As Giants’ QB future dominates headlines, NY has quietly built formidable, young defense

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Since the day the 2024 season ended, the biggest storyline regarding the New York Giants has been what they were going to do at quarterback.

That’s no surprise, of course. We’ve known it would be the prevailing topic after the team officially ended the Daniel Jones era by granting his release mid-season. The next major milestone in the Giants’ QB saga was the pursuit of Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford. Then there was the Aaron Rodgers free-agent waiting game before finally the Giants signed Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston.

The future at quarterback, both immediate and long-term, has been the dominant narrative for months.

So are we surprised this year’s NFL Draft has mirrored that?

Even though the Giants chose Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter, one of the few elite talents in this draft class, with the No. 3 pick, attention quickly shifted to the quarterback position after the team orchestrated a trade back into the first round to snag Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart. For a fanbase starved for a quarterback pick since Jones’ selection in 2019 — and started for a franchise savior since the end of the Eli Manning era — it’s understandable.

But while everyone is focused on the QB situation, the Giants have somewhat quietly been building a fascinating young defense — and not just during the draft.

Take a look at the depth chart. Beyond quarterback, the offense hasn’t changed much this offseason, with 10 starters from 2024 returning.

But the defense has been infused with exciting young talent. Of course, there is Carter’s addition to what should be a fearsome pash rush headlined by Dexter Lawrence, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux. But remember, the Giants prioritized upgrading their defense in free agency, too. They signed 25-year-old cornerback Paulson Adebo to a three-year, $54 million contract ($38.5 million guaranteed) before adding 25-year-old safety Jevon Holland on a three-year, $45.3 million deal ($30.3 million guaranteed) to a secondary that already included promising safety Tyler Nubin and cornerbacks Dru Phillips and Deonte Banks. They also acquired 27-year-old edge rusher Chauncey Golston on a three-year, $18 million deal, among other smaller moves made to fortify their defense.

And while they did try to make a splash or two on offense beyond QB — they were reportedly in the mix for coveted free-agent guard Will Fries, for example — the Giants have poured most of their significant offseason resources into the defense. That trend continued on Friday. The team had just one pick, No. 65, after trading away Nos. 34 and 99 in the deal for Dart, and they spent it on a defender, selecting defensive tackle Darius Alexander out of Toledo with the opening pick of the third round.

Alexander played six seasons for Toledo and will be 25 years old as a rookie, but he developed gradually and “flashed high-end ability over his final two seasons,” per The Athletic’s draft analyst Dane Brugler. He led the Rockets in pressures created the past two years and finished with 40 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in 12 games during his final season.

The Giants got to know Alexander at the Senior Bowl before hosting him for a pre-draft visit. Then, amid a mini-run on defensive tackles leading up to the Giants’ pick — Shemar Turner went to the Chicago Bears at No. 62 before Omarr Norman-Lott went to the Kansas City Chiefs at No. 63 — the Giants nabbed Alexander.

“Just where we are, we felt we needed to add some youth to the defensive line, and this kid is just under 6-foot-4, 315 pounds, 34-inch arms and freaky athletic,” GM Joe Schoen said Friday night. “When you see him get in a stagger stance, line up as a 3-technique and get up field and use his length, you can really see what this kid would be able to potentially do.”

Alexander primarily played three-technique at Toledo. That feels a natural fit for his potential with the Giants, who’ve been missing a true complement to Lawrence since they traded Leonard Williams to Seattle in 2023. What’s funny about that is that Alexander appears to have some Leonard Williams to his game. Brugler wrote before the draft that Alexander’s “peak plays are reminiscent of Leonard Williams.”

While maybe one day Alexander can deliver those plays more consistently, the good news for the Giants and their rookie DT is that he won’t have to start right away. The Giants have loaded up on veteran defensive linemen lately. Alexander will slot in next to Rakeem Nunez-Roches, Roy Robertson-Harris and Jeremiah Ledbetter and play in a rotation alongside Lawrence.

“I think it’s a great thing,” Alexander said of being paired with Lawrence. “I think the (Giants will) get two guys out there who want to go play hard, play balls to the wall. Just be able to go in there and learn from him and pick up things (that I can) install into my game … is what I’ll be looking for.”

If everything clicks for Alexander, the Giants could have the makings of an absolutely dominant defensive front.

“There’s some versatile pieces in there that can move around, and that can be difficult for offenses,” Schoen said of his fortified front seven.

“We didn’t come into today saying, ‘Hey, we have to have a three-technique, but we went with the board. We went with how we saw it. But it was important. Not just stopping the run but getting after the passer. We talked about identity a little bit (Thursday) with Carter. Again, I like what we’ve done on defense.”

It’s easy to see why.

And while the focus will surely continue to be on New York quarterback’s situation, it might just be this up-and-coming Giants defense that ultimately helps deliver this franchise out of the funk it’s been in the past two years.

(Photo of Abdul Carter and Jaxson Dart: Thomas Salus / Imagn Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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