The 2022 NFL Draft is complete, and the New York Giants compiled an impressive class under first-year general manager Joe Schoen.
The Giants made a total of 11 picks, highlighted by a pair of blue-chip prospects in the first round. Here is New York’s entire 2022 draft class:
- Round 1 (Pick No. 5): Kayvon Thibodeaux, EDGE, Oregon
- Round 1 (Pick No. 7): Evan Neal, OT, Alabama
- Round 2 (Pick No. 43): Wan’Dale Robinson, WR, Kentucky
- Round 3 (Pick No. 67): Joshua Ezeudu, G, North Carolina
- Round 3 (Pick No. 81): Cordale Flott, CB, LSU
- Round 4 (Pick No. 112): Daniel Bellinger, TE, San Diego State
- Round 4 (Pick No. 114): Dane Belton, S, Iowa
- Round 4 (Pick No. 146): Micah McFadden, LB, Indiana
- Round 5 (Pick No. 147): D.J. Davidson, DL, Arizona State
- Round 5 (Pick No. 173): Marcus McKethan, G, North Carolina
- Round 6 (Pick No. 182): Darrian Beavers, LB, Cincinnati
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New York’s draft class is split pretty evenly, featuring five offensive players and six defensive players. The team’s biggest need heading into the draft was offensive line, and the Giants addressed it early and often with a tackle and two guards (both from UNC, oddly enough).
Most NFL Draft analysts gave the Giants a favorable grade for their work over the weekend. This article will round up report cards from five different outlets: ESPN, Pro Football Focus, NFL.com, Sports Illustrated and the Washington Post.
ESPN’s Draft Grade For Giants: B
When it comes to draft analysts, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. is The Godfather. He’s graded a lot of drafts in his career, and it’s safe to say he’s a fan of the Giants’ haul in 2022.
“This Giants team has some talent,” Kiper wrote for ESPN, “but it also badly needed a right tackle, and its front seven is not good enough to compete in the NFC East.”
“Giants fans should be thrilled with edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux (5) and offensive tackle Evan Neal (7), who fill those needs and represent rare talents,” Kiper continued in his analysis. “Thibodeaux was a little inconsistent last season, but when he’s on his game, he has the potential to tally 15 sacks per season. Neal is strong and agile, and he spent a season at right tackle, so he has some familiarity.”
Kiper wasn’t a huge fan of the rest of New York’s picks, but the first-round went so well for the Giants that it didn’t hurt their overall grade.
PFF’s Draft Grade For Giants: B-
Pro Football Focus is viewed as the premier outlet for NFL player grades and film study. They have a deep staff of experts, and like Kiper, they were also high on the Giants’ draft class.
The one pick PFF criticized, however, was the selection of Robinson in Round 2.
“This is the biggest reach of the draft so far per the PFF Big Board, which has Wan’Dale Robinson at 125th overall,” the PFF staff wrote. “It’s tough to see Robinson being much more than a gadget player who will need to be schemed touches given his 5-foot-8, 179-pound frame with sub-28-inch arms. Robinson wasn’t an elite athletic tester at that size, either. His skill set overlaps with Kadarius Toney’s, which could indicate that the Toney trade rumors last week weren’t entirely smoke.”
Did the selection of Robinson foreshadow the end of Toney’s tenure with the team? Schoen said after making the pick that the Giants are not shopping Toney on the trade market.
NFL.com’s Draft Grade For Giants: A-
NFL Draft analyst Chad Reuter handled the grades for NFL.com, and he’s the first one to give the Giants a grade in the “A” range for their 2022 class.
Reuter sees New York’s late-round picks potentially filling some pretty big holes.
“The Giants got adequate value at a position of need in [tight end Daniel] Bellinger and found a Jabrill Peppers-type and Day 3 value pick in hybrid safety [Dane] Belton,” Reuter wrote for NFL.com. “[Micah] McFadden and [Darrian] Beavers fill a big need at inside linebacker, as does [D.J.] Davidson at nose tackle and [Marcus] McKethan as a backup tackle.”
The Belton-Peppers comparison is particularly interesting for the Giants. Peppers, who was a team captain last season, was one of New York’s best defensive players and left for the New England Patriots in free agency. Those are some big shoes that need to be filled.
Sports Illustrated’s Draft Grade For Giants: A-
Connor Orr, who used to cover the Giants for NJ.com, gave out the draft grades for Sports Illustrated. He noticed a difference in drafting philosophy under Schoen and rewarded New York with an excellent grade.
“Thibodeaux is the Giants’ most athletic pass rusher since Jason Pierre-Paul,” Orr wrote for SI. “At some point, the franchise started whiffing on athletic players and, in a desperate attempt to save the end of the Eli Manning era, began hoarding ‘safer’ prospects with more production on their résumé. The result was a punchless defensive line that offered little outside some feisty, situational run defense.”
In addition to the athleticism Thibodeaux brings to the Giants, Orr also said that Neal will go down as “the steal of the draft.”
Washington Post’s Draft Grade For The Giants: A-
Even Mark Maske, who covers the NFL for the Washington Post (the hometown newspaper for the rival Commanders), had to give the Giants credit for their work in the draft. It wasn’t a glowing review, but you can’t argue with the final grade.
“The Giants didn’t do anything fancy,” Maske wrote for the Post. “They were set up for success, with the fifth and seventh picks, and they delivered…What you can say for new GM Joe Schoen and new head coach Brian Daboll is that they did as expected and didn’t mess anything up.”
Coming off the Dave Gettleman era, that’s a big improvement.
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Report Card Round-Up: Giants Dominate NFL Draft Grades