Giants' top 2022 draft picks do little to inspire confidence during season opener

The New York Giants were overmatched in all facets of the game in their humiliating 40-0 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on "Sunday Night Football," to put it kindly.

While it's only one loss in the record books, and there are plenty of other issues to address, the early returns for their top 2022 draft picks are concerning and, ultimately, may hinder the franchise's success in the future.

Last year's draft marked the first for the Giants under their new regime of GM Joe Schoen and HC Brian Daboll. New York made 11 selections, including two within the first seven picks, OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (No. 5) and RT Evan Neal (No. 7). Considering both players were in contention for the first overall pick during the pre-draft process, excitement and expectations were incredibly high.

Although both battled injuries throughout their rookie seasons, Thibodeaux and Neal largely underwhelmed and offered few encouraging signs to suggest they could someday become elite NFL players. 

In 14 games last season, Thibodeaux racked up 49 combined tackles, six for loss, 13 QB hits and four sacks. The former Oregon standout had his moments, namely a key strip-sack he forced and subsequently returned for a touchdown against Washington in Week 15 that helped the Giants inch closer to a playoff berth. Still, Thibodeaux had eight games last season where he failed to record more than three combined tackles, three of which came against division rivals Dallas and Philadelphia. 

Neal, on the other hand, couldn't have had a worse rookie season for a top-10 pick. The 22-year-old was the second-lowest-rated tackle in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus' grading system, after allowing seven sacks and 10 QB hits in 13 games. For comparison, notorious Giants draft bust Ereck Flowers allowed five sacks as a rookie in 2015 despite playing 163 more pass-blocking snaps than Neal did last season.

Coming into this season, New York's second-year men had a clear understanding of what was at stake if they didn't improve and made efforts toward that goal. Neal even hired a personal chef to cut weight and trained with former All-Pro offensive lineman Willie Anderson to fix his technique. Yet the 2022 draft picks' first outing of the season resembled most of their performances from last year.

Thibodeaux was essentially a no-show on Sunday, while Neal's performance mirrored a train wreck you can't help but look at. Thibodeaux recorded four combined tackles but failed to generate a single pressure on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott. Meanwhile, Neal surrendered eight pressures and one sack, a deflating showing that exhibited no signs of improvement after his horrible rookie season.

Of course, the effectiveness of the $160 million man Daniel Jones is undeniably crucial to the 2023 Giants' success, as is the case for All-Pro talents LT Andrew Thomas and DT Dexter Lawrence. However, if Thibodeaux and Neal, who play arguably the most important positions outside of quarterback, don't develop, the team has little chance of taking the next step toward becoming a Super Bowl contender in the coming years.