5 star players the NY Giants could have drafted in the past 5 years

Hindsight is always 20/20, especially when it comes to the NFL Draft. One wrong pick could set a franchise back at least five years, while the right move can set a team up for a while. For the NY Giants, they've had a good mix of this in the past five years.

The end of the David Gettleman era definitely saw some struggles, while the Joe Schoen era couldn’t be off to a better start. Despite the difference in approval ratings with these two from Giants Nation, there are some big names both of them missed out on:

5. Antoine Winfield Jr. in 2020

Antoine Winfield Jr. felt like one of those guys who had been in the league for at least half a decade when he was a rookie. In just three years in the league, he already has a resume that a lot of veterans in the league would love to have. He was named to the PFWS All-Rookie team in 2020, earned his first Pro Bowl berth in 2021 and helped Tom Brady win his seventh Super Bowl.

The accolades speak for themselves, but if you look at his box score numbers, well, those are pretty good too. With four interceptions, 15 passes deflected, nine sacks and five forced fumbles, Winfield has established himself as a top safety in the league. This is also a position the Giants have struggled to find consistency with in the past half decade.

The downside to this revisionist history is who he would have been taken over. Xavier McKinney would no longer be a Giant and that is a bummer to even think about. But, numbers never lie. Winfield has better all around numbers and is a more complete safety when you look at the individual play.

In an alternate reality, it's Winfield anchoring the Giants safety unit, but McKinney isn't such a bad consolation prize in that regard. Also, the Giants technically could have drafted Jalen Hurts over McKinney, but as a "Daniel Jones is good" supporter, I simply wasn't going to let that happen.