NFL Mock Draft 7.0: Giants, Patriots trade up; Redskins land defensive help
. Quarterback. Duke. Daniel Jones. 8. player. 31
The Giants trade up from the 17th spot to land their quarterback of the future. And no, it’s not Dwayne Haskins.
While many have tied the Ohio State product to New York, they may opt to go in a different direction at the position. Daniel Jones would be a sensible addition for their squad, as he would undoubtedly fit into their offensive system and comes from a similar background to Eli Manning, who the team seems reluctant to move on from.
Manning and Jones were both coached by David Cutcliffe, a well-known quarterback guru, during their college days. Thanks to this, Jones is uniquely ready to handle running a pro-style offense and shouldn’t have much of a learning curve when joining the NFL. He could be ready to start right away, which would be good news for the Giants, as Eli Manning has hampered their ability to win in recent seasons.
Jones possesses a really nice skill set and while some are concerned that he lacks the ceiling to be a franchise quarterback, teams see otherwise. Jones has good arm talent and accuracy, and he could make just about every throw at Duke. Despite playing with a poor supporting cast, Jones was able to help win the team some games and make some dynamic plays in the passing game.
Jones’ arm strength isn’t the best, but it’s good enough to make downfield throws. And in the short to intermediate game, he has excellent accuracy and should be able to pick apart defenses if he can improve his ball placement.
In addition to his skills as a passer, Jones has great mobility and should be able to move around in the pocket and scramble for yardage. This will be a big plus for him, as he had a lot of experience scrambling thanks to his poor protection at Duke.
Jones does have some concerns. Sometimes, he can try to do too much with his legs. And sometimes, he tries to force passes in where they don’t belong. But that said, he has Carson Wentz type upside and with another year of development in the NFL, he could become a rock-solid starter. The Giants will take him with eyes on sitting him until Manning implodes again. Whether that’s this year or next year remains to be seen.
This trade seems very realistic. If the Giants want to get a quarterback, they may have to move up to get one. Meanwhile, the Lions seem to want to move down and acquire more picks. So, these two could match up well.