Grading a draft is, in reality, next to impossible until you've seen the players on the field for at least a couple of seasons.
We are now just a few days past the Giants 2007 draft, and still a week away from rookie minicamp.
Everybody who considers themselves an expert, however, tries to measure who they think had the best draft. Let's take a look back at some of the grades received by Jerry Reese's first draft as GM.
In the interests of getting lots of different perspectives, let's look at how some of these experts graded the Giants draft.
Yahoo! Sports
Cornerback Aaron Ross and wide receiver Steve Smith should both develop into good starting players and give the Giants some much-needed depth at their respective positions. Defensive tackle Jay Alford might have been a reach in the third round. He needs a lot of scheming to get production. The real puzzlement of this draft was waiting four rounds to go after a linebacker, and then using that pick on Zak DeOssie, who could take several years to develop into starting material. The Giants need help at that position now, if not sooner. The Giants also needed to get some depth on the offensive line, and then took tackle Adam Koets, who has been criticized for not working hard enough to take advantage of his skill set. Grade: C
Paul Zimmerman, Sports Illustrated
I like teams that address needs, as you might have gathered. Desperate in the secondary, first pick goes to CB Aaron Ross. OK, not a shut-down type, but how many of us really are, I ask you? Good enough. Better than what they had. Ditto for No. 2 draft, WR Steve Smith, who has been highly productive in big time college competition. Jay Alford is a scrappy DT, Kevin Boss will be a better back-up TE for Jeremy Shockey than what they had, and with Shockey's injury history, it's a necessity. And highly publicized fourth rounder Zak DeOssie is about eight seconds faster in the 40 than his dad, Steve, a loyal old Giant, was, and about eight flips better in the agility drills. Grade: B-
John Czarnicki, FOX Sports
Considering their position in the draft, GM Jerry Reese had a very solid draft in his first at bat. I love Brown linebacker Zak DeOssie in the fourth round. DeOssie should be a great special teams player and he can also long snap, a very underrated talent. Texas cornerback Aaron Ross was the third-rated cornerback in this draft and he was the third corner taken. Ross, who just became a starter in his senior year, can also return punts. USC receiver Steve Smith was a quality pick in the middle of the second round and could end up starting some day. Some teams preferred Smith to Dwayne Jarrett. Penn State DT Jay Alford was a bit of reach in the third round. Arizona safety Michael Johnson was a bargain in the seventh round. Western Oregon TE Kevin Boss has a chance to make the roster with the loss of Visanthe Shiancoe. Grade: B+
Pete Prisco, CBS Sportsline
Best pick: Taking Steve Smith in the second round was a great move. Smith is an underrated receiver who will eventually be a 60-catch player. Questionable move: Third-round pick Jay Alford was a bit of a reach. He's never been a dominant player. Second-day gem: Tight end Kevin Boss, a fifth-round pick, has some nice size and speed. He doesn't need to be a starter, but as a backup he could help. Overall grade: B-. I like the first two picks in Aaron Ross and Smith. The rest wasn't real exciting.
We've already seen a lot of opinion on the draft. Hearing a few more more voices, however, doesn't hurt.