General Manager Joe Schoen and Head Coach Brian Daboll
Following Third Round Selections of Joshua Ezeudu and Cor’Dale Flott
April 29, 2022
Q. So Josh Ezeudu out of North Carolina?
JOE SCHOEN: So Josh Ezeudu out of North Carolina, a player we liked obviously. History of playing multiple spots on the offensive line. He's got guard-tackle flex. Again, we'll bring him in, I'm not sure, not going to say exactly where we're going to start him, but we like the versatility that he can play guard, he can play tackle, compete to start probably inside, with outside flex.
And then Cor’Dale Flott is a guy we liked out of LSU, athletic kid, versatility, play inside, outside. Both kids we spent a lot of time with throughout the spring, and we're happy to have them.
Q. How do you view your cornerback position? Can Aaron Robinson play 80, 60 snaps a game?
JOE SCHOEN: We are excited about him, just getting to know him, getting to see him move around the last couple weeks. That group, the coaching staff is back, so we're excited about him. I'm not going to make any predictions or anything in terms of play time or any of that. We've still got a long way to go, but he's definitely going to be competing for a starting job.
Q. Josh, in games, would switch spots.
JOE SCHOEN: Impressive. He's impressive. It's rare. I was fortunate enough to see him play live twice this year, Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh. He's a big man, and it's impressive. Again, he could play multiple spots not only on a week-to-week basis but within a game, within drives. So it's very impressive, and he's an outstanding kid. You guys will like getting to know him.
Q. Flott, he's not the biggest guy, but do you see him as a guy who can play outside, or do you see him primarily as a guy who is better suited in the slot?
JOE SCHOEN: I think position one, ideally, he's inside, but he can play inside and outside. He has height, and he does have length. And again, the kid is 20 years old. I believe he turns 21 in August or September. I think it's August.
So still young, still developing. Three-year guy at LSU that played in a really talented backfield and a good conference.
We're excited. He's got really good movement skills to play inside, but with the size and length, can play outside as well.
Q. Seems like you were prepared for every possible situation. Did you see the quarterbacks slipping like they have so far? I think there was one in the first 73 picks. How has that affected the Draft for teams like you that are not picking a quarterback?
JOE SCHOEN: I'm a little surprised that there are a couple guys still on the board, at least they are when I walked down here. With all the pre-Draft chatter, I assumed a couple of those guys would already be gone.
Q. Does that push guys that you had lower, does that push them up?
JOE SCHOEN: Guys that were lower, push them up? Not really. The quarterback position, again, the amount of quarterbacks that are taken, it’s not like a different position group where there's high volume. I wouldn't say that's the case there.
Q. Was there a point today where you started to maybe consider that because you didn't expect these guys to fall to this point?
JOE SCHOEN: Yeah, we discussed every position. Again, I think up top, you know, you weren't really thinking about it, but again, if you follow your board, and we did do work on all position groups. It came up in discussions, as every position does. But again we followed our board, and we typically go with the guys that are on the same line at that value.
Q. Does it bother you, when you're talking about those kinds of guys that you guys maybe personally didn't see a lot of them throughout?
JOE SCHOEN: No, we saw them all through. We were at the pro days. I saw every quarterback play live this year. We did our homework.
Q. You have five picks left tomorrow, right?
JOE SCHOEN: Two fours, three fives and a six.
Q. What do you want to accomplish tomorrow? You traded back and picked up those pieces.
JOE SCHOEN: Continue to build depth. Depth is important, whether it's a backup role, compete for a starting role or special teams. Fourth down is going to be important to us as well. Just continue to build depth and competition.
Q. How realistic is it that you make all six of those picks, or do you feel like you have the ammo that you can trade up now and maybe go get somebody?
JOE SCHOEN: Yeah, we could do either or. Again, Draft picks are currency, It allows you to move up, down, whatever you may do, into next year, something happens. It just gives you flexibility throughout the Draft. I can't really predict it right now, but there are still guys on the board that we like.
Q. Were you surprised a market for James Bradberry hasn't materialized as much as you might have expected a couple months ago?
JOE SCHOEN: No. We've had conversations about James. Teams have called. He's still a good player and a good person. The market is what it is.
Q. Have you received more interest during the Draft?
JOE SCHOEN: No.
Q. Why didn't you exercise the option on Daniel?
JOE SCHOEN: It was the best decision for the Giants. After our conversations, that's what we came up with, the best decision for us right now.
Q. Will you assess after today and tomorrow morning and say, all right, with these six picks, we kind of need these positions and we can look at these positions that we haven’t addressed?
BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, we have conversations after every day of the Draft relative to where we've set the board and needs. And if those two match, that's a great thing. We're going to try to acquire as many good players as we can to try to make us as competitive as we can.
Q. How do you see the tight end role in your offense?
BRIAN DABOLL: It just depends.
Q. On what? The player?
BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, it depends on who we have, yeah. So again, if we have -- there was times last year we played with five receivers. There's been times where we've played with three tight ends, sometimes four tight ends.
I think when you put together an offense, you try to build it around the strengths of the players that you have. And if that's a bunch of receivers, it's a bunch of receivers. If it's one tight end, it's one tight end. There were games last year where we went to the game with one active tight end. I think probably the last five or six weeks of the season.
So based on who we have, and look, there's a long time to build our roster, too. It's not just the Draft. We have, you know, awhile here. There's a lot of different things that can happen.
Q. What do you look for in terms of traits out of a linebacker?
JOE SCHOEN: Outside or inside? Inside, instincts, athleticism, range, speed. You know, again, leadership, communication.
Q. Nakobe Dean is a guy, inside linebacker, a lot of people expected to be taken early in this Draft. Did you guys consider him? There's been talks about him being flagged by a bunch of teams. What did you --
JOE SCHOEN: Yeah, there's a reason he's drafting -- I don't know what's all out there, what you have, but we can't really talk much about that. But yeah, there's a reason he's fallen, I think. And, you know, he's a great kid. He had a great career, and I'm sure he'll go shortly.
