Giants’ perfect 2025 NFL Draft trade

Giants general manager Joe Schoen faces a tough challenge, but he does have options. The biggest question is how high the Giants need to leap to secure Sanders or Dart at the tail end of the first round.

Certainly, they will need to leapfrog the Browns, who sit at No. 33 and have the same designs on a quarterback.

If the Giants hold a similar value between Sanders and Dart, they could stand pat until one or the other is drafted. Once Sanders or Dart came off the board, the Giants would need to jump in and make deal.

It seems unlikely Sanders would get past Pittsburgh at No. 21. And that’s a little too high for the Giants to jump. So their best partner might be the Texans at No. 25. With the Rams sitting at No. 26, that’s a team that might grab Dart.

So here’s what the Giants would need to offer the Texans for pick No. 25. The Giants would send pick Nos. 34, 65 and 154 in exchange for Nos. 25, 89, and 166.

This would likely get the Giants in the door for Dart, assuming the Steelers pulled the trigger on Shedeur Sanders at No. 21.

Giving up 24 spots in a part of the draft that is well-stocked with potential starters won’t make that much of a difference. And the 12-spot drop later shouldn’t be any issue at all.

What does QB Jaxson Dart bring to the table?

Dart is viewed as an NFL starter down the road. He’s 6-foot-2 and 223 pounds who has improved throughout his college career, according to nfl.com.

“Three-year SEC starter who saw improvement in play and production season after season,” Lance Zierlein wrote. “Dart has a stocky build and average physical attributes, but good makeup and intangibles. He’s fairly accurate and rarely overcomplicates things for himself. He won’t strike anyone as a running quarterback, but he can find tough yards on the ground.

“(Dart) can make full-field reads but looks more comfortable grazing from the trough of the simple. He will need to work with better anticipation and decisiveness to win in tight windows as a pro. Teams might see physical and play similarities between Dart and Brock Purdy, but such a pathway for Dart likely requires a balanced, ball-control passing attack that allows him to manage the game instead of driving it.”

It’s not like Dart pulls in rave reviews. But he seems like one of those quarterbacks who can settle into the position over the course of several seasons. He’s unlikely to be a difference-maker as a rookie.

One of his issues is maintaining eye contact down the field, according to nytimes.com.

‘The other key concern is his tendency to prematurely drop his eyes once the pocket gets heated,” Dane Brugler wrote. “However, his athleticism to buy time and scramble for positive yards is an asset.

“Overall, Dart needs time to develop his progression-based reads and anticipation (things he wasn’t asked to regularly do in college), but he is a natural thrower of the football with promising mobility and high-level competitive intangibles. If allowed to develop at his own pace, he offers NFL starting upside in the right situation.”

If the Giants can find a way to combine a stud pass rusher like Carter and still get their quarterback of the future, they would likely consider the 2025 draft a win, regardless of how the later rounds play out.