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New York Giants: Grades for all six draft picks

By Henry Buggy

ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 26: Saquon Barkley of Penn State poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being picked #2 overall by the New York Giants during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 26: Saquon Barkley of Penn State poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being picked #2 overall by the New York Giants during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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MOBILE, AL – JANUARY 27: Kyle Lauletta #5 of the South team throws the ball during the second half of the Reese’s Senior Bowl against the the North team at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on January 27, 2018 in Mobile, Alabama. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
MOBILE, AL – JANUARY 27: Kyle Lauletta #5 of the South team throws the ball during the second half of the Reese’s Senior Bowl against the the North team at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on January 27, 2018 in Mobile, Alabama. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

Kyle Lauletta – Grade: B+

Lauletta was unquestionably the biggest surprise of New York’s draft picks.

After electing not to take a quarterback at No. 2 overall, many expected the Giants to focus on their immediate needs. But when the Richmond 6-foot-3, 222-pound quarterback fell to Big Blue in the fourth-round, Gettleman felt the Giants couldn’t afford to miss out on the Senior Bowl’s Most Outstanding Player, via New York’s team website.

"“He was just too good of a value to pass up there. He’s got all the stuff – he’s tough, he’s not shy in the pocket, he’s got pocket presence, patience and feel, which, again, those are instinctive things that you can’t teach. He throws a really nice ball, he’s accurate, he’s got a sense of anticipation and timing and the other part is he’s a runner. He’s got legitimate escape dimensions and we’re really pleased about that. He was just too good of a value there for us. We’re really thrilled to get him there. I really expected him to be long gone.”"

The biggest knock on the FCS quarterback is arm strength, but head coach Pat Shurmur disagrees with the evaluation. Shurmur also doesn’t value arm strength as much as other coaches and general managers.

"“I think there are people that say he doesn’t have enough arm strength. I disagree. I think he’s got all the traits, all the things you’re looking for in a quarterback – he’s tall enough, he’s got good mobility and really arm strength is about fourth on the list.”"

The Giants get a B+ grade for selecting Lauletta with the No. 108 pick. He was projected to come off the board in the third-round. Lauletta was also considered by many draft analysts the seventh best quarterback prospect in this year’s class.

Pro Football Focus listed the Richmond quarterback as the 47th best overall prospect in this year’s draft class. NFL Network’s Mike Mayock ranked him No. 66 on his top 100 prospect rankings.

Lauletta will immediately improve New York’s quarterback room. He has franchise potential at the next level. The competition between him and Davis Webb should only help develop both players, as they learn behind Manning.

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