The New York Giants have reportedly been doing quite a bit of due diligence on quarterback Justin Herbert. Ian Rapoport took to Twitter on Monday morning to break the news, also crediting NFL insider Mike Garafolo. For his part, Garafolo said he wasn’t sure what exactly the amount of research the Giants did into Herbert meant.
Herbert is expected to go early in the first round of this week’s NFL draft, and some believe he could be the second quarterback off the board. The Cincinnati Bengals, who have the first overall pick, are expected to select LSU signal-caller Joe Burrow. The Giants have the fourth selection. Most analysts believed the team would be looking to address other positions of need.
Rapoport said sources have told him the Giants have done exhaustive draft prep research on Herbert, including FaceTime meetings with the prospect. Those conversations were with head coach Joe Judge, which is further evidence some are pointing to that the team might be legitimately interested in the quarterback.
Most believed the franchise had its quarterback of the present and future in Daniel Jones. Jones was selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 draft. Not long after the season started, he was anointed the starter and went on to play 13 games last year.
Logan Ulrich of NFL Trade Rumors points out it would be a “massive shock” if the team took Herbert with their first-round pick. He added it’s more likely the team is simply doing due diligence on one of the hottest prospects in the draft. He points out it’s possible the Giants want to know everything they can about the quarterback in case some other team wants to trade up to take him.
Judge and company would then have a better idea of what their asking price for the pick would be. On the other hand, the team’s general manager, Dave Gettleman, has been high on Herbert for several years. He also came on board after Jones was drafted. Ulrich believes there is a chance, however slim, that Gettleman wants his own “quarterback of the future” on the roster.
Ross Tucker, an NFL analyst and former player, had his own take on why the Giants were spending so much time examining Herbert. Tucker tweeted a reply to Rapoport’s original report, saying this kind of investigation is done all the time by the New England Patriots. Tucker says it wasn’t because the Patriots were looking to supplant Tom Brady. Their interest is in knowing the strengths and mental weaknesses of these top prospects for when they eventually play them. He added it is a “free scouting report.”