Three 'splash' moves for Giants to make in 2024
After a disappointing 2023 season, the New York Giants need to swing for the fences.
These moves would certainly get the attention of the NFC East.
1. Get the No. 1 pick
Most mock drafts don’t account for trades and many have LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels falling into the Giants’ lap at No. 6, but that’s highly unlikely. If New York wants a franchise quarterback (and they should), they’ll need to move up for him.
NFL.com's Ali Bhanpuri believes it would take at least three first-round picks plus second- and third-round selections to get the No. 1 pick from Chicago. That’s quite a haul, but if USC’s Caleb Williams is as good as they say, it’s a small price to pay.
New York had high hopes for quarterback Daniel Jones, the No. 6 pick in 2019, but after a pair of neck injuries, a torn ACL and four losing seasons, it’s time to move on.
2. Trade for Brandon Aiyuk
New York's passing game ranked 31st in the NFL last season while Aiyuk was the league’s seventh-leading receiver with 1,342 yards for San Francisco.
With just $570K in cap space for 2024, the 49ers will have to move players and ESPN’s Dan Graziano believes Aiyuk could be the first to go.
"Aiyuk would surely be missed, but with all of the massive cap numbers the Niners are projecting for their veterans in 2024 and in future years, at some point they're going to need to move on from some of their stars," Graziano says. "To me, the most likely way this shakes out is Aiyuk ends up getting traded to a team where he's the clear No. 1 wideout and where he can get the extension he wants.”
Aiyuk has one year left on his rookie deal and the Giants have more than $26M in available cap space. If the team can’t trade up for a quarterback, the 49ers wide receiver would make a great consolation prize.
3. Sign D’Andre Swift
Philadelphia’s Pro Bowl running back finished the regular season with 1,049 yards, fifth-most in the NFL. He also stayed relatively healthy, playing 16 games for the first time in his four-year career.
Free agent Saquon Barkley can’t say the same after missing three games in 2023 with a high-ankle sprain. More importantly, after 1,489 total touches and 74 games played, Barkley’s best games could be behind him.
Swift, on the other hand, has been used sparingly with just 788 total touches in the last four years. His 229 carries in 2023 were a career-high, and he still averaged a healthy 4.6 yards per carry.
According to Spotrac, the free agent running back should cost roughly $3M less per year than Barkley and could even help New York’s dismal passing game as a reliable checkdown option for Jones (or Williams).
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