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NFL Draft 2011 Second Round: Could Akeem Ayers Fall To 52?

The New York Giants might have hit a home run with their selection of Nebraska cornerback Prince Amukamara Thursday night in Round 1 of the 2011 NFL Draft. Only time will tell just exactly how lucky the Giants were to find Amukamara on the board at No. 19.

What is certain is that the draft continues Friday night (6 p.m. ET, ESPN/NFL Network) with the second and third rounds. What might the Giants do? We have talked about it long enough to know that the middle of the offensive line and linebacker may top the 'need' areas. There are several ways the Giants could go, however, and at this point I am not even going to try and predict how things might turn out.

You guys know I love UCLA linebacker Akeem Ayers for the Giants. Also Penn State center/guard Stefen Wisniewski. There are a lot of players who make sense, and there is no way of telling how things will go. I have seen Round 2 Mock Draft today with Ayers going first to New England, and others with him sliding all the way to the Giants. So, nobody has a clue.

For now, let me list various positions along with 'players of interest' for the Giants -- at least in my mind -- at each spot.

Center

Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State (could also play guard)
Rodney Hudson, Florida State (could also play guard)
Brandon Fusco, Slippery Rock

Guard

Clint Boling, Georgia
Will Rackley, Lehigh
Marcus Cannon, TCU (could also play tackle)

Tackle

Ben Ijalana, Villanova
Orlando Franklin, Miami

Tight End

Kyle Rudolph, Notre Dame
Luke Stocker, Tenessee

Wide Receiver

Randall Cobb, Kentucky
Titus Young, Boise State
Tandon Doss, Indiana
Jerell Jernigan, Troy

Running Back

Mikel LeShoure, Illinois
Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech
Kendall Hunter, Oklahoma State

Defensive Tackle

Jurrell Casey, USC
Terrell McClain, South Florida

Linebacker

Akeem Ayers, UCLA
Bruce Carter, North Carolina
Mason Foster, Washington
Quan Sturdivant, North Carolina
Greg Jones, Michigan State
Martez Wilson, Illinois
Mark Herzlich, Boston College

Safety

Quinton Carter, Oklahoma

Of course, the pick could wind up being none of the above. We will just have to wait a few more hours and find out.