What is the New York Giants interest in Dwayne Haskins?

The question has been asked and answered many times by New York Giants general manager Dave Gettleman.

Now, some may disagree with the plan, but at least for the 2019 NFL season, Eli Manning remains the New York Giants quarterback. Gettleman has acknowledged that the curtain is coming down on Manning’s final act, and it could be as soon as the conclusion of this season.

What remains up for debate has been and continues to be the succession plan, or more accurately, lack of one. By virtue of the G-Men re-signing journeyman Alex Tanney, we can adequately surmise that last year’s fourth-round draft pick, Kyle Lauletta, is severely trending into the bust category.

As we move into drat time, the central theme, fairly or unfairly, has centered around the need to draft a quarterback. This belief comes despite the need for serious reinforcements on the defensive side of the ball.

Keep in mind that the Giants don’t control their own destiny, and regardless of where pundits put signal-callers in their mock drafts, they always seem to float into elite pick status. Six of the past 10 top overall draft picks have been quarterbacks, with another four of 10 going No. 2 overall.

So exactly half of the top 2 draft selections over the past decade have been quarterbacks, and don’t expect that to change this year.

Where there’s smoke

All indications are that the Arizona Cardinals are going to select Kyler Murray (Oklahoma) No. 1 overall in April. That seems fairly evident, despite the fact that many draftniks consider Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins the best QB prospect.

The New York Giants have two first-round selections (No. 6 and No. 17), and if Murray goes No. 1, then the likelihood of Haskins still hanging around at No. 6 diminishes greatly.

Keep in mind that the likelihood diminishes, and doesn’t completely evaporate. Much has been made of the New York Giants presence at Ohio State’s pro day, and it was certainly significant.

In fact, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported that New York Giants brass even had dinner with Haskins in advance of his pro day.

For jaded fans out there, this activity doesn’t represent subterfuge for the New York Giants. Of course, there’s gamesmanship when it comes to being coy about who you’re going to select, but not at this level. There is and should be genuine interest in Haskins. Whether or not that manifests itself into Big Blue drafting him will be an open question until the draft plays out.

Still, no doubt that the interest is real.

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Keep in mind that if teams fall over each other in favor of the elite defensive talent available in this draft, then Haskins could fall to No. 6. Otherwise, it would be a clear upset if Gettleman tried to move up to grab the former Buckeye because assets are at a premium for the G-Men.

Never say never, though.

Perhaps, we’re not used to this display of due diligence in these parts because the previous administration seemingly didn’t find value in doing their homework on players.

Still, take what happened in Columbus with a grain of salt, only because the draft is a dynamic event.

Regardless of what the opinions are about the decisions that are being made upstairs at 1925 Giants Drive, these activities show this administration appears infinitely more engaged than the previous one.

That’s only one part of the equation, though.

The second part has to do with selecting legitimate NFL prospects, worthy of the No. 6 and No. 17 draft positions. That wasn’t the case with tackle Ereck Flowers or cornerback Eli Apple, and may not be the case with tight end Evan Engram.

If the New York Giants pull the trigger on drafting Dwayne Haskins at No. 6, they will have to be completely sold on him as a prospect and as a person. It’s not only a huge investment at the quarterback position, keep in mind that Big Blue will be bypassing an elite defensive player that could help a unit that really needs an upgrade in personnel.