EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Joe Schoen could become a very popular NFL figure in the next week. Not just because he's intelligent and engaging or because he holds a high-profile position as the Giants' general manager.
Schoen owns two desirable commodities in next week's NFL Draft – the fifth and seventh selections in the first round. The Giants are one of seven teams with two first-round choices and join the Jets as teams with multiple picks in the top 10.
"Right now, we're planning that we have five and seven, the rest of our picks, et cetera," Schoen said today at his pre-draft news conference. "We have received calls on both picks. Again, it's too early (to know exactly what will happen). We're still working through our process. It's more, hey, let's stay in contact as the draft gets closer. We'll go through those scenarios. It's too early right now to make any type of decision like that."
Simply receiving a phone call is nothing close to a deal. Indeed, Schoen hasn't received a specific proposal for either of his first-round choices.
"Not a hard offer, no," he said. "We haven't got into negotiations. Just some teams called and said, would you be willing to move? That's kind of where it is right now. My comment was as the draft gets closer, we can talk more if there's any specifics, if you're serious about doing it.
I think some teams are just fishing around."
Schoen has not casted a line, hoping for a trade nibble. He concedes the Giants have many holes to fill, and the prudent course of action might well be to take two of the top seven players on their draft board.
"I think where we are in our roster, there's several needs," he said. "To put a finger on what exactly the biggest need is would be difficult. If you can find two really good football players at five and seven, that's how we stacked the board. Let's just throw need, whatever perceived need is, out. Who are the best football players in this draft?
"We've set a vertical board and we have a horizontal board as well. It's not completely set. There's still some conversations to be had. I don't think you can go wrong with drafting good football players."
Which is why he feels no pressure to make a trade, even one that would deliver additional choices for the 2023 draft.
"It's a situation where I'm perfectly fine at five and seven," he said. "If it makes sense, something that blows your doors off, then you think about it if somebody offers something. Nobody's offered anything, hard offer, right now.
"To me, it really wouldn't make sense right now to do anything, again, unless it blew the doors off, something you can't turn down. I think a lot of it right now, same as me, people are starting to come out of meetings, stepping back, meeting with their coaches. Now you kind of get into the planning part of it. If it's a team behind us, they want to move up, how can we get there, who can we call. Some exploratory calls typically will happen now. By Monday, you'll find out who is serious. Who is Jacksonville (picking first) going to take, Detroit (No. 2), all those rumors. It will pick up steam next week, there will be more serious conversations if there are teams that are legit serious thinking about coming up."
*Those two first-round draft choices aren't the only Giants capital drawing interest from other teams.
"We've gotten calls on James Bradberry," Schoen said of the 2020 Pro Bowl cornerback.
The Giants have little room to maneuver under the salary cap. The last three times he's spoken to reporters – at the NFL Scouting Combine, the league's annual meeting and today – Schoen has been asked about the possibility of trading Bradberry, perhaps the team's easiest path to significant cap savings.
Three weeks ago, Schoen said, "he's 28-years old. He's two years removed from a Pro Bowl season. He's still a high caliber starting corner. I'll reflect back to what I said at the combine, a last resort is converting and restructuring contracts, so there's ways we can get creative if we need to."
The Bradberry issue was again raised today.
"We'll figure that out," Schoen said. "I've had great conversations with James Bradberry's representatives. I've talked to James. He can still play in this league. He's a starting corner. We talked. He wasn't here today. There are contingency plans, as I mentioned at the combine and owners meeting, where he could still be a New York Giant."
