For a team looking for a complete change at quarterback, a prospect compared to the late Steve McNair should intrigue the New York Giants, so it makes sense the team is watching Cam Ward ahead of the 2025 NFL draft.
General manager Joe Schoen fronted a three-man team of Giants personnel boffins who attended the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Saturday, December 28. They were in attendance to watch Ward and the Miami Hurricanes take on the Iowa State Cyclones, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB.
The scouting trip prompted NorthJersey.com’s Art Stapleton to admit “Cam Ward does remind me a little bit body type of Steve McNair, RIP. Props to the follower who made that visual comp recently.”
Cam Ward does remind me a little bit body type of Steve McNair, RIP. Props to the follower who made that visual comp recently.
Stapleton wouldn’t take credit for the reference to McNair, since it came from an unnamed follower on social media, but the comparison ought to excite the Giants. McNair was a three-time Pro Bower and NFL MVP during a decorated career with the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens.
A similar dual-threat playing style makes Ward an interesting prospect for the Giants. So do potential parallels with how McNair’s development was handled after he entered the league as the third-overall pick in the 1995 NFL draft.
Cam Ward Could Have Steve McNair-Like Impact
As a legitimate rushing threat with elite arm talent, Ward could transform the Giants at football’s most important position. Mostly thanks to his ability to operate off script and extend plays.
This touchdown pass against Duke, after running around to avoid pressure, per Playoff Sports Network, showed how Ward’s athletic flair transcends scheme and personnel.
WHAT A THROW BY CAM WARD
This is the kind of quarterback the Giants need to lift up an underachieving roster. Just like Ward has done for the Hurricanes.
The 22-year-old continued to be at his best throwing on the move at the business end of the season. Like on this ad-libbed play against the Cyclones, highlighted by ESPN.
WHAT A THROW FROM CAM WARD FOR THE TD 😮💨
Plays like this have underpinned Ward’s campaign with the Hurricanes. He’s thrown for 4,313 yards and 39 touchdowns, while also rushing for 204 yards and four scores, per Sports Reference.
The numbers are impressive enough, but the true value of Ward comes from his ability to conjure big plays from troubled situations. That same trait defined McNair’s career, never more so than during his MVP campaign in 2003.
The best plays from Steve McNair’s co-MVP season in 2003!
(via @nflthrowback)
Getting the same production from Ward would hinge on how the Giants handled his transition to the pros. Fortunately, McNair’s journey shows one possible method.
Giants Need Careful Plan for Handling Rookie QB
McNair was a top-3 pick, but he didn’t become a full-time starter until his third season in 1997. The then-Houston Oilers were content to rely upon veteran Chris Chandler while coaches patiently refined McNair’s raw skills away from the pressure-filled environment of competitive games.
That’s one way for the Giants to handle embedding a rookie signal-caller. Especially if Drew Lock gets another season after his five-touchdown game against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 17.
Ward could benefit from biding his time. He has some experience from 38 starts in college, but nothing like the 61 starts made by Bo Nix before he was selected by the Denver Broncos in the 2024 draft. Nor the 55 starts Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels made before he was drafted by the Washington Commanders.
Taking time to get Ward more familiar with the nuances of NFL playbooks and defenses could benefit the Giants in the long run. Alternatively, he might take the starting reins earlier, provided the Giants were satisfied about recent controversy involving Ward sitting out the second half of the Pop-Tarts bowl, a game Miami lost 42-41 to the Cyclones.
Not everybody was impressed by Ward’s decision to take himself out of a high-stakes game, but NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah took a different view. He noted “If you sat out a playoff game, you’ll get criticized. That’s totally fair. From an NFL standpoint, these other bowl games are glorified spring games. It is what it is.”
Jeremiah’s opinion is shared by Doug Farrar of Athlon Sports. He listed Daniels, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and Los Angeles Chargers offensive lineman Joe Alt among a host of top prospects from the 2024 draft class “who sat out their college teams’ bowl games to spend more time preparing for the NFL draft.”
If the Giants aren’t concerned about Ward’s bowl-game actions, they could justify trading up to get him. Big Blue now sits fourth in the 2025 draft order after refusing to tank against the Colts.
Moving up the board for Ward or Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, who is open to joining the Giants, would be worth the cost. It’s less risky than the Giants keeping the fourth pick and taking a QB after Round 1.
The Giants can’t afford more half measures after this season was derailed by Daniel Jones, Lock and Tommy DeVito. Now’s the time to pay up for an athlete qualified to be the QB of the future.
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Giants Scout Draft QB Compared to Late NFL MVP Steve McNair