Draft question of the day: What is the attraction to drafting Bo Nix?

Our New York Giants ‘Draft Question of the Day’ for today is actually two questions about the same thing. We have a pair of Bo Nix questions to ponder. So, let’s do it.

Ray Kochert asks: I am all worn out about the Giants taking a quarterback in the first two rounds of the draft!

“Bo Nix” in round two has everyone forgetting that we signed Drew Lock to the team. He has started games for Denver and Seattle. Is Bo Nix better than Drew Lock? I’m not so sure.

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Doug Mollin asks: Reading the Kiper/Yates 3-round mock story with the Giants trading up for Nix. And your comment that the “Giants need to come out of this draft with another option at quarterback.”

If Nix’s ceiling is Daniel Jones 2022, would you still draft Nix? Or would you only want a QB with a clearly higher upside than Jones?

On one hand you’d have Daniel Jones (and his contract) plus whatever player we draft.

On the other hand, you’d have Nix on a rookie contract plus money to spend on free agency in 2025 (when we assume DJ would be released).

It’s kind of a zero sum game in the NFL either way but I’d be tempted to stick with the “devil we know” in Jones and use the picks.

Ed says: These questions obviously work together, but I will try to give my thoughts on each individually.

Ray, nobody knows for certain if Nix can be better than Drew Lock. Or Daniel Jones. Here is what we do know.

Jones has been in the NFL for five years. During that time he had a promising stretch as a rookie, but not an overall good rookie season. He had a good 2022 season that got him paid. There is nothing else on his resume to suggest he will ever be a top-tier quarterback. He has one season of quaranteed money left on his contract. He has had two neck injuries and an ACL. The Giants are in a spot where a rookie quarterback should be within reach.

Lock was a second-round pick who failed in his starting opportunity with the Denver Broncos. He lost a competition against Geno Smith with the Seattle Seahawks. He is on his third franchise in six years. The evidence suggests that he might be a good backup or an adequate placeholder, but he isn’t a guy you want to hand the keys to your franchise. He is also on a one-year contract.

So, we know that the Giants face a huge question right now about who their quarterback will be in 2025.

Maybe Nix would be better than Lock. Maybe he would be better than Jones. Maybe he won’t be better than either of them.

Franchises have to sell hope to their fan bases. Nix, or any young quarterback the Giants might draft, offers hope for the future. Selecting Nix would offer a potential answer for the next few years, and if he works out the chance for a few years to build a team with a quarterback on an inexpensive rookie contract.

Doug, I am not a Nix guy. Like I said above, though, it’s about hope. It’s about recognizing that what you have isn’t going to be good enough, and that you have to try something else. If his ceiling is 2022 Jones and you can get that for a lot less money, giving you a chance to add players and build a stronger roster around him, isn’t that a net gain?

We don’t really know what Nix can or will be. There are some who think he will be a career backup. There are others who think he is the most pro-ready quarterback in the class not named Caleb Williams.

I like Daniel Jones. I think 2022 Jones wasn’t a mirage. Under better circumstances, I think he could or should reach Andy Dalton/Ryan Tannehill levels of success. What we know, though, is that the Giants have to at least put themselves in position to be able to try something else.