Two-round mock draft by Mel Kiper: Ickey Ekwonu ranked 5th for the New York Giants

ESPN’s Mel Kiper came out with a two-round mock draft on Wednesday. With just 15 days left until the draft, this draft is significant as Kiper admitted it was influenced by what he hears from sources within the league. Let’s see what Kiper did with his three picks for the New York Giants.

Round 1 (No.5) – Ikem Ekwonu, OT, NC State

Kiper says:

With the board shaking like this, the Giants would have to be thrilled to make their pick of the top two offensive tackles. I have Ekwonu just slightly above Evan Neal, but it’s hard to go wrong with either one – they’re my #2 and #3 contenders in this class. Ekwonu answered every question about his pass protection ability last season. If left tackle Andrew Thomas continues to improve, these two could form one of the NFL’s best bookend pairings.

Valentine’s Day View: By now, it should come as no surprise how I feel about this election. This is a home game for the Giants. Interestingly, Kiper chose Ekwonu over Evan Neal from Alabama. I’m fine either way, but I suspect Ekwonu over Neal may be the preferred order in NFL circles based on Ekwonu’s physicality and advantage.

Kiper’s top 4 picks:

Round 1 (No. 7) – Jermaine Johnson, Edge, Florida State

Kiper says:

The Giants can attack in 5th place and then focus on their defense, which allowed 4.7 yards per game last season (31st in the NFL). Johnson had 12 sacks last season and was one of the most impressive prospects at the Senior Bowl in January. He already has a few veteran pass rush moves and can be an instant starter. He also played a lot of fullback for the Seminoles, so he has some versatility in defense at Wink Martindale. And if you keep track, these are four edge rushers in the top 7 picks.

Valentine’s Day View: Kiper gave the Giants their tackle in 5th place. With Gardner, Thibodeaux and Walker knocked off the board in 7th place, it would be an excellent trade down spot for Giants GM Joe Schoen. However, Kiper played it straight and made the choice.

I’d be very tempted to bring Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton here. I don’t care about Hamilton’s 40 times – that’s a guy with the instincts and reactions to play faster than he used to. He would be an excellent addition to the Giants defense.

Still, I prefer picking Johnson to the idea of ​​picking LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. here. I see Stingley’s talent, it’s just too much of a risk for me as he’s recovering from a Lisfranc injury and his best tape of 2019 is. I’m not sure how good Johnson will be as a pass rusher, but he should be a really good player in the NFL for a long time. He would be a nice addition to Leonard Williams.

Round 2 (#36) – Jalen Pitre, S, Baylor

Kiper says:

With that, five safety slipped off the board in the top 36 picks. Pitre excelled against the run last season; According to ESPN Stats & Info, he had 20 running stops, which was the most of any FBS defender. He impressed teams at the Senior Bowl. The Giants could target a wide receiver here depending on how the board falls. The 6-foot-3 George Pickens (Georgia) might make sense.

Valentine’s Day View: I understand Pitre’s selection here, but if it’s one of the Giants, they have a specific role to keep in mind. Pitre is listed as a security, but it’s not really — or at least it was at Baylor. He was a slot cornerback. Chris posted this warning about Pitre on his prospect profile, and it makes me a little squeamish about choosing Pitre:

“…for all his versatility, he probably shouldn’t be used as a midfielder or asked to play in too much man-marking against sporting reception opportunities.”

It kind of makes me think Pitre is Jabrill Peppers. Even with Xavier McKinney on the list, those seem like two roles Wink Martindale would need to play Pitre for at least occasionally.

Kiper mentions Georgia wide receiver George Pickens as a possibility here. That might be a little early for the Giants to be wide receiver, but wide receiver is a long-term need area for the Giants, and I’m high on pickens.

Kiper leaves Washington cornerbacks Kyler Gordon and Auburn’s Roger McCreary on the board here. After missing Gardner in Round 1, I should have her on my mind here.

A few more highlights

Here are some other things to note from Kipers Mock:

• Only two quarterbacks (Malik Willis of Liberty at No. 6 with the Carolina Panthers, Kenny Pickett of Pitt at No. 20 with the Pittsburgh Steelers) went into Round 1.
• Michigan edge defender David Ojabo went to the Detroit Lions as the number 34.
• Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean (No. 18, Philadelphia Eagles) was picked ahead of Utah linebacker Devin Lloyd (No. 21, New England Patriots).
• Montana State linebacker Troy Anderson went to the Atlanta Falcons in 58th place. Neither of the other two inside linebacker crushes at BBV (Leo Chenal of Wisconsin, Chad Muma of Wyoming) were selected in Round 2.