Bucky Brooks' top five 2022 NFL Draft prospects by position

One week before the draft kicks off in Las Vegas, NFL.com analyst Bucky Brooks released his third and final rankings of the top five draft prospects by position. There were no changes to the No. 1 player at each position, but there were some shakeups further down the list.

Giants revamp data and innovation with new front office hires

Since he took over as Giants general manager, Joe Schoen has talked about getting the right people in the right seats. Some of those chairs are buried in numbers.

The Giants over the offseason made a series of moves in the football operations department regarding analytics. They promoted Courtney Kennedy to Football Data & Innovation Coordinator from Football Data Analyst, and hired three former interns in the department as full-time members: Clark Ewen (Football Data & Innovation Analyst), Matthew Dodson (Scouting Research Analyst) and Maxwell Kirin (Football Data & Systems Coordinator). The department is led by Director of Football Data and Innovation Ty Siam and also includes Ben Burress, Football Data and Innovation Research Analyst.

"From the data and innovation standpoint, the four of them, as soon as I got here, it was service with a smile – 'How can I help you? What can we do?'" Schoen said. "I sat down with each of them and found out where they were from, what their background is, what they specialize in, and what could they do. The more I was around them, the more I utilized them. And the data they were producing, I realized how valuable they were."

On the coaching side, the Giants hired Cade Knox as an offensive assistant/game manager. So, what does he bring to the table?

"Well, he went to Harvard," coach Brian Daboll said of Knox, who has a bachelor's degree in psychology and was a wide receiver on the Crimson football team. "He played football, so he understands situational football. It's not like I'm re-teaching him everything. He's extremely smart. He's hard-working. In the short time that I've been with him, I've asked him to get things done or asked him quick questions and he's been able to really think on his feet and spit it back out to me in a quick manner, which is important for the role that we're going to ask him to do."

Daboll plans to have Knox wearing a headset up in the coaches booth during games.

"We meet every day, he and I," Daboll said. "There's times I don't meet with the entire staff for that day, but he and I will meet at the end of the day. We'll hit some type of situational aspect of the game – 3:14 left, you have two timeouts, you're down by 10, whatever it may be. He goes through and really watches the whole league. He's been a big help up to this point."

Giants reportedly agree to terms with former Texans TE Jordan Akins

According to reports, the New York Giants agreed to terms with tight end Jordan Akins, pending a physical.

The 6-foot-4, 243-pound Akins spent his first four NFL seasons with the Houston Texans, who originally selected him in the third round (98th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft. He has played in 58 games with 23 starts, and his career numbers include 114 catches for 1,260 yards and three touchdowns. He has also played in one postseason game.

Akins played four seasons (2014-17) at the University of Central Florida, amassing 1,149 yards receiving and eight touchdowns in 41 career games played. He also returned punts and kicks for the Knights. Prior to that, he was selected in the third round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft by the Texas Rangers. He hit .218 as an outfielder in four seasons in the Texas farm system, including a .283 mark in 2011.

2022 NFL schedule to be released May 12

The NFL announced that the 2022 NFL Schedule will be released on Thursday, May 12 at 8 p.m. ET.

The NFC East will face the NFC North and AFC South next season. Because NFC teams will host the 17th game that was added in 2021, the Giants will have nine home games in 2022.

Here is a look at the Giants' 2022 opponents:

HOME

• Dallas Cowboys
• Philadelphia Eagles
• Washington Football Team
• Chicago Bears
• Detroit Lions
• Carolina Panthers
• Houston Texans
• Indianapolis Colts
• Baltimore Ravens

AWAY

• Dallas Cowboys
• Philadelphia Eagles
• Washington Football Team
• Green Bay Packers
• Minnesota Vikings
• Jacksonville Jaguars
• Tennessee Titans
• Seattle Seahawks