No Cam, no Shedeur … but McShay solves the QB problem, anyway
There are two quarterbacks most NFL Draft analysts put above the rest in the 2025 draft class — Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders. The quarterback-needy New York Giants have the No. 3 pick, and an automatic risk of having no shot at either of those players in the draft.
Draft analyst Todd McShay solves that Rubik’s Cube for GM Joe Schoen in his second mock draft of this cycle, which is available to subscribers to McShay’s newsletter.
Let’s set the stage.
McShay gives Ward, considered by most at this point to be the likely No. 1 overall pick, to the Tennessee Titans with the first pick. McShay, like others in recent days, says that while there is “nothing concrete coming out of Tennessee” indications are Ward will be a Titan.
The Cleveland Browns take Sanders at No. 2 in McShay’s mock, saying Sanders is a “prototypical [Kevin] Stefanski quarterback.”
That leaves the Giants, who are still scrambling for a veteran quarterback, also scrambling to put a rookie in place as a potential long-term answer.
Here’s what McShay then does for the Giants.
Round 1 (No. 3) — Travis Hunter, WR/CB, Colorado
McShay writes:
Deciding between Hunter and Carter is a great opportunity, but it’s a brutal choice to make. I almost always favor pass rushers over skill-position players. And one could argue that the Giants aren’t as desperate for Hunter’s services as they were just a couple weeks ago, before the team added corner Paulson Adebo and re-signed wideout Darius Slayton. But since Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux are on the roster, I think that the Giants could lean in Hunter’s direction. They would need to make a decision on how to get the most out of him on both sides of the ball, but my guess is that he would play a bigger role on offense here than he would if picked by some other organizations. Brian Daboll still needs a quarterback (stay tuned for later in this mock), but once New York finds its passer, he will have a dangerous corps of targets in Malik Nabers, Slayton, Wan’Dale Robinson, and Hunter. This has the makings of a surprisingly fun offense.
McShay then sends picks 34, 65 and a 2026 third-rounder to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for the 19th overall pick. He does this with it:
Round 1 (No. 19) — Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss
McShay writes:
New York moves up from no. 34 to no. 19 (two spots ahead of Pittsburgh, which could be eyeing a quarterback at no. 21) for Dart. I could see a combo of Russell Wilson and Dart (or even Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough) as the quarterback outcome for GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll. If the Giants make this move, Travis Hunter and Dart would become the long-term building blocks for the G-Men.
While Giants fans may be agitated, to say the least, if Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders are off the board before New York picks at no. 3—making it the second year in a row that New York is unable to land one of the top quarterbacks in the draft—I would argue that this is the better outcome for the team. I don’t think that the gap between Sanders and Dart is as large as many seem to think. More importantly, Dart has the stronger arm and is more mobile, and if you look at Daboll’s track record (including Josh Allen in Buffalo and Jalen Hurts at Alabama), those traits very favorably work with what he asks for from his quarterback.
Valentine’s View
Is this actually a “better outcome” for the Giants than just taking Sanders at No. 3? It probably is. Neither Sanders nor Dart is a slam dunk star quarterback, and there are still those in the draft community who think Dart and not Sanders is QB2. Personally, I have misgivings about Sanders both on the field and what potentially comes with him off of it, despite Mel Kiper’s insistence otherwise.
I like Dart, I think he has everything needed to succeed in the NFL, and I think with an existing relationship with Eli Manning there is a built-in support system for him with the Giants.
Getting Hunter PLUS a quarterback is absolutely a better outcome, even though the price is not picking again until No. 99 in Round 3. It’s worth it.
The question is whether or not you can get Dart at No. 19. Some think Dart could go as early as No. 7 to the New York Jets or No. 9 to the New Orleans Saints. Others think he could still be on the board for the Giants at No. 34.
It’s a dice roll. In my view, if the Giants’ draft played out the way McShay has it here I would take that outcome every time.
