Darius Alexander Reflects on Journey to Giants

For the first time since the latter stages of the 1964 selections, the Giants turned to the Toledo Rockets for help in the NFL Draft. They drafted defensive tackle and maven of MACtion Darius Alexander with the first pick of the third round (65th overall). It was the Giants' lone Friday selection after welcoming edge Abdul Carter and quarterback Jaxson Dart in the draft’s opening round the night before.

“Darius Alexander, a 3-technique that we did a lot of work on,” said Giants general manager Joe Schoen of the selection. “Just where we are, we felt we needed to add some youth to the defensive line, and this kid is just under 6'4", 315 pounds, 34-inch arms, and freaky athletic.

“He had a really good (Senior Bowl) week, and (defensive line coach) Dre Patterson thinks the world of him. Getting a guy like this that can come in and develop with the depth that we have …. a high ceiling for this player.”

Alexander is among the last of the COVID class—a group of players who received an extra year of eligibility thanks to the pandemic, which has forced most schools to postpone or dial back their programs. So, at 24, he’s a slightly older rookie. But that doesn’t make him any less intriguing for a Giants defensive front that was pushed around a little too often for the organization’s liking.

But the exuberant Alexander is ready to help change that.

"We've got savages on that football team. We've got guys ready to go down there and play balls to the wall and play with their heads on fire," Alexander told reporters. 

Hearing his name called by former Giants defensive standout Jason Sehorn is the current culmination of Alexander's football career, during which even the most static situations have been out of the ordinary: in an era ruled by the transfer portal, the 6-4, 305-lb. Alexander has remained a Rocket for the past six years.

The extended stay was Alexander's way of thanking tenured Toledo coach Jason Candle, whose program was one of the few to show a legitimate interest in his services despite his status as a top-30 prospect in Indiana. Ironically, similar conversations with the Giants' staff placed him on a similar path to the tri-state as a new kind of recruitment began.

"The meeting with (defensive line coach Andre Patterson) and (assistant defensive line coach Bryan Cox) was wonderful," Alexander recalled. 

"I got to go in there and talk to them guys about ball and everything and just what I could do better as a player, and then after the meeting, Coach Dre told me, ‘Hey, if you're still on that board and I can get my hands on you, I'm coming to get you,’ and he came and got me, so I'm excited."