On one hand, the Giants have been taking a close look at quarterbacks available at the top of the draft. On the other hand, they’ve just traded their best pass rusher to the Buccaneers, giving them a clear need at that position.
(And, no, I wasn’t deliberately being a wise ass by using “hand” in an item that relates to Jason Pierre-Paul.)
The JPP trade potentially shakes up the top of the draft, putting the Giants potentially in play for North Carolina State pass rusher Bradley Chubb at No. 2. Or, perhaps more realistically, setting up a trade down in order to auction the No. 2 pick for a quarterback-starved team, getting Chubb in a lower spot and adding to the compensation received for Pierre-Paul.
The problem becomes finding a spot to which the Giants could drop while still remaining confident that they’ll land Chubb. No. 5 would be the floor (the Colts surely would take Chubb at No. 6), if the Broncos wanted to move up and snag a quarterback at No. 2 (which seems unlikely). The Browns at No. 4 probably have little interest in getting the first two picks in the draft, unless they become determined to pair a quarterback with someone like running back Saquon Barkley (that also seems unlikely).
Maybe the Jets, who recently jumped from No. 6 to No. 3, would be willing to come up one more spot, if they’re determined to get a quarterback, and if they want to avoid being leapfrogged by a team like the Bills. This would allow the Giants to select Chubb at No. 3; if they’d take him at No. 2 anyway, why not try to do with the Jets what the 49ers did with the Bears a year ago?
However it plays out, the JPP trade makes things a lot murkier, with five more weeks to go until the picks are made.