MIAMI, FL – DECEMBER 29: Kyler Murray #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners reacts after losing to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium on December 29, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
After kicking off a rebuild with the Odell Beckham trade, the New York Giants may be exploring the possibility of drafting Kyler Murray.
The Giants opted to pass on last year’s crop of talented quarterbacks in favor of Saquon Barkley, but they be singing a different tune this year. ESPN’s Jordan Raanan is reporting that the Giants, who are in attendance at Oklahoma’s Pro Day on Wednesday, are planning to meet with Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray.
That meeting, which should include head coach Pat Shurmur and owner Christopher Mara, could be a sign that the Giants think Murray could be their future franchise quarterback. Manning, who has won two Super Bowls for the Giants but has been in decline for several years, is only under contract for 2019.
The fact that the Giants are considering Murray as their potential savior is fascinating since a lot of experts believe all of this year’s college quarterbacks, including Murray, are worse prospects than Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen. Murray appears to have surpassed Dwayne Haskins as the top quarterback on the board and could go as early as No. 1 overall to Arizona.
If the Giants have settled in on Murray as their guy, they would need to hope Arizona doesn’t take him and try trading up in the draft after that. Raiders’ head coach Jon Gruden is reportedly a huge fan of Murray and could take him at No. 4, so the Giants would probably need to go up to No. 3 to ensure they land Murray.
The Giants have the draft capital to do a move like that since they picked up an extra first rounder from the Browns in the Beckham trade, but it would be fascinating to see them try to trade up with the Jets to land their quarterback. The Jets were the biggest beneficiaries of the Giants’ decision to take Barkley a year ago, landing their own franchise quarterback in Darnold with the very next pick.