Despite the ongoing issues with the lockout and whether there will be a season in 2011, the NFL draft went as scheduled last weekend, and even though the New York Jets take most of the attention because of their fanbase, the Giants were the ones who emerged as the Big Apple winners, especially on the defensive side of the ball.
The Giants really bolstered their secondary when cornerback Prince Amukamara was available with the No.19 pick, and they’re going to work him into the team as a number of their defensive backs are getting up there in age, such as Deon Grant (32) and Corey Webster (29). Those making NFL football picks found BetUs know that the league is turning into a quarterback-driven league with rules to make passing games more powerful, so you can never have enough good defensive backs. Then in the second round, the Giants picked North Carolina defensive tackle Marvin Austin, who dropped because of a suspension that caused him to miss all of last season. There is no doubting Austin’s talent as he was named to the Freshman All-American team in 2007, but the suspension threw up some red flags.
The later rounds were also good to the Giants as they took Michigan State linebacker Greg Jones in the sixth round with the 185th pick, and then 13 picks later, they went back to the Big Ten to select defensive back Tyler Sash from Iowa. Jones was All-Big Ten three years in a row and a Freshman All-American at one point, while Sash is a ballhawk who had 13 picks in three years. Both are extremely good value picks and it shows that the Giants were definitely doing their homework.
It also shows that the Giants have been paying attention to the way the game has gone. Look at their division in the NFC East, where they have to face Dallas (Tony Romo) and Philadelphia (Michael Vick), and then you have the defending Super Bowl champs from Green Bay (Aaron Rodgers) and the previous winners from New Orleans (Drew Brees), among others. Look for the New York defense to continue to be one of the best in the NFL for years to come.
