The 2024 NFL Draft is a little over 24 hours away by this point. The New York Giants are owners of the sixth overall selection, and six picks throughout the entire draft. The draft is the most critical point of a team’s offseason, from the first-round selections to the late-round selections that have sometimes resulted in players such as Tom Brady being selected and turning in legendary careers.
The New York Giants have not had the best of luck in the draft process as of late, and these shameful selections are a big part of how the team has slumped to multiple 10-loss seasons in the past decade.
New York Giants Draft Wall Of Shame #1: Kadarius Toney
Kadarius Toney was the final first-round selection Dave Gettleman made as Giants GM in 2021. The 20th pick of that draft via trade after the New York Giants missed on DeVonta Smith, Toney’s college highlights led many to hope that the same level of production could be translated to the NFL field. What occurred instead was Toney mustering all of 41 catches in two seasons in New York before being shipped off to Kansas City during the 2022 season.
Toney has since gone on to win multiple Super Bowls with the Chiefs. But even through all of the success Toney has found, he still has yet to turn heads in a significant fashion despite catching passes from Patrick Mahomes or being coached by Andy Reid. What he’s done instead, however, is continue to mess with Giants fans on Twitter long after he had departed the team.
That is when he hasn’t made substantial errors, like the offsides penalty he drew which negated what would have been a game-winner for the Chiefs in Week 14 of the 2023 season.
New York Giants Draft Wall Of Shame #2: Eli Apple
Much like Toney, Eli Apple has also found his way to a Super Bowl appearance. The former 10th overall pick to the Giants in 2016, however, made history for all the wrong reasons in Super Bowl 56. But before that blunder which cost Cincinnati the Lombardi Trophy, Apple’s earlier career was not very substantial in its own right.
Being drafted in the top 10 of the 2016 draft, Apple only managed one interception in the two and a half seasons he had spent on the New York Giants before being traded away to New Orleans. This trade was ultimately for reasons tied to Apple being described as a “cancer” by those such as Landon Collins.
New York Giants Draft Wall Of Shame #3: Evan Neal
Evan Neal was the result of gaining the pick the Bears sent to the Giants in exchange for drafting Kadarius Toney. The jury remains very much out on whether Neal will find his footing for 2024 and beyond, but through two full seasons of play, Neal has not lived up to his seventh overall selection.
Neal started 13 games in 2022 and for the most part, held up well enough for the Giants to win nine games. But while the Giants’ offensive line struggled mightily in 2023, Neal’s regression in play did not help matters. In just seven games, Neal contributed to the Giants having given up 85 total sacks on the three quarterbacks that started games during the season, then got injured and would miss out on the rest of the campaign.
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