The Giants’ 2027 draft board looks a little bare after Monday’s J.J. McCarthy deal, and that’s the price of finding a quarterback when you need one.
New York sent a fifth-round pick to Minnesota to land McCarthy, the former No. 10 overall selection, giving the Giants another arm after Jaxson Dart’s season-ending knee injury. McCarthy is only 23, so the move comes with limited risk and at least some hope that there’s more upside waiting to be unlocked.
The downside shows up two years from now. After the trade, the Giants are left with just five picks in the 2027 NFL Draft, and three of their original selections are already gone.
Their missing fourth-rounder is now in Cleveland’s hands after Joe Schoen used it in a deal to move up to No. 74 in the 2026 Draft and take wide receiver Malachi Fields. Their fifth-round pick went to Minnesota in the McCarthy trade, and Miami holds New York’s seventh-rounder from last year’s Darren Waller/un-retirement trade. That leaves the Giants without a selection between the end of Day 2 and the sixth round.
That kind of setup is usually not where a team wants to be, especially one still trying to build out the roster. And it’s worth noting that John Harbaugh has historically preferred to have more picks than average on draft weekend, so it would not be a surprise if the 64-year-old tries to add to the stash over the next couple of months.
For now, the Giants still do have their first three picks in 2027, so the draft isn’t stripped down to nothing. But the class is thin enough that a few current players could become part of the solution if New York decides it needs to restock.
Darius Alexander went from a possible second-year breakout candidate to a healthy scratch. Tyrone Tracy Jr.’s preseason issues have spilled into the regular season and pushed him down a crowded running back depth chart.
Theo Johnson, now in his third year, has not taken off in Harbaugh’s TE-friendly system. Tyler Nubin’s slow start at safety could eventually make Big Blue wonder if a change of scenery helps both sides.
There are also more established names in the mix. Micah McFadden is on a one-year, prove-it deal, and Tremaine Edmunds and Arvell Reese appear set as the starting middle linebacker pairing moving forward. John Michael Schmitz has also struggled enough that Bryan Hudson could end up getting a look at center.
And then there’s Kayvon Thibodeaux. Moving him got a lot tougher after Brian Burns suffered a season-ending ACL injury, but if the Giants’ year goes off the rails before the trade deadline, the possibility of dealing Thibodeaux and recouping something for another high draft pick would be hard to ignore.
What ties that group together is simple: every one of those players was drafted by Schoen before Harbaugh arrived.
So while the Giants still have their top three picks in 2027, the overall picture is far from ideal. Five total selections isn’t much for a roster that still needs work, which means the next few months may decide whether New York can turn some of its old draft classes into future draft capital.
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Jameis Winston is now lined up as the starter, while J.J. McCarthy has been brought in as the backup, giving New York a much firmer short-term plan under center. For Dart, the focus shifts entirely to rehabilitation over the next four to six months, with the organization left to manage the position and monitor how the rookies recovery unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
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The immediate path is obvious enough, with Jones expected to help on kickoff returns, but the more interesting part is what comes next on offense. If he can carve out a real place as a receiver, the Giants could end up with more than a temporary fix in the return game, which is exactly the sort of bonus value teams are always trying to uncover this time of year. [Read more 🡒]
Former Giants Are Already Fueling A Painful Roster Debate
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Cor'Dale Flott, Bobby Okereke and Rakeem Nunez-Roches were also in the mix, adding to the sense that this was more than a collection of passing reunions. It was a quiet but pointed snapshot of how much of the Giants' recent talent pool is still spreading across the league, and why every week seems to invite another round of second-guessing about what stayed in New York and what got away. [Read more 🡒]