As part of The Post’s preview of the 2022 NFL Draft, we examine what the Giants could do at each position. Today: Defensive Line Next: Edge Rushers.
The former front office, led by Dave Gettleman, loved collecting big bodies on offense, picking Dexter Lawrence in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, trading with the Jets against Leonard Williams, and then becoming one of the league’s highest-paid defensemen close . The same front office also watched Dalvin Tomlinson join the Vikings on a free-hand basis after the 2020 season, and this offseason his able replacement, Austin Johnson, signed a two-year, $14 million deal with the Chargers. To compensate, the Giants signed Justin Ellis, a 350-pound run stopper from the Ravens who is familiar with new defensive coordinator Wink Martindale’s system from their three years together in Baltimore.
Does signing Ellis eliminate Jordan Davis from Georgia as an option in this draft? Probably not. The 341-pound Davis is a premier run stopper and possibly no more than that, making him a defender with a fault or two. He is not considered worthy of a top 7 pick. The Giants might look at Georgia’s Travon Walker as a defender rather than an edge rusher. At 6-foot-5 and 272 pounds, it looks like he was created to play the defensive end in Martindale’s 3-4 front. Taking on a more traditional interior designer on Day 3 of the draft certainly wouldn’t surprise anyone, especially considering Lawrence could be entering the final year of his contract if the Giants don’t exercise his fifth-year option for 2023.