Now that they have their quarterback, the New York Giants will have several options to explore during the 2020 NFL draft on both sides of the ball.
There are several ways the Giants can go about the No. 4 overall pick. They can add weapons or protection for second-year quarterback Daniel Jones or they can add to the defensive side of the ball, which is an area that needs total overhaul.
In Todd McShay’s mock draft for ESPN, the Giants took the latter route and selected Clemson linebacker Isaiah Simmons.
I’d love to get second-year quarterback Daniel Jones a weapon on the outside here, but wide receiver is a deep group and offers plenty of midround options. And quite frankly, defense as a whole is a more serious problem for the Giants. Let’s get them a do-it-all linebacker — their first Round 1 ‘backer since 1984 (Carl Banks) — who found his way into just about every statistical category on the Clemson stat sheet. Simmons is what every NFL team dreams of having at its disposal. He can rush the passer, he can stand up against the run and he can drop into coverage. With Markus Golden and his 10 sacks headed toward free agency, the athletic Simmons could help fill the void.
It’s unlikely the Giants will get a shot at grabbing edge rusher Chase Young out of Ohio State, but adding Simmons to the linebacker corps would immediately boost the defense.
Simmons should bring plenty of speed to the middle of the defense, and he should be able to make an impact right away even with the high expectations that will come with the selection.
It would be interesting to see how the Giants would use Simmons given his position flexibility and the difference in schemes.
Regardless, the Giants must begin adding impact players to the defensive side of the ball. Simmons projects to have that in the bag should he be the pick at No. 4.