The answer is no

The calculus of how a team approaches the NFL Draft is always impacted by what it already has on its Roster, and what it doesn’t. The New York Giants won’t be any different this year.

Today’s ‘Draft Question of the Day’ asks about whether an under-the-radar player could change what the Giants do at No. 6.

Andrew Winfeld asks: In following the seemingly endless number of draft prognosticators over the past few months, when it comes to our impending #6 pick, and more specifically the question of whether we should take either Malik Nabors or Rome Odunze (if they are indeed the two remaining top WR choices at that point) I’ve yet to see anyone cite the fact that the Giants already have a guy on the roster who is both slightly bigger and faster than Odunze…Bryce Ford Wheaton. Now I am fully aware that Ford-Wheaton was not drafted, and was instead signed as a UFA last year, but one must keep in mind that he was probably the MOST sought-after UFA in the entire NFL at the time, which is why the Giants inked him for two years (instead of the traditional one) at a higher-than-normal GUARANTEE. My point is that there’s obviously “something there” with this guy, and that maybe…just maybe…drafting Odunze in this case may turn out to be at least somewhat redundant. This is why I believe that the Giants will opt for the more OBJ-like Nabers with the first pick. What do you think?

Ed says: The Giants might well like Malik Nabers more than Rome Odunze. I don’t know. The majority opinion seems to be that Nabers is ahead of Odunze, and some think he is ahead of Marvin Harrison Jr. in the wide receiver rankings.

I hope this doesn’t come off as a snotty answer, but the Giants’ decision of which wide receiver to select will have nothing to do with Bryce Ford-Wheaton. We’re talking about a development former undrafted free agent who might have made the roster last season as a special teams player but missed the entire season with a torn ACL. He is back to square one trying to prove he belongs. I like Ford-Wheaton, but there is a reason he went undrafted. He faces an uphill battle to make the roster. Even if he does, Ford-Wheaton will spend most of his time on special teams.

If the Giants choose between Nabers and Odunze it will purely be about which player they like better, and which one they feel can help them the most. It won’t have anything to do with Ford-Wheaton. Or other practice squad players like Chase Cota or Dennis Houston, who are on the 90-man roster.

Going a little further on this, I have seen people opine that the recent signing of Dante Miller means the Giants won’t draft a running back. Again, that’s silly. The Giants might draft a back. They might not. Miller, who flashed incredible speed at his Pro Day but has not played since the middle of the 2022 season, is a kid the Giants are taking a flier on. They aren’t counting on him, and his presence on the 90-man roster won’t have anything to do with what the Giants do in the draft.