Giants GM Explains Controversial Draft Pick with Eli Manning 'Three Year Plan'

The New York Giants surprised everyone when, on Thursday night, the team selected Duke quarterback Daniel Jones with the sixth pick in the NFL draft, the New York Post reports.

The team anticipates that Jones will ultimately succeed Eli Manning as the franchise quarterback. However, fans weren’t as pleased with Jones as general manager Dave Gettleman was. While singing Jones’ praises, Gettleman tried to justify why they made the pick, considering he might not start for three years.

“Maybe we’re going to be the Green Bay model where [Aaron] Rodgers sat for three years,” Gettleman told reporters after the draft, per the Post. “Who knows? It’s one of those deals where it doesn’t make a difference what position it is. You can never have too many good players at one position.”

It was a slightly wild decision given the Giants’ current circumstances. The 38-year-old Manning playing three more seasons on the team sounds improbable. And Gettleman has still been publicly applauding Manning’s abilities during the offseason, just like he did with Jones on Thursday.

“It’s a wonderful thing when need and value match,” Gettleman said. “We’re thrilled to get Daniel. He was up there with everybody else on our board in terms of value. He is just perfect for us. We really believe in this kid. We really believe he’s gonna be a nice—not a nice—a real quality quarterback for us, for our franchise.”