While Dave Gettleman’s three drafts as NY Giants’ general manager have been suspect to say the least, he’s still added talent to the team’s roster. Entering his fourth draft in-charge of the team’s roster later this month, he’ll continue looking for gold while excavating the later rounds.
Gettleman has taken chances on everything in the draft – from players who spent their college years at schools where their football team didn’t exist until 2009, to contributors at big-time programs who fell for some reason or another. It’s fair to say he likes to stray from the status-quo in the draft room.
While it hasn’t always yielded results, some of the players the Giants’ GM took chances on rewarded his faith. He’s been able to add talent to the team’s roster with unheralded players in the draft’s later rounds – something his predecessor failed at.
I examined his worst draft picks earlier this week, so let’s look on the bright side today.
Here are the 3 best Giants’ draft picks of the Dave Gettleman Era:
3) Saquon Barkley, 2018
There’s been a million debates about this pick and millions more will follow – one thing that’s not up for debate is the greatness of former second overall pick, Saquon Barkley.
Drafted over four highly touted quarterback prospects and college stars in Bradley Chubb and Quenton Nelson, taking a running-back at number two was something that many experts frowned upon. It’s been brought up numerous times since – especially with the haul of picks the Miami Dolphins received for the San Francisco 49ers last month.
Nevertheless, what-ifs aside – when Barkley’s been on the field, he’s been the best player on it. The 2018 NFL Rookie of the Year, the running-back proved his worth immediately – rushing 261 times for 1,307 yards and 11 touchdowns, along with catching 91 passes for 721 yards and four touchdowns.
Unfortunately, injuries have dulled Barkley’s early career, but he looks determined to come back better than ever – drawing inspiration from the all-time great comeback story of his idol, Adrian Peterson. Rejoining an improved Giants’ team that should take pressure off of the running-back could unleash him.
Gettleman’s selection of Barkley will always raise strong opinions, but the truth is he’s a generational talent at the forefront of his position. The Giants’ GM said they needed a ‘gold-jacket’ player at number two – his running-back could get there if he stays healthy.