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New York Giants Reach with Eli Apple Pick

By Zac Wassink

Nov 28, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines wide receiver Jehu Chesson (86) can
Nov 28, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines wide receiver Jehu Chesson (86) can /
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The New York Giants stunned many in the National Football League by using the No. 10 pick in the draft on cornerback Eli Apple

The New York Giants spent the early days of free agency bolstering what was a terrible defense in 2015, so maybe nobody should have been shocked that the Giants used the tenth-overall pick of the 2016 National Football League Draft on Ohio State cornerback Eli Apple.

And yet, many were surprised.

Related Story: Revisiting the Giants 2016 Mock Draft

While New York general manager Jerry Reese would never admit it, and rightfully so, logic suggests that the Giants selecting Apple had at least a little to do with what had occurred in the NFL Draft during picks Nos. 1 through 9. Neither defensive end Joey Bosa nor running back Ezekiel Elliot fell out of the top-five. Cornerback Jalen Ramsey, defensive end DeForest Buckner and linebacker Leonard Floyd were all off the board before the Giants were first mentioned at the podium by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

There is no question that the Giants entered this past winter needing help in the pass defense department. No team in the NFL allowed more passing yards per game than the Giants.

With that said, the Giants had already taken steps to rectify this issue in March. New York signed defensive end Olivier Vernon, defensive tackle Damon Harrison and cornerback Janoris Jenkins via free agency.

One could retort that Apple had to have been the highest player on New York’s big board ten picks into the draft. If that is the case, the Giants must know something supposed analysts did not know as of the start of April 28.

Ryan Wilson of CBSSports.com provided the following information on Apple.

"Apple has the size and length that immediately grabs the attention of scouts and coaches, and at 6-1, 200 pounds, not only can he match up with the NFL’s big physical receivers, his 4.40-40 speed means he can keep up with anybody on the field.The knock on Apple — other than the unfounded (and patently ridiculous) report from an anonymous scout (via Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports) that he can’t cook and that’s a red flag — is that he’s not exactly a ball hawk. In fact, you could argue just the oppose. He had a lone interception in 2015 to go along with just seven passes defended, and in 2014 he had three picks and 10 passes defended. That said, according to Pro Football Focus, Apple allowed just 45 percent of targets into his coverage area to be caught last season."

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What has been the best number on Apple’s scouting report throughout this entire process is still relevant as of the end of April: 20. Apple turned 20-years-old last August, meaning that he theoretically could have had an additional two years of college football ahead of him before he was available in a NFL Draft class. With both Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Jenkins on the roster, Apple should have time to sit underneath the figurative learning tree while he develops mentally and physically.

The first concern fans may have about Apple is whether or not he will be able to immediate contribute to the Giants in September, and if he will be a good fit for the defense run by coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. A Top-10 pick of any NFL Draft who also happens to feature at a play-maker position should not, in an ideal situation, be a project or somebody who needs to make that many noteworthy adjustments in order to take the field months after he was drafted.

More questionable than anything about Apple’s style of play is where he was drafted by the Giants. While the previously-mentioned Ramsey was a wish-list dream for the Giants, Apple was not the consensus second-best player at the position. Vernon Hargreaves III out of Florida was taken by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers right after the Giants with pick No. 11. No other CB was selected until the mid-20s.

This leads to the obvious question:

It had been rumored via websites such as WalterFootball.com and also among sports-talk radio personalities that the Giants had, in the week leading up to the NFL Draft, considered attempting to make a trade in order to move down in the first round and pick up additional selections. Had the team been able to relocate to some point between 20-23 in the draft order, the Giants could have stockpiled on picks while also being able to grab Apple.

All of that aside, there is a concern that the Giants shouldn’t have taken Apple or any other cornerback in the first round.

Quarterback Eli Manning isn’t getting any younger. Manning turned 35-years-old last January, and he likely has only a few more years left in the tank. Odell Beckham Jr. is arguably the best wide receiver in the game today, but Manning could still use additional weapons. There is, after all, no guarantee that Victor Cruz will ever play again let alone be the same game-changer that he was before he suffered his serious knee injury in October 2014.

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Josh Doctson, Laquon Treadwell, Will Fuller and Corey Coleman could have all been realistic wide receiver options for the Giants in the first round. Any of them could have helped make for some nightmare match-ups for opposing defenses.

Defense wins championships, teaches the mantra, and the Giants have clearly chosen to embrace that mantra since the start of 2016. Apple is another building-block to what Reese and company will hope to be a championship-foundation.

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