Giants' Top Hypothetical Trades to Make Splash in 2024 NFL Draft
Though they lost some quality players in free agency—including running back Saquon Barkley and safety Xavier McKinney—the New York Giants still managed to make an offseason splash.
New York bolstered its offensive line by adding the likes of Jermaine Eluemunor and Jon Runyan. It made a stunning trade for pass-rusher Brian Burns. With six total draft selections—including the sixth overall pick—the Giants could continue making splashes later this month in the draft.
The big question, of course, is whether New York will make a splashy move to replace quarterback Daniel Jones. Jones signed a lucrative extension last offseason but played poorly in 2023 before a torn ACL ended his season.
If the Giants want to land one of the top signal-callers in the 2024 class, though, they'll likely need to be aggressive to do it.
Here, we'll examine three hypothetical but realistic trades the Giants could make in the 2024 draft.
Trade into the Top 3 for a Quarterback
Giants Get: 2024 Round 1 Pick (No. 3)
Patriots Get: 2024 Round 1 Pick (No. 6), 2024 Round 2 Pick (No. 47), 2025 Round 2 Pick
To stick with Jones or replace him. That is the question for New York. While general manager Joe Schoen probably doesn't want to admit that extending Jones was a mistake, the reality is that the Giants need more from the game's most important position—and they know it.
Everybody in the building wants Daniel to succeed but you can never let that get in the way of making a judgment that if there are people coming out in the draft who have a chance to be. ... franchise-type players," franchise owner John Mara said, per Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press.
USC's Caleb Williams is on track to be the Chicago Bears' selection at No. 1. However, North Carolina's Drake Maye, LSU's Jayden Daniels and Michigan's J.J. McCarthy also have franchise-quarterback potential. If the Giants believe in those prospects, they could make their move.
The Washington Commanders are likely to take a quarterback at No. 2, but the New England Patriots may not be sold on QB3. In this scenario, the Giants deal with New England to jump the Arizona Cardinals—a prime candidate to flip the No. 4 pick to a QB-needy team.
It would be a costly move, considering it isn't that big of a jump. However, given the potential bidding war we're likely to see for top QBs, it should be acceptable. New York gets its guy and officially begins turning the page on the Jones experiment.
Giants Trade Up for a Wide Receiver
Giants Get: 2024 Round 1 Pick (No. 4)
Cardinals Get: 2024 Round 1 Pick (No. 6), 2024 Round 3 Pick (No. 70)
If the Cardinals don't trade the No. 4 pick, there's a good chance that they take the top receiver on their board—possibly Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr., the top-ranked overall prospect on the Bleacher Report Scouting Department's big board.
Harrison should make an instant impact wherever he lands, and he should be the top target for the Giants if they decide to stick with Jones. However, if the Cardinals don't scoop up a receiver, the Los Angeles Chargers are serious threats to do so at No. 5.
The Chargers parted with both Keenan Allen and Mike Williams this offseason.
In this scenario, New York sends a third-round selection to Arizona to go up and grab Harrison. The Cardinals might take that offer because they would either A.) still have a chance to trade with a QB-needy team or B.) land the No. 2 receiver on their board—potentially LSU's Malik Nabers or Washington's Rome Odunze.
If the Chargers take a receiver at No. 5, it would leave QB4 as a trade asset for the Cardinals. If Los Angeles deals its selection to a QB-needy team, Arizona would then have a shot at WR 2.
A lot would hinge on how the Cardinals view this year's receiver class, but this trade would give them plenty of trade-or-pick options plus an extra Day 2 selection. New York would land the No. 1 receiver it has long lacked.
Trade Back into Round 1 for a Quarterback
Giants Get: 2024 Round 1 Pick (No. 32), 2024 Round 4 Pick (No. 131)
Chiefs Get: 2024 Round 2 Pick (No. 47), 2024 Round 3 Pick (No. 70)
If the Giants can't go up for a quarterback early and decide to roll the dice on a receiver at No. 6, they may still have a shot to draft their signal-caller of the future.
Oregon's Bo Nix and Washington's Michael Penix Jr. represent the next tier of QBs and could be worth targeting at the bottom of Round 2. Landing one of them on Day 1 would give New York access to the fifth-year option.
The Giants declined Jones' fifth-year option, which left them scrambling for an extension last offseason.
The 2024 draft class has an impressive second tier of talent, so teams like the Kansas City Chiefs—who should be eager to augment their roster with rookie contracts—should be plenty interested in trading out of Round 1.
The Houston Texans made exactly that sort of move when they traded the 23rd overall pick to the Minnesota Vikings earlier this offseason.
In this scenario, the Chiefs trade back, giving New York its chance to draft its quarterback of the future. Kansas City gets an extra Day 2 pick in the deal. The Giants get a quarterback to develop behind Jones before handing over the reins later in 2024 or in 2025.
*Draft order information via Tankathon