As the new league year approaches, rumors are gaining suffocating levels of steam, smothering news cycles with breaking updates that something might happen.
Entering the new league year, those rumors have largely surrounded the New York Giants signing veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers and trading up with the Tennessee Titans for Miami Heisman finalist Cam Ward.
That, unsurprisingly, has polarized a fanbase that's hesitant to pay up for a non-elite prospect. Ultimately, Tennessee will be asking for a ransom to move down to No. 3, and it's a price New York may not be willing to pay-especially if it has a competent bridge quarterback already in the building.
Thus, the Giants pick Ward to be the franchise quarterback in this two-round mock draft.
The following was made using Pro Football Network's mock draft simulator.
Round 1, Pick 3: Miami Quarterback Cam Ward
For months, the football world operated under the assumption that New York was locked in on Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders. The biggest hole in that was the upside each passer possesses.
Head coach Brian Daboll was just strapped with Daniel Jones, who lacked the upside to elevate the franchise and was often far worse than his magical 2022 campaign. Without elite physical tools, Jones had to win within structure and failed to do so enough to run a competent offense.
Sanders can certainly be better than Jones, and there's a world in which he's the Giants' next franchise quarterback. But anything less than his median outcome is a future eerily similar to New York's recent past.
Ward comes with plenty of risks, but his arm talent is among the best in the sport, he does his best work out of structure, and he can unlock the vertical elements of Daboll's offense.
This regime might go down, but they'll go down swinging.
Related: Giants GM Reacts to Shedeur's No-Throw at Combine
Round 2, Pick 34: Notre Dame Cornerback Benjamin Morrison
The Giants' biggest hole on defense is likely on the boundary, where first-round corner Deonte Banks struggled in his second season. New York could very well address the spot in free agency, helping Banks find easier assignments, but adding a second high-profile corner would send him to the bench.
Morrison's stock has fallen since he was a projected top-10 pick thanks to a hip injury, but he remains a quality athlete who is strong in off-man and zone coverage. If the Giants are serious about remodeling the secondary, pairing Morrison with a veteran could give him a runway to develop his high-pedigree skill set and make plays on the ball, which New York simply couldn't do in 2024.
New York might miss out on Travis Hunter, but that doesn't have to stop general manager Joe Schoen from adding good athletes at priority positions in April.
Related: Cam Ward Dares Giants Not To Draft Him
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This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 1:24 PM.