Prince Amukamara was the last first round draft pick to sign, and for the New York Giants it was a piece of good news as many NFL pundits out there have been criticizing their efforts this off season. Of course many NFL draft pundits and New York Giants fans are also criticizing the decision to draft Prince in the first place. Now it all becomes a moot point as Prince has broken his foot, and will need surgery to repair it. In all likelihood it will prematurely end his rookie NFL season.
The Giants secondary had issues last year, and yes they ran a weird scheme with three safeties, with one acting like a linebacker. The plan was, as Amukamara fell to them in the draft, was to use him to push starters Corey Webster and Aaron Ross. Ross has had a collection of physical aliments sideline him, but was on the field for mush of 2010. However, he did not have much of an impact sideline to sideline. So while we could say DB was not among the Giants primary needs in the 2011 draft, they were seeking an upgrade there.
I don’t want to overstate the impact a rookie player can have on a team. However, a guy taken in the upper parts of the first round is expected to come in right away and produce. Amukamara was definitely able to that, but this is football after all and injuries do happen. The Giants off season has been under scrutiny but after a slow start they have rebounded nicely. They have added WR Mark Clayton, and some help along their O line, on top of re-upping with RB Ahmad Bradshaw. All in all it is an ok piece of work.