New York Giants: Who Was Riskiest Selection Of 2017 NFL Draft?
Who was the riskiest pick of the 2017 NFL Draft for the New York Giants? ESPN NFL Nation correspondent Jordan Raanan weighs in.
The New York Giants made some interesting picks in the 2017 NFL Draft. Their draft as a whole received some mixed reviews as Jerry Reese stubbornly continued his streak of not trading down in the draft.
Some of the Giants selections were reaches based on where they were selecting. The Giants didn’t have the board break for them on a few occasions and continually passed on selecting players at need positions. They didn’t select an offensive lineman until their final selection of the draft in Round Six. Linebacker was passed over again not once but twice in Round One and Round Two.
This is a draft that is difficult to grade right away. It has some players that will contribute right away. First round pick Evan Engram should step into a passing down role right away. Dalvin Tomlinson should replace Johnathan Hankins, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts, at defensive tackle. Fourth round pick, running back Wayne Gallman, should be in the early-down rotation from the start.
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One player, we will not see, and probably won’t see for a couple of seasons, is their third-round pick, California quarterback, Davis Webb. The Giants are hoping that Webb could develop into Eli Manning‘s successor at quarterback. He will need some time to develop and adapt to the NFL game after playing in the spread Air Raid offense at Cal.
There are wide-ranging feelings on the selection. If Webb develops into a starter, everyone will praise the pick. If he falls short, Reese will get crushed for another wasted middle round selection. The all-or-nothing outcome is part of what makes Webb the riskiest Giants selection of the 2017 NFL Draft.
ESPN NFL Nation’s Giants correspondent Jordan Raanan believes that Webb was the Giants riskiest pick of the 2017 NFL Draft. Here is what he had to say about the selection.
"The Giants invested a third-round pick in QB Davis Webb, who lost his starting job in college, transferred and had a losing record at Cal. Can he be the eventual successor to Eli Manning? The jury is out on whether he will be worth the risk. Webb does have skills — general manager Jerry Reese said he had the best arm in the draft — along with a work ethic and the mental capacity that gives him a chance. — Jordan Raanan"
Raanan hits it on the head. There is no other selection made in this draft that can be as boom or bust as Webb. Webb has the size and arm strength you want to see from an NFL quarterback and had some impressive statistics at Cal. But, as Raanan states, he did have a losing record at Cal after transferring from Texas Tech, where he got beaten out by Kansas City Chiefs first round pick Patrick Mahomes.
Webb was over-reliant at times on his arm strength, leading to some accuracy issues and poor decision making. Those are all fixable things; can the Giants be the ones to fix those problems?
Next: Complete 2017 NFL Draft First Round Grades
We will have to wait and see. The Giants have put together a strong roster that could have used more immediate help to push them to the next level. Will they regret not adding another player that can help now in favor of Webb? Only time will tell.