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NFL Draft 2021: 5 options for NY Giants with No. 11 pick

By Matt Lombardo

Michigan's Kwity Paye rushes against Indiana's Peyton Ramsey in the first half Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.Kwity Paye
Michigan's Kwity Paye rushes against Indiana's Peyton Ramsey in the first half Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.Kwity Paye /
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For the first time since 2017, the NY Giants will not be picking in the top-10 of the 2021 NFL Draft, but that doesn’t mean general manager Dave Gettleman won’t be able to come away with an elite playmaker.

The NY Giants played meaningful football in December, thanks to the historically pathetic NFC East, but that can’t mask the myriad needs on both sides of this roster, and lack of high-end talent that buttresses championship caliber rosters.

Looking at NY Giants’ biggest needs:

There are few positions on this roster that the Giants can take comfort in are finished products.

On offense, the Giants must add playmakers around Daniel Jones both to set 2021 up as a year to truly and fairly evaluate his potential to become a franchise quarterback, but can’t ignore a glaring hole at offensive tackle and inconsistent guard play.

Defensively, the Giants need to add a dominant linebacker presence inside next to Blake Martinez, but bolstering the pass rush and mining a competent outside cornerback to pair opposite James Bradberry must be top priorities.

Here’s a look at five NFL Draft prospects the NY Giants could potentially target with the No. 11 overall pick who would fill immediate needs:

Kwity Paye – edge rusher, Michigan

If there is one thing the resurgent NY Giants defense missed last season, it was a dominant edge presence.

Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham was often tasked with scheming up pressure with the front-three while dropping the secondary into zone coverage to hide deficiencies at outside cornerback and make up for the lack of a dominant pass rusher.

The GIants’ defense produced 40 sacks, but defensive linemen Leonard Williams and Dalvin Tomlinson combined for 15.5 of them.

That could change with the NY Giants’ first-round pick.

Michigan edge rusher Kwity Paye produced 8.5 sacks, 16.5 tackles for loss and proved that he can be a power rusher either with his hand in the dirt or standing up as an outside linebacker, in his 16 career games in Ann Arbor.

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