Fanpage
Team Giants

Fanpage

Special Report

Sent: 04-17-20

E-GIANTS
Dave Klein was the Giants' beat writer for The Star-Ledger from 1961 to 1995.
He is the author of 26 books and he is one of only three sportswriters to have covered all the Super Bowls. Dave has allowed TEAM GIANTS to reprint some of his articles.

GETTLEMAN INSISTS ANY DECISION WILL BE MADE BY THE TEAM AND NOT ON HIS OWN

By Dave Klein
Giants' general manager Dave Gettleman, complete with his New England accent, conducted a question and answer production Friday with the media, and naturally the subject was next Thursday's first round of the NFL draft.

There were 42 invitees on the line when Gettleman joined, along with Chris Petit, the team's director of college scouting - a position he has held for two years but has 15 years of service to the team.

Gettleman dominated the proceedings, as might be expected, and another absolute certainty was that he wasn't about to give away any secrets. Question: "Do you guys have an idea of who your first-round pick is going to be, even if you don't tell us?
Answer: "We are still discussing that."

The content of the questions seemed to focus on offensive tackles and the possibility of the Giants trading down in the first round. There are teams close to the Giants' fourth overall position in the round, who are desperate for quarterbacks and, at the same time, terrified that the ones fitting of being selected that high will be gone when their turn comes.

Two of them are Miami and the L.A. Chargers, positioned in the fifth and sixth spots, and both of them need a quality quarterback.

If the Giants make such a trade, they will still be able to draft according to their needs (offensive tackle, edge rusher) and get the bonus of additional draft picks for the accommodation.

"I think whatever happens, if anything happens, it will be on draft day," Gettleman said. "I plan to make calls, and if a team wants to move up into our position, we'll discuss terms."

And apparently he'll do so without the various "charts" teams apply to place point values on specific draft choices. "If both sides like the deal, then it's done," he said. "If you are happy with what you paid for a new car, for instance, then what does it matter of somebody else paid less for the same kind of car?"

In terms of whether an offensive tackle will be the Giants' first choice, Gettleman again remained vague. "There are offensive tackles throughout this draft," he said, "and as I said before, we are still discussing how to spend our first-round pick."

Which led, as it should have, to the question of authority. What if, for instance, the coaching staff wanted a tackle and Gettleman decided that at the time, the best choice was a linebacker? Who has the authority to pull the trigger and shut down the discussion?

"It's a New York Giants' decision," he said. "We'll discuss it and we'll all agree on a player."

A safe bet might be to assume Gettleman will make that decision. He is, after all, in charge of all this, and despite other moves that might have brought him criticism, he has had brilliant drafts since joining the Giants.

Anyway, back to the first-round selection. "I'm gonna make calls and anybody who wants to move up, I'll listen," he continued. "Then I'll say hey, we don't have much time, we can't fool around, and I'd like to get the parameters on the deal in place before we get on the clock. That would be the best thing."

He also mentioned that the NFL will conduct a "mock draft" on Monday, because of the new version that will be aired next Thursday. "It's going to be interesting," he said. The biggest piece of this project is to make sure we, the Giants, are coordinated in how we're gonna approach the trade process [on-line in ‘zoom rooms,', and each party being separated]. There will be two veterans [IT guys] on it."

And for this year, that is how the draft will work. The teams are only concerned with the efficiency of the operation.

Mark Koncz, director of player personnel, and Ken Sternfeld, director of pro personnel, will apparently have a larger role in the team's draft this year. Koncz is in his second year with the Giants, having worked under Gettleman when both were in Carolina, while Sternfeld is in his eighth year with the Giants, having spent the previous 21 years with the New England Patriots.

Check out Dave's website at E-GIANTS where you can subscribe to his newsletters which run much more frequently than what is available here.
- Team Giants

NOW - Send a request to davesklein@aol.com for a free week's worth of news!

Previous Articles
Special Report
Sent:03-17-20

Free Agency
Special Report
Sent:02-13-20

Free Agents
Special Report
Sent:01-17-20

Joe Judge - Decisions
Special Report
Sent:01-03-20

Head Coach

Click on the Team Giants logo to be informed of all Giants game previews,
reviews and off season football news.
Fanpage
[BACK to GIANTS]