Giants Country

Giants Should Draft This Prospect if Sanders, Ward are Off the Board, Says Radio Host

Draft a quarterback? You'd think so for the Giants, but what if Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward aren't there?

Stephen Lebitsch

Dec 28, 2024; San Antonio, TX, USA; Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) runs with the ball as Brigham Young Cougars cornerback Mory Bamba (4) attempts to make a tackle during the second quarter at Alamodome.
Dec 28, 2024; San Antonio, TX, USA; Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) runs with the ball as Brigham Young Cougars cornerback Mory Bamba (4) attempts to make a tackle during the second quarter at Alamodome. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
In this story:

After the New York Giants fell out of favor with the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft with a late-season win over the Indianapolis Colts, the fate of their dire quarterback search now hangs in the balance this offseason.

Just over three weeks ago, the Giants were on the fast track to securing the No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft with the freedom to select the top quarterback they desired so long as they lost out of the remainder of their two regular season games.

They did not choose to do that for the sake of their pure competitive nature and showing up for head coach Brian Daboll, but the 45-33 shootout victory at home bumped them down a couple of spots to the third pick with all the power of the board wiped clean away from them. 

Now, their chances of landing one of the two major gunslingers, Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward, could depend on where the teams ahead of them—the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns—go in the first two spots. Both teams are potentially interested in restarting their offenses and franchises with one of the two talented quarterbacks.

If both Ward and Sanders are off hte board by the time the Giants go on the clock, that might not be the worst scenario for the quarterback-needy Giants, at least as far as WFAN radio hosts Evan Roberts and former Giants running back Tiki Barber are concerned. 

Both men believe that if Sanders and Ward go first and second in some order, the Giants can walk away with a nice “consolation” pick in Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, widely believed by a growing number of draft analysts to be the top player in the 2025 draft. 

“All I’m saying to you is if the Giants select Travis Hunter at three–and I think if both quarterbacks go and they don’t trade up than that is what they’re going to do–he will be a megastar in this town,” Roberts said.

“His jersey sales will go through the roof, and it’s not like I’m arguing that he’s better than Malik Nabers; this is not a football argument. This is purely a jersey sale, popularity and there will be a buzz all around him.”

Roberts clarified that Hunter’s instant fame and impact on jersey sales should not be the sole reason the Giants should select him. Rather, that is just a part of the equation, with the football acumen Hunter brings to the table being the main factor.

The plausibility of such a scenario where the Giants could select Hunter has certainly grown in the aftermath of the team securing the No. 3 overall pick, their highest draft positioning since they took Andrew Thomas fourth overall in the 2020 draft during former general manager Dave Gettleman’s regime.

While everyone knows the Giants’ biggest need is to find the franchise quarterback of the future, of which Sanders and Ward are believed to be the two best options in this year’s thin pool of college prospects at the position, there is so much uncertainty that lingers around the direction the Titans and Browns take in shoring up the future of their own rosters come the festivities in April. 

The Titans don’t have the strongest situation in their quarterbacks room as they spent most of the 2024 season flip-flopping between Will Levis and Mason Rudolph in a dismal three-win campaign. 

As for the Browns, they are stuck in the mud with veteran Deshaun Watson, whose mega contract signed in 2022 has become a complete disaster in light of his Achilles injury, which their general manager Andrew Berry recently revealed Watson suffered a setback in his recovery. 

It’s more than likely that those two teams ahead of the Giants will snag the two coveted arms and leave the Giants with a big decision to make in the next spot as they whether they want to take a chance on one of the other prospects that will be available or partner with Hunter to provide two major passing threats for the offense next season.

Despite all the losing and ailments that befell the Giants in their 3-14 record, one of the rare positives was discovering the immediate stardom and impact of wide receiver Malik Nabers, who erupted in his rookie stint to a franchise record-setting year of 109 catches for 1,204 yards and seven touchdowns. 

Should the Giants put Hunter into the mix with Nabers and get a temporary grip on the quarterback position via a bridge, there is no doubt it could make New York’s huddle even more dynamic and dangerous than the one they tried to have this season when injuries and poor quarterback play got in their way every Sunday. 

Hunter, a two-time All-American and the Big-12 Defensive Player of the Year for his immense contributions to the defensive side as a cornerback, finished his offensive year with 96 receptions for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns, ranking fourth in Division I football. 

The idea of him and Nabers powering the Giants' aerial attack in 2025 already suggests mirroring the current elite duos in the NFL, such as those seen in Cincinnati and Minnesota., two teams have been in the postseason conversation each year due to having more than one option to crush opposing defenses. It would be incredible to see the Giants, who’ve lacked a multifaceted unit for quite some time. 

“You just look at some of these teams, and even if he is playing on defense also, you need to have two really good wide receivers,” Barber said. 

“The Bengals have them with [Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins], and it’s going to be interesting to see what they do with their receiving corps because you can’t keep both of them. But when those two were good, they were balling, and you see the same thing in Minnesota and Green Bay.

“You need two home run threats at wide receiver, and this isn’t taking away from Wan’Dale Robinson because I love the kid, but you need two big-time threats.”

With so many possibilities at their disposal, the Giants' offseason is shaping up to be interesting as they look to retool their roster and get it back to a level of competence in the upcoming season and beyond. 

The addition of an athlete like Hunter would spur excitement that the New York market hasn’t seen in a long time despite the arrival of Nabers this past fall. In the end, it will not matter if they don’t see a pathway to bringing in the right quarterback who can be the straw that stirs the drink for at least one campaign until the long term is settled. 

Until then, the prospects of Hunter wearing Giants blue have some fanbase members dreaming big, which is fine at this stage of the game.

More Giants Coverage

New York Giants On SI Social Media

Published
Stephen Lebitsch
STEPHEN LEBITSCH

“Stephen Lebitsch is a graduate of Fordham University, Class of 2021, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Communications (with a minor in Sports Journalism) and spent three years as a staff writer for The Fordham Ram. With his education and immense passion for the space, he is looking to transfer his knowledge and talents into a career in the sports media industry. Along with his work for the FanNation network and Giants Country, Stephen’s stops include Minute Media and Talking Points Sports.

Home/Big Blue+