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Giants
Draft 2003
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Giants 2003
Draft | Rd | Sel
| Player | Pos | Ht | Wt | School |
1 | 25 | Joseph, William | DT | 6-5 | 308 | Miami
(Fla.) | 2 | 56 | Umenyiora,
Osi | DE | 6-3 | 279 | Troy
State | 3 | 91 | Shiancoe,
Vishante | TE | 6-4 | 251 | Morgan
State | 4 | 123 | Babers, Roderick | CB | 5-9 | 192 | Texas |
5 | 160 | Diehl, David | G | 6-6 | 310 | Illinois |
6 | 199 | Ponder, Willie | WR | 6-0 | 205 | Southeast
Missouri State | 6 | 207 | Walker, Frank | CB | 5-11 | 202 | Tuskegee |
6 | 211 | Tyree, David | WR | 6-1 | 197 | Syracuse |
7 | 240 | Drake, Charles | FS | 6-1 | 205 | Michigan |
7 | 249 | Lucier, Wayne | C | 6-4 | 301 | Colorado |
7 | 255 | Walter, Kevin | WR | 6-4 | 221 | Eastern
Michigan | Giants
Draft for 2003 Below is a position by position pre-draft look at what
the Giants needed from Inside Slant. TEAM
NEEDS Defensive tackle/defensive end, offensive tackle, cornerback, tight
end, running back. Draft Articles Below
are articles reposted from the draft days. (Remember, that these links
may not be supported as time passes on.) Apr
28, Special
Report - The draft is done, and while wondering whether it is appropriate
to call William Joseph "Billy Joe" and whether Osi Umenyiora and Vishante Shiancoe
are legitimate players or Scrabble champions, it is possible that the Giants just
completed their best harvesting of players in years. . Fassel looked at the
post-draft gathering of media and said the thing he hadn't thought he'd be able
to say. "We only need a few free agents this year, as opposed to last year when
I felt we needed 15 or more, and you know something else? I can sleep better now.
I am very happy with this draft."Here's
how it went over the two days: Apr
27, - UPDATE: The draft concluded Sunday
with rounds 4-7, as the Giants added eight more selections to Saturday's initial
three picks. In the fourth round, the Giants drafted - Cornerback
Roderick Babers. In the fifth round, the Giants drafted - Offensive
Tackle/Guard David Diehl. In the sixth round, the Giants drafted - Wide
Receiver Willie Ponder. In the sixth round, the Giants drafted - Cornerback
Frank Walker. In the sixth round, the Giants drafted - Wide
Receiver David Tyree. In the seventh round, the Giants drafted - Free
Safety Charles Drake. n the seventh round, the Giants drafted - Center/Guard
Wayne Lucier. n the seventh round, the Giants drafted - Wide
Receiver Kevin Walter. Apr
27, The
Philadelphia Eagles won the first NFC East battle of the season by trading
up to beat the Giants to McDougle. They jumped to 15 from 30 to select the highly
regarded pass rusher by giving the Chargers the second-round pick the Giants refused
to give. "The
Giants were trying to trade up right before the Eagles picked me," McDougle
said on a conference call with reporters in Philadelphia. "What I think is they
weren't trying to trade up high enough. They thought I'd be around. It's a real
bad break for those guys because they missed out on a good player." If
McDougle is a starter and a key contributor, then the loss of Hugh Douglas
will be minimized. The Birds will have sacrificed experience but they will have
gained 10 years' worth of youth. If there is a concern about McDougle, it is that
he is undersized at 265 pounds and might be vulnerable against the run. Then again,
that was supposed to be Douglas' handicap. The
Giants chose McDougle's Miami teammate, defensive tackle William Joseph.
Asked what he brings to the Giants, Joseph, with typical Miami flair, said,
"I can rush the passer, I can play the run and I can play a man. I can do it all."
Coach
Jim Fassel said he would have been disappointed if the Giants did not get
a defensive lineman in the first round. With Hamilton coming off a torn Achilles
tendon, Griffin coming off ankle surgery, and a mish-mash of backups behind them,
an infusion of talent and youth was essential. Said
Accorsi: "Our need is obvious. We wore out up front because of durability
in the San Francisco [playoff loss] and it wasn't just that game. You really need
three tackles and three ends." Starters Michael Strahan, Kenny Holmes, Hamilton,
and Cornelius Griffin are secure, but backups including Lance Legree, Dwight Johnson,
Frank Ferrara, and Matt Mitrione are on the griddle. Expect Joseph to vault ahead
of them. "The perfect-case scenario is for Joseph to come in on a rotational
basis," Fassel said. "He's got to beat the guys we've got, but we think he has
a good chance of doing that." Had Joseph entered the draft last season, he
might have gone higher, but his sack total dropped from 10 in 2001 to five last
year, something the Giants attribute in part to his limited playing time in Miami's
deep front four rotation. Accorsi
in the second round added speedy defensive end Osi Umenyiora. "You can manufacture
offensive linemen, to a point. You can't manufacture pass rushers." Umenyiora,
a speed rusher with an abundance of raw talent, could be a situational pass-rusher
initially. The Giants are confident he has the ability to eventually develop into
a full-time player. "This
guy can fly off the edge and he's not a little guy [6-foot-3, 275]," director
of player personnel Jerry Reese said. "He is a little bit raw, he has a limited
background playing football, but he has played all over the defensive line. He
is the perfect guy for us to reach for." In
the third round, Accorsi said the Giants again would have drafted a defensive
lineman -- except that one of their targets, Morgan State tight end Vishante Shiancoe,
was still available. As tight end Vishante Shiancoe worked his way through
every drill at the NFL combines in February, the Giants' staff stood in amazement.
"He knocked the lights out," general manager Ernie Accorsi said. "He was at the
top levels in everything, and it wasn't just gymnastics. He caught the ball. He
has a lot of talent." The Giants envision Schiancoe, an athletic pass-catcher,
teaming with Shockey in two tight-end sets. But Shiancoe will have to improve
his blocking to match the prowess of Dan Campbell, who signed with the Cowboys
as a free agent. Apr 26,
- UPDATE: The New York Giants selected
Troy State end Osi Umenyiora
with the 56th pick in the NFL draft. They finished the day, selecting Morgan
State tight end Vishante
Shiancoe. Apr 26,
- UPDATE: The Giants made their selection
with the 25th pick and chose Defensive Tackle
William Joseph, who accumulated 19.5 sacks in four years as a Hurricane.
Eighteen
picks into the first round of the NFL draft, the Giants were seriously concerned
they would not get the opportunity to add the impact defensive lineman they coveted.
Nine players who do their work on the defensive front had already been selected,
and six more players would go before the Giants would get their chance to choose.
No more defensive linemen were taken before they were on the clock and they selected
the best defensive tackle remaining, William Joseph of the University of Miami,
who they would have gladly taken earlier in the round had they had the opportunity.
They were able to secure the four-year starter from arguably the nation's
finest collegiate program without budging from their spot at No. 25. They made
Joseph the 10th and last defensive lineman taken in the opening round. Looking
to the other teams in the NFC East, so far it's gone like this: Selection
5 - Dallas: Cornerback Terence
Newman Terence
Newman of Kansas State, once considered the clear No. 1 cornerback prospect
this year, was among the college players visiting the Giants prior to the April
26 NFL draft. Selection 15 - Philadelphia: Defensive End Jerome
McDougle Jerome McDougle is one
of the top pass rushers available in this NFL draft. |
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