Giants Trade for Jalen Milroe After Abdul Carter Pick in Todd McShay's NFL Mock Draft

NFL draft guru Todd McShay projected the New York Giants to make an aggressive play for a quarterback in his newest mock of the 2025 draft.

McShay had the Giants taking Penn State edge-rusher Abdul Carter with the No. 3 overall pick and then trading up to No. 24 in order to select Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe.

"I don't have a Round 1 grade on Jalen Milroe, and none of the evaluators I've spoken with in the NFL do, either," he said. "But it takes only one. And mock drafts aren't about my rankings; they're about the intel."

McShay pointed to the fact that Milroe received an invitation to sit in the green room on draft day. He posited how it could be a sign the Crimson Tide signal-caller is likely to be a first-round pick because "the NFL has made it abundantly clear that it does not want another Aaron Rodgers, Brady Quinn, or even Will Levis green-room situation on its hands."

Rodgers, Quinn and Levis all went later than expected, with Levis falling out of the first round altogether. It made for an agonizing viewing experience when the cameras showed them sitting with their families in the green room as the event unfolded.

As McShay pointed out, few have Milroe as a first-round talent. He's the No. 77 overall prospect and fifth-best quarterback on Bleacher Report's 2025 big board.

Milroe took a step backward as a senior, throwing for fewer touchdowns (16) and more interceptions (11) while averaging similar passing yards (218.8) compared to 2023. The dual-threat QB did run for 726 yards and 20 scores.

The Giants are heading into the draft after having signed both Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston to shore up their quarterback room. Because of that, the need to strengthen the position is a little less pressing.

Still, nobody expects Wilson or Winston to be a long-term solution, so it makes sense for New York to take the best player available (Carter in the case of McShay's mock) and then grab a quarterback later on.

One downside with trading up and then reaching for Milroe in the first round is that it would set artificially high expectations and put added pressure on both him and the team. That sort of defeats the purpose of waiting to draft a QB.