New York Giants’ rookie class is making the grade

The NFL schedule spared us this week, and the New York Giants are guaranteed not to earn a loss. The team sits at a disappointing 2-8 entering the bye week. They’re last in the NFC East and are slotted to select second overall behind the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars.

We have witnessed 10 weeks of Giants’ football and 10 games of Joe Schoen’s third draft class. It’s way too early to judge this class, but for this exercise, we will assign grades to each pick. New York received an immediate return on investment with several picks from this rookie class. The Giants’ rookie class had accounted for 17.9% of defensive snaps (second-highest) and 18.4% of offensive snaps (fifth-highest) before Week 10 against the Carolina Panthers, making them one of the youngest rosters in the NFL.

The 2024 season is bleak and resembles something approximating an Edgar Allan Poe poem, but there are glimmers of light that have appeared in the abyss. We’ve seen promise from the rookie class through these 10 games, and we’ll continue to monitor their development as the season thankfully concludes. Here’s the 2024 Giants’ rookie class report card.

Round 1 (No. 6): Malik Nabers, WR

The New York Giants found an absolute stud wide receiver with a ceiling akin to Odell Beckham Jr. New York’s offense ran through the rookie; by the end of September, Nabers was targeted on a league-high 37 of his 106 routes (34.9% target rate) this season. He led the NFL in team target share (38.1%) and team air yards share (57.6%). No other player in the NFL held over 35% of the team’s target share or over 50% of their team’s air yards.

Nabers dominated man coverage and commanding coverage, which opened up opportunities for the running game and for Wan’Dale Robinson, who is currently fifth in total targets. Nabers also had high motion rates and first-read looks. He was the fulcrum of the Giants’ offense and Brian Daboll’s game plans.

Unfortunately, Nabers suffered a concussion after the Giants’ Week 4 loss. He then missed two weeks. According to NFL Pro, Despite missing two games, Malik Nabers led the NFL in receptions (19), yards (251), first downs (12), and receiving EPA (+21.9) on targets after being sent in motion. He was targeted on 60.0% of his routes when in motion, the highest rate by any player with at least 15 such routes through the first seven weeks of a season since 2018.

Since his return, Nabers hasn’t gone over 75 yards, nor has he recorded an explosive play (20+ yards). His “struggles” aren’t a referendum on Nabers — although I agree, his five drops were untimely, which must be rectified. Despite the issues at quarterback, Nabers and Daniel Jones generated the third-most EPA among all QB-WR duos (+35.0). Nabers leads all rookie receivers in receiving EPA (+33.2) and receptions (61), and he’s tied with former teammate Brian Thomas Jr. in receiving yards (607) despite missing two games due to injury. He’s currently third in the NFL in receptions behind Ja’Marr Chase (Bengals) and Garrett Wilson (Jets).

Still, Nabers doesn’t consistently receive optimal passes, he’s bracketed often (but not always), and the offense has strayed away from hyper-focusing on Nabers; the last point is a catch-22 — while it’s a good thing to diversify the target share, there were situations over the last four weeks where it seemed like Nabers could have been more of a priority. He is the Giants’ best offensive weapon and should have a bright future in the NFL.

Grade: A

Round 2 (No. 47): Tyler Nubin, S

Nubin quickly seized the starting safety spot over Dane Belton after the rookie missed the first few weeks of training camp. He currently leads the Giants’ defense in snaps and is second behind Bobby Okereke in tackles. He also sports one of the lower missed tackle rates of any starting defensive player — he’s missed seven tackles, a 9.5% rate.

I am optimistic about Nubin. He flies around the field with controlled aggression and displays elite short-area quickness around the line of scrimmage. However, he’s yet to get his hands on a football, which was his calling card at Minnesota — Nubin had 11 passes defended and 13 interceptions in college.

I believe he is a decisive player, but there were hiccups over the first 10 weeks. General manager Joe Schoen inadvertently tossed strays at Nubin during his recent press conference in an attempt to defend Tae Banks’ lack of effort; Schoen said, “The safety took a poor angle” in reference to the CeeDee Lamb touchdown from Week 4.

Schoen is correct — it was a poor angle. He also had a poor game against Washington in Week 9. He’s had coverage lapses and been late into the alley from depth, but overall, he’s a much-needed asset on the Giants’ backend who is making rookie mistakes. He’ll be a reliable starter with turnover upside for years to come.

Grade: B

Round 3 (No. 70): Dru Phillips, CB

There’s a high likelihood that Phillips would be selected in the first round if the draft were to occur today. He’s exceeded his expectations and is currently sixth on the team in tackles, fourth in tackles for a loss, and is tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles in the opponents’ end of the field — those two fumbles resulted in three points.

Every NFL defense is looking for a Dru Phillips — a reliable overhang player who can cover, blitz, and be a force in run defense. Phillips understands how to avoid and deconstruct blocks. He’s instinctual with elite closing burst:

Phillips paid immediate returns on Schoen’s investment. The 22-year-old had an excellent 10-week stretch and has shown nothing to suggest he won’t continue to ascend as a player.

Grade: A+

Round 4 (No. 107): Theo Johnson, TE

One of the most challenging positions for rookies to play is tight end. It was a tough early transition for Johnson, who — during training camp — said learning Brian Daboll’s offense was like “drinking water out of a fire hose.” Johnson struggled with his assignments and as a receiver through the first six weeks of the season, although his blocking was always an asset. We haven’t seen him consistently play to his elite combine numbers, but some of his catches in recent weeks show glimpses of a high-end athlete.

The Giants were perfectly comfortable throwing Johnson into the deep end. He never played under 70% of the snaps in a game, and he’s now solidified as a tight-end one on the team. Over the last three games, Johnson has secured 10 of 16 targets for 123 yards with a score while growing even further as a blocker.

He’s stretched the seams multiple times and made defenses pay for playing Cover-2. The game has seemed to slow down for Johnson. He flashes bright as a receiver, butstill has plenty of room for consistency and growth.

There were significant struggles until a few weeks ago, but Johnson is still a rookie earning a massive snap share. It’s great to see him develop; his blocking gives him a high floor, and his receiving upside/frame gives him a high ceiling.

Grade: C+

Round 5 (No. 166): Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB

It’s an absolute home run of a pick. Tyrone Tracy Jr. wasted little time seizing the backfield from Devin Singletary after the veteran’s brief injury. According to NFL Pro, Tracy Jr. played just 23.3% of offensive snaps through the first four weeks of the season; Tracy was thrust into the starting spot and played 73.1% of offensive snaps during Singletary’s absence in Weeks 5 and 6. The backfield is firmly Tracy’s, with Singletary only getting more than a 30% snap-share once since his return. Tracy has maintained a snap rate of 65.2% since then.

Tracy Jr. has generated the two highest games of rushing yards over expected (Week 5: +47 and Week 8 +36) and two of the three lowest games of RYOE (Week 6: -21 & Week 9: -23) among Giants running backs this season. Tracy has fared much better on runs between the tackles this season, averaging 5.8 yards per carry, 2.6 higher than rushes outside the tackles (3.2).

Unlikely isn’t a strong enough word to describe Tracy’s success. An older prospect, with one year playing running back, now averages 5.1 yards per carry with 545 yards and three touchdowns, with a 35% breakaway rate and an average of 3.22 yards after contact despite only having 107 carries. Tracy Jr. has seven 15+ yard rushes and 20 missed tackles forced.

Finding a reliable contributor on Day 3 is a success, but finding a difference-making running back who has been the catalyst for the Giants’ offensive scoring for weeks is sensational. The fumble against Carolina was devastating, but Tracy has been nothing short of a spectacular value.

Grade: A+

Round 6 (No. 183): Darius Muasau, LB

Darius Muasau is the only New York Giant to record an interception through 10 weeks of football. Great for the rookie — bad for the Giants. The young former UCLA Bruin has played just 81 snaps. Most of those snaps (45) were in Week 1, when Micah McFadden was inactive.

According to Pro Football Focus, Muasau has eight tackles with three missed. He has contributed on special teams with 151 snaps for Michael Ghobrial. He’s filled his role and seems secure on the roster as depth behind Bobby Okereke and McFadden.

Grade: B-

Final thoughts

This is the most positive rookie report card I have ever written for Big Blue View. Three starting skilled position players on offense have proven their worth and developed. Johnson started rough but has shown the development necessary to inspire hope, albeit there’s still a way to go. Both defensive secondary pieces have demonstrated competency and flashed. Muasau is a special teams player who was selected late.

Overall, this class far outshines Schoen’s previous two draft classes. However, development is not always linear. Each player can continue to improve with experience, but their first 10 weeks were encouraging, suggesting that the Giants selected several core roster pieces in the 2024 NFL Draft.