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Shedeur Sanders is tumbling down NFL draft boards according to major Vegas sportsbooks, signaling a significant shift in how teams might approach their top picks. Just last week, Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter was projected to land with Cleveland, but he’s now the heavy favorite for the New York Giants at No. 3. Meanwhile, two-way Colorado star Travis Hunter has emerged as the new favorite for the Browns.
Wait, what? The Giants might pass on a quarterback? That’s shocking considering their current QB room features Jameis Winston and Russell Wilson,two veterans who are clearly stopgap solutions at best.
For a front office walking on eggshells, this potential strategy is baffling.
Wilson and Winston haven’t exactly inspired confidence when games matter most. Sure, Winston breathed some life into a Giants team that hit rock bottom, but the excitement faded quickly. There’s a reason Tampa Bay moved on from the former No. 1 overall pick years ago – those turnover issues never really disappeared.
As for Wilson, his 2024 regular season performance looked solid on paper, but let’s not forget how he crashed and burned down the stretch. His five-game losing streak to close the regular season got overshadowed by Sam Darnold’s collapse, but Wilson’s playoff exit in the first round wasn’t exactly a vote of confidence either.
Giants Playing With Fire If Vegas Odds Reflect Their Draft Strategy
Don’t get me wrong – Abdul Carter would be a monster addition for any defense. The “best player available” strategy has merit. But it wasn’t long ago that the Giants were desperately scrambling to address their quarterback situation, signing Wilson and Winston as insurance policies because they weren’t confident either Sanders or Cam Ward would fall to them.
Here’s the thing though, if Sanders or Ward is sitting there at No. 3, the Giants would be absolutely crazy to look elsewhere. They’d be essentially betting their futures on aging veterans with clear limitations rather than securing their potential franchise quarterback.
Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen couldn’t be on thinner ice right now. Their approach to this draft will likely determine whether they’re still employed in East Rutherford next season. Passing on a quarterback at No. 3 (if one’s available) would be a clear statement that they’re going all-in with their veteran options.
That’s not necessarily a terrible strategy in isolation, plenty of teams have found success with veteran QBs. But when those veterans are Wilson and Winston? That’s putting an awful lot of faith in players who’ve repeatedly shown they’re not the long-term answer.
