The Giants and all the other NFL teams can formally speak with up to 60 players this week at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis, cramming the schedule with interviews that serve as far more than a meet-and-greet.
The Giants prefer to spend most of their time with these prospects putting game-film on the board and having the player explain what he is seeing and why he reacted the way he did in the particular action sequences. In a few minutes, the Giants believe they can get an accurate picture of the players’ football acumen. These first impressions are just that, and if the Giants are truly interested in a player, they will be sure in the coming weeks to engage in more extensive meetings and dinners with him well in advance of the NFL Draft.
All players go through medical evaluations, on-field testing at Lucas Oil Stadium and psychological testing. The entire Giants brain trust will be on the scene, with general manager Dave Gettleman and head coach Pat Shurmur meeting with the media Wednesday morning. Here are some of the primary topics they need to address:
For Dave Gettleman
Do you view this potential quarterback pick as one that will define your legacy with the Giants?
This is usually the way it works. George Young selected Phil Simms. Ernie Accorsi fell in love with Eli Manning and made a draft-day trade to get him. Jerry Reese inherited Manning and thus never had to think about taking a quarterback high in the draft. General managers are linked to the players they take in the draft, even more so when that player is a quarterback. For better or worse, that is the way it will go down if Gettleman uses this pick on Manning’s successor.
How committed are you to trigger a complete overhaul of the offensive line?
It is going to be a two-pronged attack, with help arriving first via free agency, where Gettleman is likely to target guard Andrew Norwell, who Gettleman signed as an undrafted player with the Panthers. No offensive line rebuild can be undertaken without adding starting-caliber players in this draft. Will Gettleman toss the best-player-available mantra to the side to ensure he selects one or two offensive linemen in the upper portion of the draft?
Will you be focusing more intently on players with proven production in college, rather than pure athletic ability?
Gettleman told The Post the entire player-evaluation system for the draft has been overhauled in order to “do a better job to improve the evaluation process, to make it more concise, make it more clear as to the types of players we are looking for and we want to draft.’’ The belief is this regime will prioritize what the player has accomplished and what his potential might be based on that work on the field.
For Pat Shurmur
Is there a “Pat Shurmur’’ type of player, and if so, what are those attributes you hope to find in these players and add to your first Giants roster?
As an offshoot of this, it is more likely Shurmur’s hand-picked defensive coordinator, James Bettcher, has certain skill sets he wants to see in his players, particularly the linemen and linebackers on the field when he uses his 3-4 defensive front. Thus, how the Giants view the prospects at those positions will differ from the way they sorted through them in the past.
How much more do you know about Davis Webb now than you did when you were hired?
What Shurmur thinks of Webb could go a long way in determining how motivated the Giants are to take a quarterback with the No. 2 overall pick. By now, Shurmur should have studied Webb’s college tape and his rookie practice tape from this past season. Shurmur also has had the opportunity to chat with Webb and see him around the team facility to get a sense of his work ethic.
Will your interviews with the quarterbacks take on increased meaning, considering you were a quarterbacks coach and will call the plays on offense?
Just as Gettleman will be forever linked to the quarterback if one is taken with the second pick in the draft, so too will Shurmur’s tenure with the Giants be shaped by Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold or whoever else might arrive at that position. Shurmur was the offensive coordinator in St. Louis when the Rams took Sam Bradford with the No. 1 pick in 2010 so he has experience in these matters.