A New York Giants beat reporter proposed trading away a chance at Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
New York Giants fans appear pretty split on Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft — and members of the NYG beat seem to share in those varied opinions.
For example, during his “10-step offseason plan” for the Giants, which was published on February 18, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan proposed a bold NFL draft trade that involves Big Blue not only passing on Sanders but handing him to the Las Vegas Raiders — for a price.
“Trading up for a quarterback would be a desperate move,” Duggan explained. “[The Athletic’s lead draft analyst] Dane Brugler ranks Miami’s Cam Ward 15th and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders 25th in a class lacking blue-chip talent.”
“Giving up assets to move up to No. 1 or No. 2 for either prospect would be a reach,” he continued. “For perspective, when the Giants were trying to trade up from No. 6 to No. 3 last year, Drake Maye was fourth and Jayden Daniels was eighth in Brugler’s rankings.”
Duggan went on to note that, in his opinion, Ward would be more tempting at No. 3 overall than Sanders, if available.
“I’m not sold on Sanders’ upside to take him at No. 3,” Duggan wrote. “If he’s available, I’d aim to trade back to No. 6 with the Raiders, who have been rumored to be enamored with Sanders.”
Although Duggan did not provide an exact trade proposal, he did state that “securing a 2026 first-round pick would be essential in any trade back to build ammo to pursue a quarterback in next year’s draft.”
So, for the sake of debate, let’s assume the Giants would recoup the No. 6 overall pick, the Raiders’ 2026 first rounder and a mid-round selection — perhaps, one of Las Vegas’ two 2025 third rounders at No. 68 or No. 73 overall.
Other Aspects of Giants’ Trade Down Plan Involve Signing Justin Fields & Drafting a Star Prospect at Area of Need
If you’re wondering who the Giants’ starting quarterback would be in Duggan’s plan, he was holding out hope that the Pittsburgh Steelers let Justin Fields hit the open market. If they do, Duggan appeared all-in on signing Fields to serve as a bridge QB.
The reporter also floated other, potentially less appealing options, like Kirk Cousins, Russell Wilson or Aaron Rodgers — should they become available. Wilson to the Giants has probably garnered the most smoke in recent weeks, of the three.
From there, Duggan would look to fill one of the Giants’ biggest holes in round one of the draft.
“The sixth pick could be used to target the next tier at edge rusher (Georgia’s Jalon Walker) or cornerback (Michigan’s Will Johnson), a top offensive lineman (LSU’s Will Campbell or Missouri’s Armand Membou), or a game-changing tight end (Penn State’s Tyler Warren),” he pointed out.
Finally, Duggan added that “if I can’t make a trade [with the Raiders], I’d take the best available player with the third pick. My top target would be Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter followed closely by Colorado cornerback/receiver Travis Hunter.”
Either Ward or Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham were Duggan’s option number three, let’s say Carter and Hunter are gone and no appetizing trade offers are on the table. That would presumably make Graham a home run at No. 6 overall too, if he were to fall that low.
Giants Fans Seem Very Against Trading Up in 2025 NFL Draft
A recent X poll conducted by ESPN NYG beat reporter Jordan Raanan proved just how against trading up for a QB a large contingent of Giants fans are.
Raanan proposed a slam dunk offer where Big Blue would give the Tennessee Titans two third-round picks (one in 2025 and another in 2026) and No. 3 overall in order to move up to the No. 1 pick in the draft. To be clear, the Titans would never accept an offer this low, but Raanan most likely pitched it just to get a sense of what the fanbase is thinking.
Would you trade for the Giants: No. 3, third-round pick (No. 65 ) and 2026 third-round pick to the Tennessee Titans for No. 1 overall pick?
In the end, 51% of Giants fans (out of 18,435 voters) said they would not accept that trade offer, displaying that most NYG supporters have no interest in trading up for Sanders or Ward — even if the circumstances are completely ideal.
With that in mind, it stands to reason that some Giants fans would actually prefer to trade back, as Duggan suggested, passing on Sanders and Ward altogether.
