One of his best was this strip-sack of Lamar Jackson against the Ravens in Week 6:
KAYVON THIBODEAUX. GIANTS BALL!
📺: #BALvsNYG on CBS
📱: Stream on NFL+ t.co/a2TYogddvg
Thibodeaux also had a sack, forced fumble he turned into a touchdown against the Washington Commanders in Week 15. The former Oregon standout will get better, but there are question marks among the Giants other edge-rushers.
Ojualri missed 10 games last season because of calf and ankle injuries. He also sprained his MCL during preseason. Durability’s a concern, despite Ojulari’s obvious talent, while Ward’s never logged more than three sacks in a season.
The latter is a fiery leader on and off the field, but the Giants are now well-accustomed to Martindale’s schemes. So it makes sense to replace Ward with a player with more upside like Van Ness.
Carroll cited her colleague Diante Lee, who praised Van Ness “as a pass rusher from the interior than on the edge, but he has a good motor and rushes with a plan no matter where he’s aligned. Van Ness also would bring value as a run defender.”
Van Ness’ impact in the passing game showed up via six sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss last season. He usually won with power, the way he did against Peter Skoronski and Paris Johnson Jr., per Mike Kadlick of Patriots on CLNS:
What’s this? Oh, just Iowa EDGE Lukas Van Ness bull rushing right through top tackles Peter Skoronski and Paris Johnson Jr.
Van Ness is 6’5” 270 lbs and combined for 13.5 sacks over two seasons with the Hawkeyes.
Adding Van Ness into the mix with Thibodeaux and Ojulari will increase how creative Martindale can get with his rush packages. One of the better no-frills wrinkles would be to align Van Ness inside while Thibodeaux and Ojulari rush from either side.
Van Ness creates havoc from the interior, the way he did on this play highlighted by Theo Ash of the Stay Hot podcast:
Lukas Van Ness stringing moves together
Kadlick sees Van Ness going in the top-15 picks, while Lee has him landing with the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at the end of the opening round. The middle ground covers where the Giants pick at No. 25.
Putting another marquee pass-rusher with Thibodeaux can get a contending Giants team over the title hump. It’s happened before.
Giants Have Proud History of Emphasizing Rookie Pass-Rushers
The Giants have rarely been shy about drafting edge-rushers, and the approach has usually paid off handsomely. It did after the franchise drafted outside linebacker Carl Banks third overall in 1984, despite already having young sensation Lawrence Taylor, five-time Pro-Bowler Brad Van Pelt and Byron Hunt on the roster.
Banks and Taylor won two Super Bowls as bookends for Bill Parcells’ great Giants teams.
Going back to the well worked again in 2006, when general manager Ernie Accorsi selected Mathias Kiwanuka at the bottom of the first round. Kiwanuka joined a contingent of defensive ends already featuring Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck.
This quartet helped the Giants batter Tom Brady and upset the 18-0 New England Patriots to win Super Bowl XLII. Accorsi’s successor Jerry Reese made Jason Pierre-Paul the 15th pick in 2010, and JPP joined Tuck, Umenyiora and Kiwanuka to help the 2011 Giants thwart Brady and the Pats again in the big game.
OTD 15 years ago we STOMP YOU OUT.
Pass-rusher is one of those niche weapons a team can never have too many of on the roster. There are bigger needs for the Giants in this draft, namely wide receiver, interior offensive line and inside linebacker, but this franchise have never been about drafting solely on the basis of need.
If a bluechip edge-rusher falls their way at 25, the Giants shouldn’t hesitate.
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