National Football League

Can Giants find edge help in NFL Draft?

Updated Apr. 26, 2022 6:13 p.m. ET

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When you go 4-13, you obviously have some problems to work on. Such is the case with the New York Giants.

One of those areas of need is clearly adding some juice to their pass rush, as the Giants ranked 22nd in sacks and 29th in quarterback hits last season. 

With the Nos. 5 and 7 picks in the first round of the NFL Draft — which begins on April 28 — the Giants should be able to address that need. And luckily for them, there are a number of options at their disposal, even if Michigan star Aidan Hutchinson, who many prognosticators expect to go No. 1 overall, is off the board by the time they pick.

Oregon's Kayvon Thibodeaux might be a bit undersized at 6-foot-4, 254 pounds, but his quickness could prove tantalizing.

Travon Walker (6'5", 272 pounds), who was a big part of Georgia's stifling defense, could be another interesting possibility.

And then there is Florida State's Jermaine Johnson.

FOX Sports Betting Analyst Jason McIntyre likes Johnson as a fit for the Giants, and in his latest mock draft, predicted they would pick him at No. 7.

"Johnson is in the same boat as Georgia’s Walker — off-the-charts measurables, but the knock here is that he’s already 23 years old," McIntyre wrote. "But the draft isn’t about what you are. It’s about what you can be. Have we seen the best of Johnson, who at 22 years old last season rolled through the ACC? Johnson saw far more double-teams than Walker did, and he produced more: 46 pressures, 14 sacks. Johnson’s Senior Bowl domination really set his path to a potential top-10 pick."

It's not easy predicting how a pass rusher's skill set will translate to the pro game. For example, Pittsburgh's T.J. Watt, who was named the 2021 NFL's Defensive Player of the Year, was picked No. 30 overall in 2017.

"If you start focusing on just the measurables and you try to create something, sometimes you can get yourself in trouble," Atlanta Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot told ESPN at the NFL scouting combine. "I always say the most important part is: Is he winning those 1-on-1 matchups?"

This is the challenge ahead for the Giants and new general manager Joe Schoen. Can they find a difference-maker with one of their first-round picks?

"We have enough needs on the roster to take the best player available," Schoen said recently of the two high picks. "That is how we're going to set [the draft board]. We're going to set it best football player 1-7."

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National Football League

New York Giants

Kayvon Thibodeaux

Aidan Hutchinson

Jermaine Johnson

Jason McIntyre