2020 NFL Draft: Giants get Tristan Wirfs in Daniel Jeremiah’s mock draft 3.0

The 2020 NFL Draft is just 16 days away and we still don’t have a great — or even good — read on what the New York Giants plans may be. The prevailing wisdom is that they should take the opportunity to engineer a trade down to maximize the value of the fourth overall pick. But that being said, that trade might not materialize and the Giants will be forced to make use of the fourth pick for themselves.

If so, will they go offense or defense? There are very good cases to be made for the top players on both sides of the ball, and the Giants have enough needs that they almost can’t help but to select a player who will help them. Daniel Jeremiah of the NFL Network released his Mock Draft 3.0 Tuesday morning, and he once again has them reinforcing their offensive line. But this time he has made a potentially significant change in the player selected.

4. New York Giants
Tristan Wirfs, RT, Iowa - Junior

The Giants have needs all over their defense, but I still believe protecting Daniel Jones is the top priority.

Raptor’s Thoughts: The notable thing here is that Jeremiah has moved off of Louisville left tackle Mekhi Becton and over to Wirfs for the Giants. This is likely significant and worth paying attention to for Giants fans, as Jeremiah has Wirfs (13th) ranked fairly far behind Becton (7th) on his latest list of the Top 50 Prospects. Likewise, he has Isaiah Simmons ranked third on his board. Jeremiah has been high on Becton since the start of the draft process and remains higher on him than Wirfs, and not as high as Simmons. The fact that he goes for Wirfs over either could well be informed by some scuttlebutt he is hearing from inside the NFL.

Wirfs has plenty of experience playing right tackle at Iowa and can step in and start right away. He has some technical issues and inconsistencies which need ironing out, but he is a phenomenal athlete with physical tools similar to Trent Williams. Wirfs also has experience on the left side and filled in there when necessary for Iowa. That athleticism and versatility could appeal to the Giants and potentially separate him from the other three tackles in his tier.

The Giants will still have work to do on their line, including finding a starting center. Likewise, drafting an offensive lineman early will put the pressure on to shore up their defense in the remaining rounds. Assuming a trade scenario doesn’t materialize or something unexpected doesn’t happen (like Chase Young falling), the Giants’ decision will likely come down to Wirfs or Isaiah Simmons. From there we’ll have plenty of intrigue as to their moves in rounds two and three.