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New York Giants Select California Quarterback Davis Webb 87th In 2017 NFL Draft

By Kenneth Teape

Nov 5, 2016; Berkeley, CA, USA; California Golden Bears quarterback Davis Webb (7) warms up before the game against the Washington Huskies at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 5, 2016; Berkeley, CA, USA; California Golden Bears quarterback Davis Webb (7) warms up before the game against the Washington Huskies at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /
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The New York Giants selected California quarterback Davis Webb with the 87th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.

The New York Giants look to have found the player they are hoping will be the successor to Eli Manning. With the 23rd pick in the third round and 87th overall, the Giants selected California quarterback Davis Webb.

This is a good landing spot for Webb. He will need a lot of time to develop at the NFL level. He played in the air raid offense at Cal, so he will need time to learn a pro style offense. The Giants will give him that time as Webb shouldn’t see the field outside of preseason games.

With Manning locked in as the starter, and Geno Smith and Josh Johnson battling it out for the backup spot, Webb will have plenty of time to learn. There is a lot of molding to do with Webb, but he has a lot of tools to like.

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Webb’s mechanics don’t need to be tweaked, which is a positive. He has a natural throwing motion and whiplike release according to Pro Football Focus. He also has a huge arm with the ability to drive the ball to receivers on the outside. That is an imperative skill to have in the NFL, especially when you are going to be playing your home games at MetLife Stadium in the northeast.

The arm strength is also negative at times. He will force throws, leading to inconsistent accuracy. His anticipation needs work, as he relies too much on his arm strength at times and will force a late pass. His pocket presence needs to improve as well.

Luckily for the Giants those are all things that can be worked on. Webb has the tools to be a good coach that you cannot teach such as size and arm strength. He looks great when given clean looks and remaining poised, but that is not going to happen regularly in the NFL.

The Giants will need to work with Webb a lot if he is going to develop into anything at the NFL level. Manning gives them the luxury to bring in young quarterbacks and work with them for a few seasons to see their development.

It is a weird selection for the Giants at this time. They already have three quarterbacks on the roster. There were also other prospects that were rated higher than Webb available, such as Joshua Dobbs and Nathan Peterman.

Next: 2017 NFL Draft First Round Grades

The Giants have had a troubling trend in the draft this year of reaching for players and selecting ones that are not as highly rated as other players available at their position. There were some scouts that believed Webb could sneak into the first round, so the Giants are hitting some value from that standpoint.

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