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The results are in for the New York Giants at No. 36 in the now-concluded Big Blue View Community Mock Draft. Our voters have selected Michigan center Cesar Ruiz for the Giants in Round 2, with 62 percent (1,732) of the 2,797 voters tabbing Ruiz.
Boise State offensive tackle Ezra Cleveland was selected 885 times (32 percent).
Our voters selected Isaiah Simmons with the fourth overall pick, giving the Giants a hybrid defender and a potential starting center with their two picks.
This might not be a surprise, but I don’t like it.
In all honesty, my dislike is still more about the selection of Simmons at No. 4 than Ruiz at 36. I figured Ruiz would be the pick, mocked him to the Giants with this pick on a number of occasions and in the right circumstance could easily support his selection at No. 36.
You know where I’m going with this. The problem with this draft is that for me the bare minimum responsibility for the Giants in this draft is to come away with someone they KNOW can be a starting right tackle in the 2020 season, if not a player who could eventually swing to the left side.
I get the excitement about Simmons. I get that center is a need, too, and that Ruiz is the top center on most draft boards. Both players happen to be good value at the spots where the Giants draft, and both would help the Giants get better. Ruiz, though, can’t block edge rushers.
The problem for me is that the Giants drafted Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley in the first rounds of the last two drafts, and this draft does nothing to address the offensive tackle spot that was — and still appears to be — the biggest issue on offense.
With all of the quality, starting-caliber offensive tackles available in this draft it really is a dereliction of duty in my view if the Giants don’t come away with one. If the Giants have to wait until the 99th pick (near the end of Round 3) or later, the best they are going to end up with is a developmental tackle who should not be counted on to make a significant 2020 contribution.
Maybe they could get lucky. Maybe Nick Gates or Cameron Fleming can do the job at right tackle and a mid-round tackle like Prince Tega Wanogho, Matt Peart, or Saahdiq Charles can be drafted and developed into a 2021 starter. Maybe Ruiz will be a terrific player and will anchor the line for a decade. Maybe Simmons will be an All-Pro.
Maybe. Then again, maybe edge rushers will spend the next couple of years wrecking the careers of Jones and Barkley because the Giants haven’t fixed that problem.
That’s a gamble I would rather not take.
The picks
No. 1 (Cincinnati Bengals) — Joe Burrow, QB, LSU
No. 2 (Washington Redskins) — Chase Young, EDGE, Ohio State
No. 3 (Detroit Lions) — Jeffrey Okudah, CB, Ohio State
No. 4 (New York Giants) — Isaiah Simmons, LB, Clemson
No. 5 (Miami Dolphins) — Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Alabama
No. 6 (LA Chargers) — Justin Herbert, QB, Oregon
No. 7 (Carolina Panthers) — Derrick Brown, DT, Auburn
No. 8 (Arizona Cardinals) — Tristan Wirfs, OT, Iowa
No. 9 (Jacksonville Jaguars) — Jerry Jeudy, WR, Alabama
No. 10 (Cleveland Browns) — Mekhi Becton, OT, Louisville
No. 11 (New York Jets) — Jedrick Wills, OT, Alabama
No. 12 (Las Vegas Raiders) — CeeDee Lamb, WR, Oklahoma
No. 13 (San Francisco 49ers) — Henry Ruggs, WR, Alabama
No. 14 (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) — Andrew Thomas, OT, Georgia
No. 15 (Denver Broncos) — Javon Kinlaw, DT, South Carolina
No. 16 (Atlanta Falcons) — K’Lavon Chaisson, EDGE, LSU
No. 17 (Dallas Cowboys) — C.J. Henderson, CB, Florida
No. 18 (Miami Dolphins) — Josh Jones, OT, Houston
No. 19 (Las Vegas Raiders) — Kenneth Murray, LB, Oklahoma
No. 20 (Jacksonville Jaguars) — Jordan Love QB, Utah State
No. 21 (Philadelphia Eagles) — Justin Jefferson, WR, LSU
No. 22 (Minnesota Vikings) — Kristian Fulton, CB, LSU
No. 23 (New England Patriots) — Zack Baun, LB, Wisconsin
No. 24 (New Orleans Saints) — Jeff Gladney, CB, TCU
No. 25 (Minnesota Vikings) — Yetur Gross-Matos, EDGE, Penn State
No. 26 (Miami Dolphins) — Xavier McKinney, S, Alabama
No. 27 (Seattle Seahawks) — A.J. Epenesa, EDGE, Iowa
No. 28 (Baltimore Ravens) — Patrick Queen, LB, LSU
No. 29 (Tennessee Titans) — Austin Jackson, OT, USC
No. 30 (Green Bay Packers) — Denzel Mims, WR, Baylor
No. 31 (San Francisco 49ers) — A.J. Terrell, CB, Clemson
No. 32 (Kansas City Chiefs) — D’Andre Swift, RB, Georgia
Round 2
No. 33 (Cincinnati Bengals) — Trevon Diggs, CB, Alabama
No. 34 (Indianapolis Colts) — Brandon Aiyuk, WR, Arizona State
No. 35 (Detroit Lions) — Ross Blacklock, DT, TCU
No. 36 (New York Giants) — Cesar Ruiz, C, Michigan