The New York Giants have completely overhauled their quarterback depth chart this offseason, continuing with the signing of veteran Russell Wilson on Tuesday.
Combined with the addition of Jameis Winston a week ago, that is two veteran quarterbacks coming in to take over the top of the depth chart.
That should not necessarily mean that the Giants are done overhauling that part of their roster. Especially as it relates to the 2025 NFL Draft and their No. 3 overall pick.
Before adding Wilson and Winston, New York was viewed as a potential landing spot for a quarterback at the top of the draft, specifically Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders if he ended up getting through the first two picks of the draft.
If he does, and if the Giants view him as a player worthy of that spot in the draft, they should not have any hesitation in picking him. There might even be a strong argument in favor of doing so.
For one, none of the quarterbacks on the roster — Wilson, Winston or Tommy Devito — are potential long-term solutions given their ages and long-term upsides. Wilson is only signed for one season, while Winston’s contract pays him like a backup. DeVito is not anybody you want making more than a handful of starts in a season and only when absolutely necessary.
They are all placeholders and bridge quarterbacks at best.
The problem is nobody really knows who they are placeholders for, because there is not currently anybody on the roster that fits into the long-term plans. There is also no guarantee they will be positioned to find that long-term answer next year.
That is where a player like Sanders could still come in to play.
There is precedent for a team to sign a veteran quarterback in free agency and then use a top-10 pick on a quarterback, as the Atlanta Falcons did that exact thing a year ago by signing Kirk Cousins and drafting Michael Penix Jr. In that situation, Cousins was signed to a significantly longer and more expensive contract than either Wilson or Winston got. It also ended up probably working out for the best as the Cousins experiment did not work out as anybody planned.
It would also allow New York to give a rookie quarterback an opportunity to sit and learn for a year without having to be thrown into the deep end of the pool behind a bad team.
The question would all come down to whether or not the Giants have that high of a grade on Sanders, or if he even lasts until the No. 3 overall pick.
While the Tennessee Titans seem likely to select Miami’s Cam Ward with the top pick, there is some debate as to what the Cleveland Browns will do at No. 2 and if they would take Sanders, or go in a different direction with somebody like Abdul Carter or Travis Hunter.
The Giants at least have some options that might be able to help them put a formidable offense on the field for the 2025 season. They still need somebody beyond that. The short-term options for this season should not stop them from also adding a potential long-term option in April.
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