Daniel Jeremiah ‘Would Not Rule Out’ Giants Trading Up for QB in 2024 NFL Draft

Adam WellsFebruary 23, 2024

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If the New York Giants want to select a quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft, their best path to getting one might involve moving up from the No. 6 pick.

NFL.com draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said in a conference call with reporters ahead of the NFL Scouting Combine he “would not rule that out” when asked about the Giants potentially trading up in the first round.

“I know you’ve got one more year of Daniel Jones before they can kind of get out of that contract, but I think that would be something that would be very much in play,” Jeremiah added.

The Giants are stuck in no-man’s land. Jones’ contract isn’t necessarily impossible to move on from, but it would be devastating to their 2024 cap if they tried to do it this offseason.

New York would take a $47.1 million dead-cap charge if Jones were released as a post-June 1 cut. The club will save $19.4 million if he’s released after next season.

Another problem is picking sixth in this draft leaves the Giants almost certainly out of the mix for the top three quarterbacks. Most mocks are projecting Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels to be the first three players off the board in some order.

This makes it difficult for the Giants because they absolutely need a quarterback, but they have so many roster holes to fill that giving up the draft capital necessary to move up would prevent them from being able to build around a young signal-caller.

The most recent example of a team picking No. 6 overall that traded into the top three was the New York Jets in 2018. They sent that pick plus three second-rounders (two in 2018, one in 2019) to the Indianapolis Colts for the third pick to select Sam Darnold.

The Giants could present that same type of offer to the New England Patriots, who own the third pick, because they gained an extra second-round pick this year from the Seattle Seahawks in the Leonard Williams trade.

It’s a tricky situation because the Giants need a long-term answer at quarterback, but their issues last season were due as much to the lack of talent on the roster as it was because of Jones’ struggles.

The Detroit Lions are an example of a team that built the foundation of their roster through the draft, and it’s worked out well for them. Jared Goff is a better quarterback than Jones, but he’s benefited from playing behind that offensive line, throwing to Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta, and having a dynamic rushing attack with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.