Nearly three months after the draft, the Giants possibly picked up a third-round or better defensive back.
In fact, it technically will be their third-round pick next season.
In the NFL Supplemental draft Wednesday, the Giants selected Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal. He missed his senior year there because of academic issues. With their selection, the Giants will not have a third-round pick in 2019.
“We feel like we’re getting our third-round pick now,” said general manager Dave Gettleman through a release from the team. “We discussed it at length, and had a great conversation. We basically had a draft meeting in the office, with people on the speaker phone who had seen him. It was a very thorough conversation.”
In three seasons, Beal started 23 of 37 games and had 96 career tackles –68 solo — with two interceptions
The 6-foot, 178-pound Beal has an impressive pro day in late June, as he clocked a 4.47 in the 40-yard dash, registered a vertical jump of 37 inches, and had a broad jump of 10-6.
He has drawn several rave reviews with his coverage play, but he will need to work on his physical play and strength. Many scout services had him targeted as high a late first-round pick in the 2019 draft.
Beal will provide more depth at corner for the G-Men, who will likely begin the year with Janoris Jenkins and Eli Apple as the starters. He will join a bevy of candidates, who will be vying for playing time. However, Beal likely will have trouble adjusting early, as he missed OTAs and min-camp.
He was the first Giants’ selected in the Supplemental Draft since Tito Wooten was selected in the fourth round of the 1994 draft.