Giants Need to Fill Holes
By Sean Perry
The Giants got out of the gate quickly last year only to limp to the finish line as injuries, poor attitude and underwhelming talent cost them games in the second half of the season. The team has been relatively quiet in the off-season and is looking to fill several areas of need in the draft. I expect the Giants to fill holes at these four positions:
Giant’s team needs:
Cornerback: The Giants struggles in the secondary last year cost them a trip to the playoffs. No one player can shoulder all the blame, however, safety was a particularly glaring problem. In my opinion the Giants front office did a commendable job overhauling their safety positions with the addition of Antrelle Rolle in addition to the return of Kenny Phillips from injury. The Giants could use a cornerback in the first round to make their secondary complete, and the addition of a top flight corner could help turn a position of weakness into a position of strength.
Possible Pick: Junior Kareem Jackson from Alabama could be available to the Giants at 15 and would be a good fit in the revamped secondary.
Offensive Line: The offensive linemen were the unsung heroes of the Giants Super Bowl run in 2008 and are not necessarily a problem area for the team right now. With that said, they can’t be counted on to continue delivering elite level play as the memory of that magical run fades. There is some legitimate concern about the lack of depth and age along the O-line and an infusion of fresh blood would not hurt in the long term.
Possible Pick: Mike Iupati from Idaho could be a blue-collar contributor and a tempting choice for the Giants in the first round.
Running Back: With Brandon Jacobs on the downside of his career and Ahmad Bradshaw in and out of prison, it would be nice for the Giants to acquire a quality running back in the early rounds of the draft.
Possible Pick: If CJ Spiller of Clemson falls to the Giants at 15 every Giants fan will be ecstatic and the Giants will take him. If Spiller is scooped up earlier as most expect, look for the Giants to move up in the second round to select Ryan Mathews out of Fresno State.
Linebacker: The Giants linebacker corps faltered before vocal leader Antonio Pierce got hurt and completely fell apart once he was lost for the season. Despite the glaring issues, the team did little to address the weakness at the linebacker in the off-season. The Giants will have to draft at least two linebackers this year and would be wise to get a potential starter for the 2010 season while players of that caliber are still available.
Possible Pick: Ronaldo McClain of Alabama seems like the obvious pick at 15 and when all is said and done, will be the Giants first pick and starting middle linebacker next year.
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Jets Will Look to Upgrade Already Great Defense
By Alex Wolff
Uneasy, nervous, ignorant, pessimistic and downright disturbed. That is how Jets fans typically feel around this time of year. When the rest of the National Football League is anticipating the next great star to come to their team, fans of gang green are wondering how the enigmatic franchise will mess it up...this time.
But this year the Jets are in an unfamiliar spot, and no, I don't mean drafting so late in the 1st round at 29. Methodically, the Jets have filled basically all of the needs that I or anyone else for that matter projected when their season ended. Here's how they've been filled:
Cornerback: Antonio Cromartie comes in to fill the void opposite Revis Island.
Wide Receiver: Braylon Edwards is back and in comes Santonio Holmes, after his four game suspension that is.
Defensive End: Love him or hate him, opposing quarterbacks should be afraid of him, Jason Taylor is the newest Jet.
The Jets return the best offensive line in the game and the best defense. They added Mark Sanchez as the franchise signal caller in last season's draft and have already filled out their roster with high priced and profile free agents, which poses a whole other set of problems for a team that has no crucial position to draft for.
ATTITUDE. Cromartie has fathered a million children by roughly that same number of women in the same number of states. How will his mind ever be on football? Edwards isn't exactly t he most clear headed guy either, in fact I seem to remember him getting booted out of Cleveland, and it wasn't for having bad hands around the football...Taylor's career is known for three things: sacking the QB, deriding Jets fans, and dancing with the stars. Only one of those is football related.
It's that simple, the Jets have a ton of talent, and a ton of personality, making the personalities work together is the single biggest need for the Jets, and I propose they address that on draft day. But how you ask?
"With the 29th selection in the NFL draft, the New York Jets Select... Dr. John F Murray, Palm Beach, FL!"
That's right folks; the Jets should select a noted sport psychologist. It's perfect. He'll follow the team around and deal with all the issues that are sure to arise. From dealing with Bart Scott, Jason Taylor, Rex Ryan, Cromartie, Holmes and so on, this is the perfect solution.
OK OK OK, I get it, you want to know what the Jets will really do. They really are in a unique position, they don't need any one player to fill a need so they can actually pick the best player available.
My best guess is that they will try to fill Free Safety, since they just signed Taylor. If USC's Taylor Mays falls to them, expect the Jets to grab him. An athletic safety from USC, Mays can fill the "void" that was Kerry Rhodes. Mays projects to be more of a project at this point, but he would see significant playing time in year one, and what better way to get it than in a defense that has such a strong secondary.
If Mays is gone, or I'm wrong (I know it seems impossible, but it does happen) expect the Jets to draft a DE. Despite the fact that they signed Taylor, he is more of a short term fix and will play mostly on third downs. This is a need they must address for the future and expect them to do so in the second round if they draft Mays in the first.
Tell me why I'm wrong with comments!
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