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Giants Draft
2003

Giants 2003 Draft
RdSel PlayerPosHtWtSchool
125Joseph, WilliamDT6-5308Miami (Fla.)
256Umenyiora, OsiDE6-3279Troy State
391Shiancoe, VishanteTE6-4251Morgan State
4123Babers, RoderickCB5-9192Texas
5160Diehl, DavidG6-6310Illinois
6199Ponder, WillieWR6-0205Southeast Missouri State
6207Walker, FrankCB5-11202Tuskegee
6211Tyree, DavidWR6-1197Syracuse
7240Drake, CharlesFS6-1205Michigan
7249Lucier, WayneC6-4301Colorado
7255Walter, KevinWR6-4221Eastern 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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