Giants ‘serious’ about trading down in NFL Draft with QB interest crucial

Never say never when it comes to Dave Gettleman and trading down in an NFL Draft.

Even though he has never, ever done it.

“Well, it’s something I will very seriously entertain,’’ the Giants general manager said Friday on a conference call.

Consider the attention of Giants’ fans piqued.

Gettleman, 69, has presided over seven NFL drafts — five with the Panthers and the past two with the Giants. He has instigated several trades in which he has moved up in the draft to snag the player he wanted. He has never traded down.

If it is to be, this seems to be the year.

The Giants have the No. 4 pick in the first round of the NFL Draft 2020 on Thursday night. Gettleman previously said he is “open for business” as far as making a deal to get out of that spot. If he is serious about taking an offensive tackle early in this draft, he unquestionably can get one of the top prospects if he moves down a few slots. He might be able to move down and still land linebacker Isaiah Simmons, but that would be far riskier.

The key is finding a trade partner. Teams most often trade up, and give up valuable picks, in order to land a quarterback. It is highly debatable if any team will do that for Tua Tagovailoa or Justin Herbert.  Tagovailoa is a supreme talent, but with serious medical concerns and Herbert is most likely not regarded high enough to warrant a move up.

But you never know. Teams have been known to make overreaching moves to get their possible franchise quarterback. Perhaps the Dolphins (No. 5) or Chargers (No. 6) will be so inclined. Or maybe even the Raiders at No. 12, which would put the Giants on the fringe of landing Jedrick Wills, Tristan Wirfs, Mekhi Becton or Andrew Thomas, the top four offensive tackles in this class.

If they can find a match, the Giants could greatly enhance their roster. A deal with the Dolphins would bring back the No. 5-overall pick plus at least two second-round picks. The Colts two years ago sent the third-overall pick to the Jets (who took Sam Darnold) and got back the No. 6 pick, plus three second-round picks.

“If someone calls you up and their [draft pick value] chart doesn’t match yours and they make an offer and you don’t think it’s a good deal, you don’t do it,’’ Gettleman said. “It’s that simple. If both groups are motivated, you’ll come to some kind of conclusion.’’

Given the unprecedented nature of this particular draft, making a deal the night of the first round might be exceedingly difficult, given the technical issues that could arise with all 32 teams working remotely following the coronavirus pandemic protocol.

Gettleman said one week away from the start of the draft is too early to open up trade talks, but he admitted this year, it is wise to try to get at least the framework of a deal done before the teams are on the clock, when the pressure mounts and everyone has to rely on phone calls and their internet connections to hold up.

“I’m gonna make calls and anybody that wants to move up I’m gonna say, ‘Listen, we don’t have much time, we can’t fool around and I’d like to get the parameters of deals in place before we get on the clock,'”  Gettleman said. “That would be the best thing.’’

The NFL will conduct a league-wide mock draft on Monday, which should help clear up any technical glitches that might arise.

“That will be an interesting thing, to see how it works,’’ Gettleman said. “The biggest piece is making sure we, being the Giants, are coordinated in how we’re gonna approach the trade process. We’ll have two veteran guys on it.’’

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In addition to Gettleman, the Giants have assistant GM Kevin Abrams and assistant director of player personnel Tim McDonnell to man the phones and aid in any trade exploration.

Gettleman predicted once the third round hits, and teams have only five minutes between selections, “it’s gonna be tight’’ to trade up or back.

“I think what it’s gonna force everybody to do is do deals before their pick is up,’’ Gettleman said. “Let’s say for the sake of discussion, one team calls another team and says, ‘I want to trade up.’ Go make a deal off the clock and if the guy is there for the team that wants to move up then they’ll consummate the trade. I think a lot of it is gonna be done ahead of time.’’