On Thursday, the New York Giants held a private workout for quarterback prospect Shedeur Sanders. It was the final step of an extensive evaluation process that included trips to Colorado practices and games in the fall, dinners and visits with Sanders in the spring, and a large contingent of Giants’ decision makers at the Colorado pro day.
Now, everyone will wait to see if New York will use the third-overall pick to select Sanders. It’s a decision that is as unknown as it was when the pre-draft process first started, and with Sanders being such a polarizing prospect, it remains unclear if the Giants are doing all of this work to select him at three or for a pick later in the first round that would require the Giants trading up to land a second first-round selection.
While that all remains a mystery, one thing is clear: the Cleveland Browns will largely influence New York’s decision. The Browns possess the second-overall pick and they haven’t given any indication they are willing to move out of that spot. That means Cleveland’s decision at two will dramatically effect what the Giants decide at three.
Like New York, the Browns’ plan is still unknown; they’ve been linked to Sanders, Abdul Carter, and Travis Hunter. While anything could happen on draft night, the expectation is Cleveland will ultimately decide between only Hunter and Carter. Depending on who the Browns pick of those two could decide if a Sanders is next off the board to New York.
If Cleveland takes Abdul Carter, the dominant edge defender out of Penn State, to pair with Myles Garrett, the Giants would probably have their pick in for Hunter before Carter snaps his photo with Roger Goodell. Regardless of how much New York might like Sanders, it’d be hard to pass up on the two-way phenom in Hunter, knowing he’d immediately create a dangerous duo with Malik Nabers, while also being a fun piece in an improved secondary that now includes Paulson Adebo and Jevon Holland, in addition to Deonte Banks.
However, if the Browns decide to take Hunter at two, and New York is left deciding between Sanders and Carter, going quarterback over best player available is more likely in this situation with Carter as the best player. The edge defender is undoubtedly an elite prospect, and could be an immediate difference maker, however, the Giants already have Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux, two productive edge defenders both under contract for a few more seasons.
Could Abdul Carter be added to the mix and create a scary defensive front that still has Dexter Lawrence in the middle? Absolutely. But, based on need, the selection might not be as easy as it would be if it was Hunter. Because of that, the Giants could just decide to get their quarterback of the future at No. 3.
So before New York can even make a decision on if it wants to go quarterback or best player available, the Giants must wait for the Browns to decide which player is going to be available.