Video: The Draft Matters

Here’s a commercial about the Giants and their drafting skills. The video features Brandon Jacobs, Kevin Boss, Eli Manning, and David Tyree.

Butler set to sign tender

According to Newsday, James Butler is set to sign his $1.47 million tender offer soon. Butler said he didn’t garner much interest as a restricted free agent.

Moss expects big season

Sinorice Moss knows it’s going to be tough to even make the Giants roster after the addition of Mario Manningham, who the Giants drafted last Sunday in the third round of the NFL draft. Moss expects to have a big season with the Giants, according to an Associated Press article.

The wide receiver position is already filled with Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, Steve Smith, and last season’s savior Tyree. Burress, Toomer, and Smith will likely be the first three receivers on the depth chart, while Tyree will make the team mainly for his special teams play.

Although Tyree is a good receiver, I don’t think Coughlin wants to use him much as a receiver. He’s shown he has talent, but he’s never really used much outside of special teams plays.

That leaves Manningham and Moss to battle for the fourth spot.

Moss is entering his third season in the NFL. I don’t want to get anyones hopes up, but it usually takes until the third season for wide receivers to break out. That’s exactly what Moss plans on doing.

“I need to wake some people up,” he said. “That’s what I really need to do. A lot of people know they drafted Sinorice Moss. But it’s like I’ve been on the shelf. I am ready to come out here and shock the world. That’s what I am going to do.”

Giants sign more undrafted free agents

The Giants signed rookie free-agent DT Josh Muse of Louisiana Tech, DT Nate Robinson of Akron, and P Owen Tolson IV of Army.

Muse was named second team all-Western Athletic Conference after recording 47 tackles and 4.5 sacks during his senior season.

Robinson started six out of ten games for Akron after transferring from Rutgers. Robinson was released from Rutgers due to an undisclosed team violation. He finished the season with 26 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, and 2 sacks.

Tolson was one of the only six punters that were invited to the NFL Combine. Tolson also worked as a kicker for the Black Knights, but really excels at punting. Tolson was offered a two year contract.

Giants undrafted free agent signings

So far the Giants have signed the following undrafted free agents:

OL Andrew Bain, Miami
OL Glenn “Digger” Bujnoch, Cincinnati
DE Wallace Gilberry, Alabama
WR D.J. Hall, Alabama
DE Antonio Reynolds, Tennessee
OT Carnell Stewart, LSU
OT Dylan Thiry,Northwestern
S Nehemiah Warrick, Michigan State

Giants nab Andre Woodson and Robert Henderson in sixth

With back-to-back picks in the sixth round, the Giants selected Andre Woodson, the quarterback from Kentucky and Robert Henderson, the defensive end from Southern Mississippi.

Woodson was once thought to be one of the premier quarterbacks in the draft, but many analysts have concerns over his throwing motion and ball delivery. Woodson was once projected to be a first round pick.

Woodson passed for 3,709 yards last season with 40 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Robert Henderson was given 2007 preseason honors by being named All-Conference USA by Athlon Sports (second team) and was also named conference defensive player of the year by Sporting News.

Goff selected in fifth round by Giants

The Giants selected Jonathan Goff, an inside linebacker from Vanderbilt with the 30th pick in the fifth round of the NFL draft.

Here are some of Goff’s strengths, courtesy of Scott Wright’s NFLDraftCountdown.com:

Has nice size and bulk…Good timed speed…Real tough and physical…Strong and powerful…Reliable tackler…Great instincts and awareness…Does a very good job of taking on and shedding blockers…He will hold his own in zone coverage..A hard worker and team leader with top-notch intangibles…Extremely smart with a great football I.Q….Has a ton of experience against elite competition…Really productive.

Giants draft Bryan Kehl

The Giants traded up in the fourth round to select linebacker Bryan Kehl with the 24th pick of the fourth round. This is the second season in a row the Giants have selected a small school linebacker in the fourth round.

Kehl was a senior last season at BYU. In 48 games, Kehl started 26, recorded 205 tackles (108 solo), seven sacks, 20.5 tackles for a loss, two forced fumbles, and recovered three fumbles.

Kehl has a motor with good instincts and a great work ethic.

“Kehl is just a flat-out player. He is one of those guys who is always around the football and is a ball hog and makes a lot of plays,” BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said. “I have talked to some people out there and they tell me one thing about this guy, he is not only an athlete but he has got a mind that is absolutely unreal and football is important to him.”

Manningham is Giants third round pick

With the 32nd pick of the third round and 95th overall pick the Giants selected wide receiver Mario Manningham from Michigan.

Manningham is a small, quick receiver that can be a deep threat for us. He’s athletic, agile and can make defenders miss. The one thing Manningham lacks is strength, due to his small size.

Manningham slipped a bit in the draft and is a steal in the third round. The Giants could use an extra receiver, just in case Amani Toomer starts to slow down due to age.

John Clayton: Giants are day 1 losers

Over at ESPN.com, John Clayton calls ranked the Giants fourth on his list of day one losers at the draft.

4. New York Giants: This may sound strange to list the Giants because they went 8-for-8 in the draft last year and got the player they wanted in the first round: safety Kenny Phillips. But they got greedy on a proposed Jeremy Shockey trade. Saints coach Sean Payton wanted to give them a second-round pick. The Giants wanted more, so there won’t be a Shockey trade. The Giants had five second-round options at tight end, but they took cornerback Terrell Thomas. Sure, those tight end options wouldn’t have been as good as Shockey, but he’s clearly not a happy player. They should have made the trade.

I think this is a horrible analysis by Clayton. Jerry Reese obviously knows what he’s doing. Clayton even starts out by saying it. We got the player we wanted most in Kenny Phillips, but we’re still losers? Wait, Clayton is going to tell us why the Giants are losers. The Giants are day one losers because they didn’t trade their All-Pro tight end for a second round pick! I wouldn’t call the Giants greed at all. They deserved more than what the Saints were offering. Jeremy Shockey is a proven player while you never know what you’re going to get from a draft prospect.

It would’ve been a horrible for decision for the Giants to trade Shockey and then draft a tight end in the second round. We already have Kevin Boss and Michael Matthews. If Shockey was traded Boss would be the starter, while Matthews would be the main blocker. There’s no reason to waste a second rounder and reach on a tight end. The second round pick on cornerback Terrell Thomas is justified because he’s versatile and can replace the aging Sam Madison.