Brian Daboll breaks silence on Giants striking trade for former top-10 pick
The New York Giants ultimately hit gold when they selected offensive tackle Andrew Thomas in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Although, leading up to draft day, it was Clemson product Isaiah Simmons who many pundits and fans had penciled in to be the pick.
Fast forward three years, and the Giants now roster both players.
On Thursday, the team struck a trade with the Arizona Cardinals to acquire Simmons in exchange for a 2024 seventh-round draft pick, pending a physical.
Simmons' inability to settle in at one position with the Cardinals proved detrimental to his tenure in Arizona. However, the Giants are eager to utilize his versatile skill set in Wink Martindale's defensive system.
A Swiss-Army-Knife defender during his collegiate days, the 6-foot-4, 238-pound Simmons arrives in East Rutherford as a position-less player. The former No. 8 overall pick spent the first three seasons of his professional career labeled a linebacker, collecting 258 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and four interceptions.
This offseason, the Cardinals decided to move Simmons to safety, which is where he began his college career. While the 25-year-old can hold his own in man coverage — namely against tight ends and slot receivers — the overall return for him as a centerfielder and zone defender throughout training camp and preseason was lackluster.
Simmons played predominantly out of the slot in 2022, logging 409 snaps as a nickelback, per Pro Football Focus. Expect him to continue to see snaps from the slot in 2023, where the Giants can take advantage of his sub-4.4 speed as a blitzer. Simmons has flashed the ability to get to the quarterback over his career, tallying 11 quarterback hits and 7.5 sacks in 50 games with the Cardinals. He'll also likely factor into the linebacker rotation next to Bobby Okereke and rotate with Jason Pinnock and Dane Belton at safety opposite Xavier McKinney.
Ultimately, what position the Giants list Simmons at is irrelevant. He'll likely play at all three levels in a hybrid role, a la Landon Collins from a season ago.
More must-reads: