The Giants did a solid job in last April’s NFL Draft.  CB Aaron Ross was the #1 pick of the Giants last season and he showed big time potential.  Ross played in 15 games (9 starts) for the Giants last season and he made 42 tackles, had 1.5 sacks, defensed 9 passes and intercepted 3 passes including one that he returned for a TD.  WR Steve Smith really made some nice catches for the Giants in the post season last year.  He played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Giants last season and he caught 8 passes for 63 yards (7.9 avg).  Smith will likely grow into a more important role on the Giants’ offense in the near future and make him worth the 2nd round pick they used on him.  DT Jay Alford was the 3rd round pick for the Giants last season and he was a bust.  He played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Giants and he only made 1 tackle.  4th rounder (OLB) Zak DeOssie was a big help on the special teams last season as he was the long snapper on punts.  He played in all 16 games last season for the Giants and he made 6 tackles.  TE Kevin Boss was the 5th round pick of the Giants last season.  Boss played in 13 games (2 starts) for the Giants last season and he caught 9 passes for 118 yards (13.1 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Boss also made some huge catches in the post season when Jeremy Shockey was out with an injury.  6th round pick Adam Koets (OT) was essentially a “redshirt” as he didn’t play a down as a rookie.  The Giants struck gold in the 7th round with two very solid picks.  Strong safety Michael Johnson was the first Giant picked in the 7th round.  He played in 16 games (5 starts) for the Giants last season and he made 25 tackles, forced a fumble and he defensed 2 passes.  Johnson could be a starter in the near future for the Giants.  RB Ahmad Bradshaw was the last pick the Giants made in the 2007 NFL Draft and he was a good one.  Bradshaw played in 12 games (0 starts) for the Giants last season and he carried the ball 23 times for 190 yards (8.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg).  Bradshaw was also important on special teams.  Bradshaw returned 38 kickoffs for 921 yards (24.2 avg) and he also returned 1 punt for 1 yard.

GRADE FOR THE 2007 SEASON:  B

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  A

The Giants have signed QB David Carr to a 1-year deal to back up Eli Manning.  The 28-year old Carr played in 6 games last season for the Panthers and he completed 73 of 136 passes (53.7%) for 635 yards with 3 TD passes and 5 interceptions (58.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 17 times for 59 yards (3.5 ypc).  Carr has now played in 82 games in his NFL career and he has completed 1,316 of 2,206 passes (59.7%) for 14,026 yards with 62 TD passes and 70 interceptions (74.4 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 285 times for 1,294 yards (4.5 ypc) with 8 TD runs.  Carr will be an upgrade over what the Giants had behind Manning last season, but that’s not saying much.

The Giants have signed linebacker Danny Clark to a 2-year, $4 million dollar contract.  He played in 13 games with the Texans last season and he made 51 tackles, defensed a pass, forced a fumble an intercepted 1 pass.  Clark has now played in 122 games in his NFL career and he has made 508 tackles, defensed 15 passes, has 5 sacks, forced 6 fumbles and intercepted 2 passes.  With all of the defections in the linebacking corps it appears that Clark will get a good chance to secure a starting job in 2008.

The Giants have signed veteran safety Sammy Knight to a 3-year, $5.1 million dollar contract.  Knight played in all 16 games last season for the Jaguars and he made 93 tackles, defensed 11 passes, forced 1 fumble and intercepted 4 passes.  Knight has now played in 174 games in his NFL career and he has made 1,044 tackles, defensed 93 passes, sacked the opposing QB 9 times, forced 13 fumbles and he picked off 42 passes including 4 that he returned for a TD.  Knight will likely replace Gibril Wilson in the starting lineup as he left to sign with the Oakland Raiders.

The Giants showed incredible depth at tailback as everyone they put in ran the ball well in 2007.  Brandon Jacobs was the workhorse when he was healthy.  Jacobs played in 11 games (9 starts) last season for the Giants and he carried the ball 202 times for 1,009 yards (5.0 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He also caught 23 passes for 174 yards (7.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Jacobs has now played in 42 games (9 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 336 times for 1,531 yards (4.6 ypc) with 20 TD runs.  He also has caught 34 passes for 323 yards (9.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

Derrick Ward had an incredible season for the Giants before his season ended with a broken foot.  Ward played in 8 games (5 starts) for the Giants last season and he carried the ball 125 times for 602 yards (4.8 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also caught 26 passes for 179 yards (6.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Ward has now played in 35 games (5 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 160 times for 725 yards (4.5 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also has caught 28 passes for 192 yards (6.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.

Reuben Droughns was the one running back on the Giants that didn’t play up to his ability in 2007.  He played in 16 games (1 start) for the Giants and he carried the ball 85 times for 275 yards (3.2 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  He also caught 7 passes for 49 yards (7.0 avg).  Droughns has now played in 102 games (51 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 929 times for 3,602 yards (3.9 ypc) with 19 TD runs.  He also has caught 123 passes for 989 yards (8.0 avg) with 6 TD grabs.

Rookie Ahmad Bradshaw was a big key in the Super Bowl run for the Giants.  He played in 12 games (0 starts) in 2007 for the Giants and he carried the ball 23 times for 190 yards (8.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg).

Fullback Madison Hedgecock was an outstanding in-season addition for the Giants as he is a good lead blocker in the running game.  Hedgecock played in all 16 games (9 starts) last season for the Rams and Giants.  He did not carry the football but he caught 6 passes for 45 yards (7.5 avg).  Hedgecock has now played in 48 games (25 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 2 times for 2 yards (1.0 ypc).  He also has caught 23 passes for 150 yards (6.5 avg).

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