Power Mock 3.0 – How can the Giants build around Dart?

It’s occasionally strange how things work out.

Thanks to some unforeseen personal circumstances, I was forced to push November’s Power Mock to this week. That, in turn, gave the New York Giants time to lose to the Chicago Bears and fire head coach Brian Daboll. And while rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart is in the concussion protocol, his play against the Bears was simply stellar. I’ve been high on Dart since before he became a Giant. But even so, he’s exceeded my wildest expectations, not only in his play but how quickly he’s playing at this level.

It isn’t perfect by any means, and there’s still a lot that Dart can improve upon, but I’m comfortable calling him the Giants’ Franchise Quarterback. And with a Franchise QB in place, I believe the Giants’ “rebuilding” period is over, and it’s time to build a consistent winner.

That’s what this, and future Power Mocks, will be about.

As always, the Power Mock is our own unique take on a composite Power Rankings, with the goal of using power rankings and the draft as a lens to examine both the Giants and the prospects currently playing in college football.

In order to determine our “draft” order, I averaged the power rankings from ESPN, ESPN’s Football Power Index, NFL.com, The Athletic, The Ringer, Pro Football Focus, FTN, and NFELO.

I then flipped that composite ranking on its head, with the 32nd ranked team getting the first pick, while the 1st ranked team gets the last pick. In the cases where the average rankings are tied, I used the remaining strength of schedule as a tie-breaker.

Power Mock 3.0

1. Tennessee Titans – Reuben Bain Jr. (EDGE, Miami)
2. Cleveland Browns – Fernando Mendoza (QB, Indiana)
3. New Orleans Saints – Dante Moore (QB, Oregon) *Red-shirt Sophomore
4. New York Jets – Ty Simpson (QB, Alabama)
5. Las Vegas Raiders – Arvell Reese (LB/EDGE, Ohio State)
6. New York Giants – Spencer Fano (OT, Utah)
7. Cincinnati Bengals – Caleb Downs (S, Ohio State)
8. Miami Dolphins – Jordyn Tyson (WR, Arizona State)
9. Washington Commanders – T.J. Parker (EDGE, Clemson)
10. Carolina Panthers – Francis Mauigoa (OT, Miami)
11. Arizona Cardinals – Jeremiyah Love (RB, Notre Dame)
12. Atlanta Falcons – Carnell Tate (WR, Ohio State) *Pick owned by the Rams
13. Dallas Cowboys – David Bailey (EDGE, Texas Tech)
14. Minnesota Vikings – Mansoor Delane (CB, LSU)
15. Jacksonville Jaguars – Gennings Dunker (OT, Iowa) *Pick owned by the Browns
16. Chicago Bears – Keldric Faulk (EDGE, Auburn)
17. Pittsburgh Steelers – Jermod McCoy (CB, Tennessee)
18. Houston Texans – Sonny Styles (LB, Ohio State)
19. San Francisco 49ers – Makai Lemon (WR, USC)
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Cashius Howell (EDGE, Texas A&M)
21. Baltimore Ravens – Romello Height (EDGE, Texas Tech)
22. Los Angeles Chargers – Olaivavega Ioane (iOL, Penn State)
23. Green Bay Packers – Avieon Terrell (CB, Clemson) *Pick owned by the Cowboys
24. New England Patriots – Denzel Boston (WR, Washington)
25. Denver Broncos – Kenyon Sadiq (TE, Oregon)
26. Buffalo Bills – Chris Brazzell II (WR, Tennessee)
27. Kansas City Chiefs – Kadyn Proctor (OT, Alabama)
28. Indianapolis Colts – Caleb Banks (iDL, Florida) *Pick owned by the Jets
29. Seattle Seahawks – Colton Hood (CB, Tennessee)
30. Philadelphia Eagles – R. Mason Thomas (EDGE, Oklahoma)
31. Detroit Lions – LT Overton (DL, Alabama)
32. Los Angeles Rams – Caleb Lomu (OT, Utah)

Giants’ pick: Spencer Fano, OT, Utah

This is a pick I keep coming back to, mostly because it’s a pretty safe one.

Offensive tackle isn’t a need for the Giants right now, and it might not be one come draft night either. Andrew Thomas and Jermaine Eluemunor are a solid, dependable bookend for the offensive line, and while Eluemunor is a free agent, he should still be solid for a couple more seasons. The Giants also have Marcus Mbow behind him, and the rookie has shown promise despite a lack of play strength.

Of course, we also don’t know whether Eluemunor will be re-signed this off-season, or whether the Giants’ next head coach will want to take the blocking in another direction. There’s also definite appeal in having two (potentially) elite offensive tackles who can play together for most of a decade. And Fano does have elite upside thanks to great athleticism and a solid technique base.

The Giants will likley have a hole at right guard with Greg Van Roten unlikely to return in 2026, however there doesn’t appear to be an interior lineman worth being drafted in the Top 10 at this point in the process.

It’s also interesting that the Giants valued Evan Neal enough to not “give him away” at the trade deadline. He didn’t play poorly at the position in the preseason despite limited practice time. It’s possible that he could still be in the running for the right guard if he doesn’t leave in free agency.

As for the secondary, I’m not convinced that cornerback or safety is a true need despite the results this year. Paulson Adebo and Jevon Holland played well prior to arriving in New York and were widely considered among the best free agents in their class. Likewise, Tyler Nubin and Dru Phillips were incredibly promising rookies before regressing in 2025. Cor’Dale Flott has played well as a starter and Deonte Banks has flashed high level ability. It’s possible that improved coaching will allow all of the Giants’ young defensive backs to blossom into what they were expected to be before 2025. By the same token, we also don’t know what the next defensive coordinator’s philosophy will be, which makes adding any particular corner difficult.

The Giants other primary need is wide receiver, and I thought very seriously about Jordyn Tyson and Carnell Tate to pair with a returning Malik Nabers. But in this case, I opted for the tackle and hope to try and add to the receiving corps (or linebacker position) in the second round.

I can’t say I regret not having a 3rd round pick this year — having Jaxson Dart is more than worth the trade-off. But not having a third high pick does make addressing needs with likely starters trickier. Extending Eluemunor or Mbow stepping up would make navigating the off-season much easier.

But even so, Dart’s presence means that we can finally feel like the Giants are building towards something and not just on the “rebuilding” hamster wheel.

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