The New York Giants have been linked to selecting a quarterback with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, but, at least one analyst believes general manager Joe Schoen could take a pass on Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy even if he’s still on the board.

In ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr.’s latest post-free agency mock draft, somehow McCarthy is still available. And yet, Schoen and the Giants opt to tab University of Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze and add him into Daniel Jones’ arsenal rather than mine a potential franchise quarterback with the selection.

“This would make back-to-back-to-back quarterbacks at the top of the board,” Kiper Jr. writes. “And then back-to-back-to-back wideouts right after that. That’s how loaded these groups are. The Giants have improved their receiving corps over the past two years — Darius Slayton, Jalin Hyatt and Wan’Dale Robinson are their top three guys right now — but they don’t have a true No. 1 guy who can dominate on the outside. They could add that in Odunze, a touchdown machine in a 6-foot-3 frame.

“There have been rumblings about New York being a team to watch for the quarterbacks, but I just don’t see it. The team is committed to Daniel Jones for at least one more season because of the extension he signed last year, and I think this is too high to take J.J. McCarthy. Are the Giants willing to mortgage their future to try to move into the Patriots’ spot at No. 3? The most likely option might be adding a playmaker for Jones and seeing if he can return to his 2022 form. Then again, if Jones struggles, coach Brian Daboll & Co. might again be drafting around this spot in 2025.”

New York Giants
Michigan Wolverines quarterback J.J. McCarthy (Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports)
Why New York Giants Would Likely Take McCarthy
Despite public claims to the contrary, it would seem that the New York Giants have sights set on a quarterback to turn the page from the Daniel Jones era.

If McCarthy is on the board when the New York Giants are on the clock, it’s difficult to imagine Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll passing on the chance to select their own hand-picked passer.

McCarthy is viewed favorably by talent evaluators inside and outside the league, with some believing he might ultimately wind up being the pick of this year’s loaded quarterback class.

“I think there’s a gap between Caleb [Williams] and the rest of these quarterbacks,” former NFL Executive of The Year Randy Mueller recently told me. “But, you better put J.J. McCarthy in that top group of quarterbacks, because he may have the biggest ceiling of all of them.

“He crushed it in Indy, and he actually crushed it on film, it’s just taking certain people a while to catch up and realize.”

The New York Giants have done extensive pre-draft work on McCarthy, who passed for 2,991 yards with 22 touchdowns to just four interceptions in 2023 while leading the Wolverines to a National Championship.

New York Giants
Rome Odunze has declared for the 2024 NFL Draft:
Credit: Getty Images
What Rome Odunze Would Bring New York Giants
If the New York Giants inexplicably pass on a quarterback and pass up the opportunity to trade back with a quarterback-needy team such as the Vikings to select a wide receiver, Odunze could be a legitimate weapon.

Odunze, 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, caught 92 passes for 1,640 yards and 13 touchdowns, while averaging a whopping 17.8 yards per reception in 2023.

There is little doubt Odunze would elevate and potentially complete the New York Giants’ receiving corps. It’s just difficult to imagine a team in New York’s position passing up the opportunity to select a quarterback in favor of a receiver.

New York Giants
Brian Daboll is the NFL 2022 coach of the year (photo courtesy of bvmsports.com)