Giants fan’s viewers’ guide to the 2023 NFL Draft with possible targets at all positions

The Giants have a ton of needs, and they’re picking at the back of all the NFL Draft’s rounds, which creates even more unpredictability and options for GM Joe Schoen.

But there are still plenty of player names and positions connected to the Giants to keep an eye on for all 10 of the Giants’ picks in rounds one through seven.

Here is a Giants fan’s viewer guide on some of the prospects to follow from Thursday through Saturday:

FIRST ROUND: Corner is arguably the biggest need on Brian Daboll’s roster. So if one of the Giants’ “blue” corners — the color of their highest scouting grade — is available at No. 25, there is a good chance he would be the pick. Illinois’ Devon Witherspoon, Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez, Penn State’s Joey Porter Jr. and Maryland’s Deonte Banks are all highly thought of. There’s only one hitch: those top four corners on most experts’ big boards likely will be gone before 25.

So then the question is: do the Giants have any other “blue” CBs worthy of a first-round grade?

The Daily News knows two other corners the Giants like: Michigan’s DJ Turner and South Carolina’s Darius Rush. It’s just that no one has a live feed of Schoen’s horizontal board that measures exactly how the Giants rank them compared to players they like at other positions like Minnesota center John Michael Schmitz and Boston College wideout Zay Flowers (one source said some Giants scouts have been as hot on Flowers’ trail as some Bills scouts were while scouting Central Florida’s Gabe Davis in 2020).

There are other opinions of where Schoen might go. One source said he could easily see the Giants taking Texas RB Bijan Robinson if he’s still there (he’s not expected to be). NBC Sports’ Peter King, the preeminent national NFL columnist, mocked Notre Dame TE Michael Mayer to Big Blue (it’s not impossible). Maybe USC wideout Jordan Addison or TCU wideout Quentin Johnston makes it to their pick and moves the needle.

But my best intel suggests that if those top four CBs, including Banks, go before the Giants pick, Schmitz is a “blue” player on the Giants’ board that fills one of the team’s biggest needs. So if there isn’t a “blue” corner ranked ahead of Schmitz — and while a playmaker like Flowers certainly would make sense — there is a great chance the Gophers’ center could be the pick.

Schoen might actually be able to trade down slightly and still get Schmitz later in the first round. He’d just have to monitor the Seahawks, because if Seattle GM John Schneider trades back from pick No. 20 into the late 20s or early 30s, he is a major threat to pick Schmitz.

[ Giants’ dinner with Gamecocks CB Cam Smith a tip on NFL Draft focus ]

MIDDLE ROUNDS: This is a deep draft for corners, so if the Giants don’t get one in round one, players like Rush, Turner or South Carolina corner Cam Smith could be options in round two. Smith is a possible first round talent that Schoen conceivably could take at 25 instead; he just has some flags that are scaring some clubs away from him in round one. Some league sources wouldn’t put it past Schoen to take a round one chance there or in round two. Mississippi State’s Emmanuel Forbes also is a corner some teams think could go in round one, and Kansas State’s Julius Brents is a long corner who flashed well at the Senior Bowl.

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The Giants have a lot of other needs and players they like, though. At receiver, Cincinnati’s Tyler Scott is a former track star whose name has come up a lot in conversations about possible Giants targets in round two, where they hold pick 57. Ole Miss’ Jonathan Mingo ran a 4.46 40-yard dash at 6-2, 220 pounds. Is he there in round three at pick 89? Schoen could trade up in either of those rounds for a receiver or player he likes.

At center, if Schoen doesn’t pick Schmitz in the first round, Wisconsin’s Joe Tippmann is the next pivot to keep an eye on for the Giants in round two. Ohio State’s Luke Wypler also is a player the Giants have done work on for deeper in the draft.

Schoen’s free agent signing of Rams DT A’Shawn Robinson (at another priority position of need entering the offseason), meanwhile, might free up the GM to not have to draft an interior defensive lineman high up. So if a Big 10 stud like Northwestern’s Adetomiwa Adebawore or Michigan’s Mazi Smith isn’t in the cards in round two, wouldn’t Alabama’s Byron Young be a nice run-stopping addition at pick 128 in the fourth round?

Wouldn’t hate it if the Giants pursued Clemson tackle Jordan McFadden in the fourth round or so to kick him inside to guard and have tackle flex, either, but Schoen has said publicly that he has faith in incumbents like Ben Bredeson and Josh Ezeudu.

At pass rusher, Oregon edge DJ Johnson is a former college teammate of Kayvon Thibodeaux’s who converted from tight end to defense, has major upside and might be available in rounds four or five.

LATER ROUNDS/PRIORITY FREE AGENTS: Iowa corner Riley Moss is a player to keep an eye for the Giants in the fourth and fifth rounds, ideally at one of their two fifth-round selections at either 160 or 172. First-team All-Big 10, team captain, maybe some position versatility to safety. And Moss played 590 special teams snaps for the Hawkeyes. Maybe he could step into the punt protector role vacated by safety Julian Love’s free agent departure, where running back Matt Breida is probably tops on the depth chart for now. With 10 total draft picks, Schoen conceivably could come out of this draft with two or even three defensive backs.

N.C. State inside linebacker Isaiah Moore is another player to watch in the later rounds, maybe at pick 209 in the sixth. Moore is a three-time captain who defends the run well, can play special teams and impressed the Giants at the East-West Shrine game. At quarterback, UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Houston’s Clayton Tune and Penn State’s Sean Clifford are possible late-round or priority free agent targets. Thompson-Robinson’s name is hot in league circles, though. He will probably go earlier. Georgetown receiver and returner Josh Tomas, meanwhile, is an intriguing possible free agent target who would add juice on special teams.