Big Blue View Rules for Draft Success, 2017 edition

With one week to go before the 2017 NFL Draft it is time to revisit, and update, the Big Blue View Rules For Draft Success. These rules were first written several years ago. They have been slightly modified over time, and the examples referenced have changed. Mostly, though, the rules are what I have always considered them to be.

1. Draft 'Value' Over Perceived 'Need'

Truth is, you are never certain what your 'needs' are going to be in any given NFL season. You never know where injuries may strike, or where players already on your roster may under-perform or over-perform expectations.

One thing that is no doubt true when it comes to assessing 'value.' A team's perception of 'value' is impacted by its perception of its 'needs.' Teams undoubtedly set their draft boards based somewhat on perceived needs and fits for their systems. As one former scout told me, that is simply human nature. My point is this. If you believe you need a wide receiver, but there is not one on the board who you believe should be drafted at that stage of the draft, you don't grab a lower-ranked wide receiver. You take a player who, on your board, has a grade that makes him deserving of being picked in that spot. When grades are equal need and scheme fit come into play. At that point, take the player you feel gives you something you don't already have -- the player who fills a need. Trust your evaluation, try to match value and need whenever possible. Value trumps need, but need is the deciding factor when values are equal.

2. Draft For The Long Term

This is really an extension of Rule No. 1. It is great to hit that 'home run' and find a guy who is a star from the moment he walks into training camp. Those players rarely come along. The draft is only partially about the upcoming season. It is mostly about trying to find as many players as you can who will contribute to the success of your football team for several seasons to come.

This is why you take 'value' over 'need.' No one can, with any certainty, tell you what a football team's needs will be in coming seasons. A position that looks stocked one minute can be devastated by injuries the next, or by free agency. You hope, of course, that the best players on the board happen to match areas where you believe you have needs. The draft is unpredictable, however, and available value does not always match perceived needs.

Drafting for the long term also means not being afraid of taking the high-ceiling player you know might take a while to develop.

3. If You Don't Have A Franchise Quarterback, Get One

The NFL is a quarterback-driven league. If you don't have a top-tier one, you cannot have any type of sustained success. If you need a franchise quarterback, think there is one available when it is your turn to draft, and pass on drafting him shame on you.

The flip side of this rule is do not take the quarterback in the first round unless you are absolutely convinced he can be the face of your franchise for the next decade. If you pick the wrong quarterback, you could well be setting your franchise back that long.

The Giants have acknowledged that they need to begin the search for an heir to Eli Manning. They are not yet in “must select a quarterback” mode, which gives them the luxury of targeting a specific quarterback they would really like to have and, should that player end up not being available to them, just moving on and filling other positions.

Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

4. Do Not Take Running Backs In The First Round

Why no first-round running backs? The NFL game no longer revolves around the running back, that's the biggest reason. Offenses revolve around the quarterback, the offensive line and the wide receivers. Running backs share the load, with most teams employing two or three and very few dominating the percentage of rushing attempts for his team. Look at offenses, and most of your running backs play fewer snaps than anyone else.

So, unless you believe the player is an instant superstar or the one missing piece to your offense, where is the value in using a first-round selection on a running back who will be on the field less than any member of your offense except the fullback? Historically, there are always plenty of quality running backs available in the middle of the draft. Take one then, and use your first pick on an impact player who should, eventually, play every snap.

The Giants are a great example. Tiki Barber, Joe Morris, Ahmad Bradshaw, Brandon Jacobs and now Paul Perkins -- were not first-round picks. David Wilson, Ron Dayne, Tyrone Wheatley, George Adams, Rocky Thompson -- were first-round picks.

Denver's Terrell Davis might be the best example. A sixth-round pick in 1995, Davis and the Denver Broncos proved you don't need a first-round running back to be a great running team. Davis gained more than 1,700 yards in 1997 and more than 2000 in 1998. A more current example is Le’Veon Bell of the Pittsburgh Steelers. A second-round pick in 2013, Bell is a two-time Pro Bowler and one-time All-Pro who is perhaps the game’s finest all-around back.

Year after year teams get excellent play from mid- to late-round running backs. Unless you believe the player is a transcendent, franchise-changing talent, the value just isn't there when taking a first-round running back.

There could actually be at least three backs selected in the first round this year — Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook and Christian McCaffrey — so this could be a good year for this rule to be tested. I would actually be fine with the selection of McCaffrey because his pass receiving and return ability make him a weapon, not just a running back.

5. When In Doubt, Draft A Lineman

I don't care how pass-happy the NFL gets or how much the rules change, the game is still won and lost along the front lines. On offense, you have to be able to block for your quarterback and open holes for your running backs. On defense, you have to be able to rush the passer and you have to be stout against the run in the middle. You never want to be caught without enough players who can do those things, so when in doubt draft a lineman. The Giants have learned these lessons the hard way in recent seasons.

You should be able to find quality linemen in the middle to late rounds, especially on the offensive side. David Diehl, a fifth-round pick, was a great example. Rich Seubert was not drafted at all and still had a long, productive career for the Giants. Elite linemen, though, are only available in the very early stages of the draft. This is something the Giants have tried to do in recent years, but they haven't hit on their developmental choices. Bobby Hart, a seventh-round pick in 2015, might change that. The jury, though, is still out on whether Hart will be a good NFL offensive lineman.

My rule? After you get your quarterback, or if you already believe you have him, you build from the inside out. Year after year I advocate for the Giants to select an offensive lineman high in the draft. They did not do that in 2016, and the offensive line remains a need.

6. Trade Down, Not Up

There are very few times when any player is worth trading up for, thus causing a team to mortgage valuable draft picks. You need depth in the NFL, and you can't accumulate it by trading away your draft choices -- which is what you have to do to move up. Generally, it is better to move down and accumulate more draft choices than to move up and wind up with less. Your mistakes hurt less when you have more choices, more chances to get it right. You can take risks on occasion when you have more choices, and -- if the situation is right -- you can actually use some of those 'extra' picks to move up when you feel it is warranted.

When is it OK to move up? If you are moving into the top 10 for a guy you believe is a franchise-changer or the one piece you need to put you over the top and into the Super Bowl, that is OK. Also, if you have accumulated extra picks perhaps then you can use that flexibility to target a player or two in the draft or via trade. This, really, could be called the 'New England Patriots Rule.'

Normally, though, move down instead of moving up.

Jerry Reese has never traded up or down in Round 1 of the 10 drafts he has run as Giants GM. We will have to wait and see if that changes this time around.

7. Don't Ignore Your Strengths

This is purely something I might call the 'New York Giants Rule.' It comes from the Giants consistent belief in adding pass-rushers, especially pass-rushing defensive ends, even when it looks like there is no place for them to play. The idea is that when your team is built around a particular philosophy, the way the Giants defense has traditionally been built around pass-rushing defensive ends, you make sure that you always have enough of those guys. It is why an argument can be that despite having Jason Pierre-Paul and Oliver Vernon the Giants need to add to their stable of quarterback tormentors.