...here's a look at the 63 picks that went #6, #17 and #37 for the Draft Years 1998 - 2018.
A few observations:
(1) You're supposed to get a pretty good player with these selections, but as you can see from below, sometimes you do... and sometimes you don't;
(2) A quick perusal of the list seems to reveal (subjectively) that maybe these selections got better in more recent years (say, 2011 onward);
(3) Check out the offensive linemen; very few "misses" in twenty-one Drafts. It seems (subjectively) that it was a lot more hit-or-miss along the defensive front;
(4) The Giants have never drafted in any of these slots (at least for the past 21 years).
Apologies ahead of time for the formatting which runs:
Draft Year
Player Selected
NFL Team
Position
College Team
Sixth Overall Selection
1998 Wistrom, Grant St. Louis Rams DE Nebraska
1999 Holt, Torry St. Louis Rams WR North Carolina St.
2000 Simon, Corey Philadelphia Eagles DT Florida St
2001 Seymour, Richard New England Patriots DT Georgia
2002 Sims, Ryan Kansas City Chiefs DT North Carolina
2003 Sullivan, Johnathan New Orleans Saints DT Georgia
2004 Winslow, Kellen Cleveland Browns TE Miami (Fla)
2005 Jones, Adam Tennessee Titans DB West Virginia
2006 Davis, Vernon San Francisco 49ers TE Maryland
2007 Landry, LaRon Washington Redskins DB LSU
2008 Gholston, Vernon New York Jets DE Ohio State
2009 Smith, Andre Cincinnati Bengals OT Alabama
2010 Okung, Russell Seattle Seahawks OT Oklahoma State
2011 Jones, Julio Atlanta Falcons WR Alabama
2012 Claiborne, Morris Dallas Cowboys DC LSU
2013 Mingo, Barkevious Cleveland Browns OB LSU
2014 Matthews, Jake Atlanta Falcons OT Texas A& M
2015 Williams, Leonard New York Jets DT Southern Cal
2016 Stanley, Ronnie Baltimore Ravens OT Notre Dame
2017 Adams, Jamal New York Jets SS LSU
2018 Nelson, Quenton Indianapolis Colts OG Notre Dame
Seventeenth Overall Selection
1998 Simmons, Brian Cincinnati Bengals LB North Carolina
1999 Woody, Damien New England Patriots C Boston College
2000 Janikowski, Sebastian Oakland Raiders K Florida St.
2001 Hutchinson, Steve Seattle Seahawks G Michigan
2002 Buchanon, Phillip Oakland Raiders DB Miami (Fla)
2003 Johnson, Bryant Arizona Cardinals WR Penn St.
2004 Williams, D.J. Denver Broncos LB Miami (Fla)
2005 Pollack, David Cincinnati Bengals LB Georgia
2006 Greenway, Chad Minnesota Vikings LB Iowa
2007 Moss, Jarvis Denver Broncos DE Florida
2008 Cherilus, Gosder Detroit Lions OT Boston College
2009 Freeman, Josh Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Kansas State
2010 Lupati, Mike San Francisco 49ers OG Idaho
2011 Solder, Nate New England Patriots OT Colorado
2012 Kirkpatrick, Dre Cincinnati Bengals DC Alabama
2013 Jones, Jarvis Pittsburgh Steelers OB Georgia
2014 Mosley, CJ Baltimore Ravens IB Alabama
2015 Armstead, Arik San Francisco 49ers DE Oregon
2016 Neal, Keanu Atlanta Falcons SS Florida
2017 Allen, Jonathan Washington Redskins DT Alabama
2018 James, Derwin Los Angeles Chargers SS Florida State
Thirty-Seventh Overall Selection
1998 Holcombe, Robert St. Louis Rams RB Illinois
1999 Jansen, Jon Washington Redskins T Michigan
2000 Claridge, Travis Atlanta Falcons T USC
2001 Idrees, Bashir Indianapolis Colts DB Memphis
2002 Gurode, Andre Dallas Cowboys G Colorado
2003 Stinchcomb, Jon New Orleans Saints T Georgia
2004 Lehman, Teddy Detroit Lions LB Oklahoma
2005 Cody, Shaun Detroit Lions DT USC
2006 Williams, Jimmy Atlanta Falcons DB Virginia Tech
2007 Weddle, Eric San Diego Chargers DB Utah
2008 Lofton, Curtis Atlanta Falcons LB Oklahoma
2009 Smith, Alphonso Cleveland Browns CB Wake Forest
2010 Allen, Nate Philadelphia Eagles FS South Florida
2011 Sheard, Jabaal Cleveland Browns DE Pittsburgh
2012 Schwartz, Mitchell Cleveland Browns OT California
2013 Bernard, Giovani Cincinnati Bengals RB North Carolina
2014 Hageman, Ra'Shede Atlanta Falcons DT Minnesota
2015 Smith, Devin New York Jets WR Ohio State
2016 Jones, Chris Kansas City Chiefs DT Mississippi State
2017 Jones, Zay Buffalo Bills WR East Carolina
2018 Smith, Braden Indianapolis Colts OG Auburn
Pretty much a 'must hit on' pick for Dave
Yep, end of story.
Hoping Gettleman has a bit of luck!
I guess, or you can look at it in a different way; there are pro bowlers at all three draft spots and draft busts at all three draft slots... acquire as many draft picks as possible and hope you hit on a few of them. You can use all your picks on one guy and strike out.
Gettlemen being questioned and rightly so about his age and is he with it, plus he hasn't done shit yet as a Giant GM or nothing that we can tangibly see results with yet, nor really would you expect to in his first year with an awful last 5 years draft history before he took over.
DG's claim to fame..what hes supposedly great at is the draft and assesing talent. We need the best draft in the NFL this year. The positive news on that is we are set up with it with the 6 pick in every rd (except 3) and 6 extra picks including pick 17.
Even a good draft won't cut it. We need a historic draft.
This is why it isn't "insane" to talk about packaging a bunch of picks for Russell Wilson. I think it's a bad idea, in part because if you are going to pay your QB that much money, you need some good, young, cost-controlled players or you're going to be fighting just to be mediocre (like Tarkenton's Giants), but it's not a crazy idea. Draft picks are a roll of the dice. Russell Wilson is a proven commodity at the most important position on the field.
On the other hand, as the GM you'd like to have more confidence in your scouts than that.
Yes the draft is a crap shoot because the humans you are drafting have many components you cannot control and you are depending on the prospect to want to do well. The smart FO makes good decisions based on quality information and ....expertise. We Giants fans are in wait and hope mode.