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At Draft Table, Reese Is A Peak Performer

by John Fennelly on April 18th, 2010 at 6:37 am

The most valuable GMs are the ones that do their best work after the glitz of Round One is over.

Giants’ GM Jerry Reese is a superstar among NFL executives.  Since Reese took over as the Giants’ head man in 2007, his first-round picks have been impressive but his later round selections have been better.

In 2007, all eight players selected by Reese in the draft played a role in the championship season.  Since Reese took the reins from Ernie Accorsi that season, the Giants have drafted 24 players, 20 of whom are on their current 53-man roster.

Reese’s tenure as the Giants’ key draft executive actually dates back to 2003 when he was elevated to Director of Player Personnel.  If you examine the team’s year-by-year draft performance dating back to then, it is as good- if not better – than any in the NFL.

2003 – The top selection was DT William Joseph from Miami.  He did not pan out as Giant, but is still in the league on the Oakland Raiders’ roster.  Others taken that year: DE Osi Umenyiora, TE Visanthe Shiancoe, OL David Diehl, CB Frank Walker and WRs David Tyree and Kevin Walter.  Not bad, huh?

2004 – The Giants drafted 4th overall and selected QB Philip Rivers from North Carolina State.  They quickly traded Rivers and a package of draft picks to San Diego for QB Eli Manning, who was taken first overall by the Chargers. The Giants took three other players of note in this draft: OL Chris Snee, S Gibril Wilson and LB Reggie Torbor, but it will always be remembered by the blockbuster trade for Eli.

2005 – The Giants only had four selections, having traded their first and fifth-rounders as part of the Eli deal.  They made them count though, selecting CB Corey Webster, DE Justin Tuck and RB Brandon Jacobs. Can’t argue with any of those.

2006 – The club selected six players in the first five rounds. Five are still Giants: DE Mathais Kiwanuka, WR Sinorice Moss, LB Gerris Wilkinson, DT Barry Cofield and OT Guy Whimper.  The sixth, DB Charlie Peprah, is an Atlanta Falcon these days.

2007 – Reese’s debut as GM was a smash. All eight players made the club and contributed as rookies. They are all still here, too: CB Aaron Ross, WR Steve Smith, DT Jay Alford, LB Zak DeOssie, TE Kevin Boss, S Michael Johnson, OL Adam Koets and RB Ahmad Bradshaw. Incredible.

2008 – Reese needed help in his secondary and made Miami safety Kenny Philips his top choice. Phillips’ saga is well-documented, but no one ever has denied his talent and ability.  The team’s next four selections are all beginning to come into their own as pros: CB Terrell Thomas, WR Mario Manningham and LBs Bryan Kehl and Jonathan Goff.

2009 – Looking for a playmaker at the WR spot, Reese found a gem in Hakeem Nicks of North Carolina at #29 overall.  After Nicks, the Giants selected eight players, six of whom they have kept and expect big things from: LB Clint Sintim, OT Will Beatty, WR Ramses Barden, TE Travis Beckum, RB Andre Brown and QB Rhett Bomar.

This year, Reese has all seven of his selections, three in the first 76. There is also swirling rumors of trades involving several players, most notably Umenyiora.  Expect big things from the Giants next weekend.

It’s not asking too much considering their recent past performance at the draft table.

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About John Fennelly

Managing Editor of SNY.tv's Giants Football Blog - the ultimate destination for New York Giants' news, opinion and entertainment. View all posts by John Fennelly →
  • Steal Home Jose!

    I don’t remember the last time i’ve been this excited for the draft. Perhaps there is an inverse relationship between excitement and the previous years Giants record?

    Who is it gonna be?

    McClain, Haden, Iupati, Pouncey? Maybe CJ Spiller? ….one more week.

  • http://www.profootballnyc.com John Fennelly

    Unless several tams make grave errors, McClain, Haden and Spiller should not make it out of the top 12…which means the Giants’ chances of getting one of them are not very good.

    They have all of their picks and they seem to make good selections on Day Two, so they will come away with some people that can help them….

    • BigJohn

      I agree John this years draft is so deep that I believe in a few years we will be looking at the players we got in rounds 2-7 to determine whether or not it was a success or not. We all know we are going get a talented player with the 15th selection, however, I am excited to see who we get in the later rounds since there will be so much talent still available.

      I feel the teams that are always competitive in the NFL are the ones who get value in the later rounds. If there was any doubt that this draft had a lot of talent just look at Bill Belichick and his stockpiling of second round selections this year.

      I know I may be in the majority but I am very excited for this draft in prime time. I cannot wait to sit down with good friends, good food, and good beer to watch the first round this year. 5 More Days!!!!

  • BigJohn

    BTW fantastic article…I love stuff like this…. Will GFB be doing a live draft blog/chat for the night to discuss the players we draft when we draft them?

    • http://www.profootballnyc.com John Fennelly

      Yes, yours truly will be reporting/blogging/tweeting live from the floor ar Rdios City this year as part of SNY’s expanded draft coverage

      JF

      • BigJohn

        Fantastic!! Cannot wait for what I am sure will be a very interesting and compelling draft weekend.

  • igs

    Now let’s take a look at the glass half-empty approach:

    2003 – The Giants have only retained David Deihl and Osi Umenyora from this draft. They are contributing heavily, yet the Giants are strongly considering moving Osi, who is the emotional center of this team.

    2004 – One of the worst draft day trades in history. Don’t get my wrong. I love Eli manning. I know you guys will think this is sacrilegious, but hae never seen a team give up so much to not have to draft a Qb the calibre of Ben Rothlisberger. Big Ben was the best Qb athlete in this draft, had the biggest arm, had great charisma (a little too much if the accusations are true), and some good leadership. manning was more well-rounded in some ways, but he was not and still isn’t a better Qb than Big Ben. That’s why Big Ben has 2 rings, Manning has 1, and Rivers has none.
    If the Giants stay pat and draft Big Ben, they get that 1st round draft pick in 2005 which could have been, I don’t know, Shawn Merrimen, or maybe aaaaaa MLB? I’m just saying.

    2005 – Great picks for what they had available and those players are still contributing.

    2006 – This is where the club drafted Kiwi. I liked Kiwi but the Giants were already good at DE. I think when you’re set at a position, you draft a developmental player in the lower rounds, maybe 3rd or 4th. But the Accorsi goes BPA and draft another DE, passing on MLB Demeco Ryans.
    Now we look at the fallout and the Giants have their backs against the wall in terms of the MLB spot. And there are rumblings that if Osi does stay around, Kiwi will leave. How many times do you have to shot yourself in the foot?
    Of the other players taken in 2006, Moss was a bad pick that I beleive the Giants took solely on the merits of his big brother. Cofield was a great pick. And I liked wilkinson. He just hasn’t panned out.

    2007 – Incredible draft. But where’s the MLB?

    2008 – Another great draft but a gross trade and overreach on Bryan Kehl. And a gross overreach on Kehl. Both have outplayed their draft projection so thats a good thing. But the Giants needed to make SERIOUS move at MLB. Ap was dragging his belly all over the field. At this point he couldn’t run. Balls were sailing right over his head. It was embarrassing for me.

    2009 – While a lot of these picks look good, they have yet to deliver outside of Nicks and Beatty. But still Reese shows his eye for value.
    The big transgression in this draft is that while Reese had nothing at MLB he passes on two MLBs that go on to be cornerstones of their defenses, James laurinitis and Ray Mauluga. These MLBs are better than any of the draft LBs the Giants have on their roster right now, and yet they were there, in the 2nd round.

    In conclusion, looking over these drafts, I don’t see a superstar in Accorsi or Reese. I se in both of them average GMs who at time have their shining moments. In Reese I trust. But Reese giveth and Reese taketh away from the MLB position.

  • http://www.profootballnyc.com John Fennelly

    No one was is saying the Giants didn’t make mistakes in the draft…but they’ve made a lot less than most teams…

    You’re wrong about Kehl and Goff…both can play. Just watch.

    Look at Visanthe Shiancoe…as a Giant he was not given an opportunity. Now he’s a Pro Bowl talent. Patience, my friend, patience….

    JR will draft a LB – or two – in this draft. Both will be good players. Count on it. Combine them with the other guys, and you’ll forget there was ever a need at LB

  • igs

    John,

    I hear you o that but a couple of things:

    I didn’t say kehl and Goff were bad players, I said they were overreaches.I actually think they both make good backups but Reese didn’t need to trade to get Kehl and he drafted Goff too high.

    The point about Shiancoe is important too. because why are you drafting a guy if you’re not going to give him a chance? What’s the strategy behind that?

    So my earlier post was just pointing out that for all the good things Reese and Accorsi have done, there has been a lot of really dumb things. And it averages out their overall draft grades.

  • BigJohn

    igs and I view the trade the Giants made in a different light. I feel this was a fantastic trade for the Giants because I believe Eli was the only QB in that draft that could play in NY especially with how the media is here. Rivers while a great QB has not one a big game yet and he is often called a “hot-head” by those in the media and has trouble controlling his emotions. I cannot imagine him playing under the bright lights of NY when the media starts to question him about every little mistake he made and why he made them. I obviously cannot see into the future and have no idea what would have happened but that’s the way it seems.

    Also, Big Ben is a very good QB however I feel that his Super Bowl wins were a product of the teams he was on rather then him. If you look at his performances in both Super Bowls the Steelers actually won in spite of Big Ben. I realize he threw the game winning TD to Holmes and I do concede he is a good QB but could he have handled NY as well as Eli has? I think this point especially stands out with all the stories coming out about Big Ben. Could he handle the night life of NYC? which I have to say is MUCH different then anything Pittsburgh has to offer. The stories that are coming out about Big Ben and how some of his own teammates hate him in the locker room I am happy with Eli.

    • http://www.profootballnyc.com John Fennelly

      Rivers may never get to the Super Bowl, and Ben may never get back…..Eli has the best chance….and he is the best citizen of the bunch as well

      • igs

        Yeah John, the most rings in the NFL. No, it’s not likely that Steelers are going back anytime to the big dance anytime soon.

    • igs

      Fair enough BigJohn, but I would disagree with you on 2 major Big Ben points:

      One, if you look at the subtle things Big Ben did in the second superbowl he won, very slight headfakes and pumpfakes that helped to get Santonio Holmes and Mike Wallace get open, you’ll see that the Steelers won because of Big Ben, not despite him. He took is passing game to whole new level during the 2nd half of that season, which I remember he struggled early with injuries.

      Second, though I despise sexual predators, you can not factor that into the draft day trade. Big Ben is not out of the league as of now and there was no way to know he would have these problems. If you take that into consideration then you have to say that Reese and Accorsi should have seen something in guys like William Joseph and Gerris Wilkinson that said they didn’t have the heart or the smarts to be Giant successes. Unless a player has some obtuse history that predicts he will be a groper, you just can’t predict that kind of thing.

      As far as the NY media, Big Ben was one of the NFL’s brand ambassadors before all this sex crime stuff went down. I’m sure he could have handled the NY media. In addition, NY is not the kind of place that player gets hard up and overexcited about sex. It’s everywhere.

      Yes, I love Eli, and I certainly appreciate his homely ways more in response the Big Ben’s behavior, but hindsight is always 20/20. Acorsi and Reese got fleeced because they fixated on a prospect. And that fixation was also partially because of his big brother. Bad stuff, imo.

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