Would DeMarvin Leal, Zion Nelson make sense for Giants in 2022?
Now that the 2021 NFL draft has concluded, it’s time to focus on the 2022 NFL draft. We’re not kidding. Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling has published his “way too-early” 2022 mock draft, which we briefly touched on earlier this week.
The Giants, remember, have two first round picks next year, so here’s who he sees the Giants selecting.
In Easterling’s mock draft, the Giants have the seventh overall pick and the Chicago Bears’ pick, which is No. 11.
With the seventh pick, the Giants take Texas A&M defensive lineman DeMarvin Leal. The 6-foot-4, 291 pound junior is expected to be a top 10 pick next April. He is considered a “hybrid” players can line up at any any position on the defensive line.
“He has an unbelievably competitive nature. When he’s on the field, I don’t ever see him loaf for one second,” Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher said of Leal last October. “I don’t care what drill it is, what we’re doing or how we do it. Those kinds of guys change cultures of an organization because they’re great players, and they’re highly recruited players who play like they have no ability … with their effort and toughness.”
With the 11th pick, the Giants select Miami offensive tackle Zion Nelson, a 6-foot-5, 315 pound underclassman. Nelson played left tackle last season as a sophomore but will need this season in college to sure up his fundamentals.
“He’s just a freak of nature. Zion’s an incredibly gifted football player,” center Corey Gaynor said. “He’s got long arms. Think he’s big and strong, and I think he’s very twitchy. He’s everything you want out of a left tackle.”
A lot can happen between now and the 2022 NFL draft, but odds are the Giants will still need a quality offensive lineman by then. They also love their versatile defensive linemen, so both Leal and Nelson are worth watching this coming college season.
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