MOBILE, Ala. — If the Giants want to get a good look at the player they might select with the No. 3 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, they need not spend any time this week scouring the prospects ᴀssembled for the Senior Bowl.
That player — whoever it is — will not be there.
That general manager Joe Schoen and the full force of the Giants front office, scouting department and coaching staff will be at this event this week shows that this draft, or any draft, is far more than what goes on in the first round.
Whether the Giants at No. 3 go quarterback, with Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward — if either is available — or bolster their defense with edge rusher Abdul Carter or cornerback Will Johnson, or strengthen both sides of the ball with dynamic cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter, is worth investigating at another time.
None of those players will be in attendance and thus none will participate in the practices here or play in the game Saturday at Hancock Whitney Stadium on the South Alabama campus.
Before arriving at the site of the Senior Bowl, the Giants scouted the East-West Shrine Bowl practices in Frisco, Texas.
They met with Sanders, who spoke with NFL teams but did not participate in any on-field activities.
As for the players the Giants might be interested in and actually select in the later rounds, many of those prospects will be showcased this week in what is considered possibly the strongest roster ever at the Senior Bowl.
This is the second year that draft-eligible underclassmen are allowed to participate in the Senior Bowl, which creates an influx of talent.
The Giants for the moment have seven picks in the upcoming draft — one each in Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 and two in the seventh round.
They are expected to be awarded a compensatory pick in the fourth round for losing Xavier McKinney last year in free agency.
The Giants could also gain two additional third-round picks if their offensive coordinator, Mike Kafka, is hired away as a head coach. Kafka is a finalist with the Saints.
It is possible the Giants are stuck on coming out of this draft with a quarterback but cannot get Ward or Sanders, as the тιтans with the No. 1 pick and the Browns at No. 2 are both in need of a quarterback.
Maybe Ward and Sanders are off the board at No. 3, and maybe not.
тιтans president of football operations Chad Brinker said last week, “We won’t pᴀss on a generational talent with the first pick in the NFL draft.’’
Is that a hint that the тιтans are not sold on Ward or Sanders, as neither falls into the “generational talent’’ category?
Either way, if the Giants are considering taking a quarterback in the second round or beyond, that player will likely be at the Senior Bowl.
The quarterback group this week is led by Jalen Milroe (Alabama) and Jaxson Dart (Ole Miss) and also includes Will Howard (fresh off excelling in the national championship game for Ohio State), Dillon Gabriel (Oregon), Riley Leonard (Notre Dame) and Tyler Shough (Louisville).
Head coach Brian Daboll will get an up close look at these players and the Giants will have a man inside for a deeper dive, as Kafka is the head coach of the National team.
The Giants sent scouts and front office executives to view Milroe, Dart and several other quarterbacks on their college campuses for games this past season.
This is another step in the evaluation process, a chance to sense their size and body type and watch them throw to a bunch of receivers in an all-star setting.
Last year, quarterbacks Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. helped themselves with their Senior Bowl performances, Penix going No. 8 to the Falcons and Nix going No. 12 to the Broncos.
Seeing these players at the scouting combine in Indianapolis in late February, at their Pro Day workouts and bringing them into the Giants facility for visits will all be useful for information gathering.
It is important not to get too caught up in any one aspect of this.
Former general manager Dave Gettleman became enamored with Daniel Jones during Senior Bowl week in 2019 — Jones went on to become the Most Valuable Player of the actual game — and then over-drafted Jones with the No. 6 pick that year.
Other top prospects participating this week are offensive lineman Josh Conerly Jr. (Oregon) and edge rushers Shemar Stewart and Nic Scourton, both from Texas A&M.
The players who ranked No. 1 and 2 in sacks in 2024 — Mike Green of Marshall (17 sacks) and Donovan Ezeiruaku of Boston College (16.5 sacks) — will also be here.
There will be around 120 players for the Giants and the other 31 NFL teams to sort through.
Giants rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers was named to the Pro Bowl on Monday.
Nabers, originally the second alternate, replaces the Lions’ Amon-Ra St. Brown, who is injured. Nabers is the first Giants wide receiver to make the Pro Bowl since Odell Beckham Jr. was selected in 2016.
