INDIANAPOLIS — New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen heads into the NFL Combine holding the No. 3 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. But during Tuesday’s media availability, it seemed far from certain that the Giants will end up using that pick come April.
“We’re open to everything. Move up, move back, it’s an exciting time of the year.”
The topic of a possible trade came up a number of times, all of which were met with enthusiasm. Schoen made it clear that the Giants are pursuing all possibilities and are in no way married to the idea of picking third.
“We have an idea of three to five players … whatever it may be, in move-back scenarios you can do that,” said Schoen. “We’ll also look at moving up if that’s a possibility. It’s an exciting time for us.”
When asked if he felt a trade up with the Titans or Browns would be available, Schoen was uncertain, but seemed quite interested in pursuing the possibility.
“We haven’t had any of those conversations yet, this week there will be a lot of that going on.”
It’s worth noting that when asked if he planned on talking to Tennessee or Cleveland about a trade, Schoen initially balked and directed his answer to general discussions with other GMs leaguewide. But when he circled back to the talk of a draft trade, moving back appeared to be an afterthought compared to the prospect of obtaining the No. 1 or No. 2 pick.
“I’ll talk to all 31 general managers … it’s not just trades for the draft, it’s any cap casualties they may have, any trade candidates, and sometimes those conversations may come up, like ‘what are you thinking of the draft, if you guys are open to moving back, I’d be willing to talk with you,’” said Schoen. “Or, the other way, like ‘hey if you guys want to come up to No. 3, give me a call we may be open to that.’”
“A lot of those conversations will happen this week.”
The obvious need for New York is at quarterback after playing four different passers last season due to injury woes and failing to field a consistent passing attack. Tommy Devito remains the lone rostered quarterback heading into the offseason.
Schoen expressed a desire to bring in a veteran to bridge the gap, highlighting a mentorship role that seemed to hint at the Giants pursuing a top quarterback early in the draft.
“Even if you get a young quarterback, you’d like to have a vet in the room with him to show him the ropes and how to be a pro,” said Schoen.
The Giants have been repeatedly connected to Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders in recent weeks, with many forecasting Miami quarterback Cam Ward and Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter being selected with the first two picks in the draft. A trade up would seem to signify that New York wants to get their hands on Ward given the $141 million contract the team signed with edge rusher Brian Burns last offseason.
This piece was published in collaboration with The Talk of Troy, a student-led, multi-platform sports and culture program based in Los Angeles that prides itself on leading difficult conversations at the intersection of sports and culture. InfanityTV is the exclusive publisher of TOT’s on-site coverage of the 2025 NFL Combine. Find more of TOT’s content @TheTalkOfTroy on Instagram.
