If the Giants are a win-now team, they can't possibly let Penn State RB Saquon Barkley slip by them at No. 2 in Thursday night's NFL Draft, Hall of Fame WR Michael Irvin told SNY's Ralph Vacchiano on Wednesday in Dallas. 

Irvin said the Giants are in a tough spot, and that it's tempting to take "that young talented quarterback" they may see at No. 2, but...

"You see a talent like a Saquon Barkley there, and you say 'whoa.' If I'm going to go with Eli (Manning) and we're trying to make that run, I don't know how you let that kid Barkley get away," Irvin said. "And especially, that's a place of need for you. To get that kind of talent at that position. I just don't see how you let it go."

Count Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence among those who don't want the Giants to Draft a quarterback with the No. 2 overall selection on Thursday night.

Click below for Lawrence's tweet...

The Giants will likely hold on to the No. 2 pick in the Draft, surmises Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who says it seems like there isn't a lot of interest from teams wanting to move up, and that the Giants want to make the pick anyway.

"I don't think you rule out anything at this point," head coach Pat Shurmur said on Thursday, "but we're planning on picking there at No 2."

SNY's Ralph Vacchiano has reported that GM Dave Gettleman's price was high regarding the potential of trading back and that he is believed to have his limits at how far he'll drop.

Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive: ARLINGTON, Tex. -- When Dave Gettleman took over the Giants he inherited a 3-13 mess of a team with plenty of holes and a 37-year-old quarterback. The only good news was he also inherited the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL draft.

And when Gettleman makes that pick shortly after 8 p.m. on Thursday night, he won't just be making his first pick as the new Giants general manager, he'll be making the franchise's most important pick since the Eli Manning draft in 2004. What he hopes to select is a "gold jacket" player -- a future Hall of Fame talent. He also has a chance to select a Quarterback of the Future that could set the Giants up for the post-Manning years.

Which way will he go? Here's a look at how I expect the Giants' selection to play out:

Giants WR Odell Beckham, Jr. practiced on Thursday for the first time since season-ending ankle surgery.

Beckham did individual drills before heading to the sidelines to continue working.

He has been present for all three days of the Giants' voluntary minicamp, which concludes Thursday. Beckham also showed up to the first day of the Giants' voluntary offseason workout program earlier this month.

Giants RB Paul Perkins needed surgery after suffering a torn pectoral muscle while working out on his own before the offseason program, reports SNY's Ralph Vacchiano.

The Giants have not yet announced a timetable for Perkins' recovery, though Vacchiano notes that -- depending on the extent of the tear -- the general recovery timetable is four-to-six months. 

Along with Perkins, the other notable running backs on the Giants' roster are Jonathan Stewart and Wayne Gallman. However, the Giants' RB corps will get a huge boost on Thursday night if they select Penn State RB Saquon Barkley with the No. 2 pick in the Draft...

There's a "mounting belief" among head coaches and general managers around the league that the Cleveland Browns will take Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfield with the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday night, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.

A report Wednesday from Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com indicated that the Browns could be deciding between Mayfield and Wyoming QB Josh Allen at No. 1.

The Browns had been linked most recently to USC QB Sam Darnold as their likely choice at No. 1, with Mayfield's name first thrown in the mix on Tuesday. Now, the Browns are reportedly "cooling" on Darnold...

Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive

ARLINGTON, Tex. -- After months of rumors, reports and lies -- a lot of lies -- here is my final best guess about how the first 10 picks of the 2018 NFL draft are going to play out on Thursday night.

NC State DE Bradley Chubb is hoping his former teammate Evan Engram is pushing for the Giants to select him in Thursday night's NFL Draft.

"I hope so," Chubb told SNY's Ralph Vacchiano on Wednesday in Dallas. "I hope he's up there fighting for me." 

Chubb also spoke with Vacchiano about his visit with the Giants, comparisons to Michael Strahan, and the idea of playing in New York.

USC QB Sam Darnold didn't get to meet with Eli Manning during his visit with the Giants, but got to see plenty of Jets during his visit with them.

"I saw him from a distance and he was working, so I didn't want to bother him," Darnold said about Manning. "We had a chance to meet at the Manning Camp, which was awesome."

Regarding the Jets, Darnold said he got to see a bunch of players he was familiar with.

The Giants might take a quarterback who they see as their next franchise guy No. 2 overall during Thursday night's NFL Draft in Dallas. But Davis Webb isn't sweating it. 

"No, because Mr. [General Manager Dave] Gettleman gets paid a lot and he's very high up on the chain and his job is to make a decision that's going to help the Giants," Webb said on Wednesday at the Giants' Minicamp. "So, if that's a quarterback, or if that's another position, whatever. As long as it helps the New York Football Giants, and that's all I'm about. I'm a team guy, I've said that last year, I'll say it again. My number one goal is to be the best teammate I possibly can be and whoever we get [with the] number two overall pick, we're excited about and he's going to be a great member of our team."

Webb, who didn't play in any regular season games in 2017 despite Eli Manning getting benched toward the end of the season, is simply waiting for his chance. And he isn't worried about proving himself between now and Week 1...

UCLA QB Josh Rosen, who is expected to be taken early in the first round during the NFL Draft on Thursday night, had fun with reporters who were asking him on Wednesday about the potential of being selected by the Giants at No. 2 or the Jets at No. 3.

"You're trying to catch me," Rosen playfully told SNY's Ralph Vacchiano when asked about the media spotlight in New York.

Rosen also discussed his visits to the Giants and Jets. Hear his full comments below...

Giants QB Eli Manning has met most of the top quarterbacks and running backs who will be available in Thursday night's NFL Draft, but doesn't want to dive deep in to what might happen. Instead, he'll let the process play out and comment after. 

"I met most of the top quarterbacks before," Manning said on Wednesday at the Giants' Minicamp. "But I did get to see a few of them in the facility and I went up and talked to them just because I've been around them before. Some of the running backs, also, so I saw a few of the guys over the year. All of them are obviously good players and good people from my encounters with them, so all went well."

With the No. 2 pick, the Giants are expected to tab Penn State RB Saquon Barkley, or perhaps USC QB Sam Darnold if he slips past the Browns at No. 1. Or, they could trade back and select NC State DE Bradley Chubb or Notre Dame OL Quenton Nelson. 

Scott Thompson, SNY.tv | Twitter |: With just one day left until the 2018 NFL Draft, all eyes will be on new Giants GM Dave Gettleman to see who he takes with his No. 2 overall pick.

Whether it is one of the top quarterbacks like USC's Sam Darnold, or a top position player in Penn State RB Saquon Barkley or N.C. State's Bradley Chubb, Giants fans will hope it is the right guy at the No. 2 overall pick. 

Let's take a look at who the Giants have selected as their first-rounder in the past, and how their careers have panned out so far. 

With just one day left until the NFL Draft, prospects across the country have their minds focused on who they may play for in their rookie seasons, including Penn State RB Saquon Barkley. 

But on Tuesday, those thoughts were put on the backburner as he welcomed his first child -- Jada Claire Barkley -- to the world.

CLICK BELOW TO SEE HIS POST

Former Giants QB Phil Simms doesn't want the Giants to draft a quarterback, and his reasoning isn't because he wants another specific player. 

He thinks drafting one of the top-rated signal callers will be too much of a distraction. 

"What if he goes out there in the preseason and he just lights it up?" Simms told The Post's Steve Serby. "Then [Eli Manning and] the Giants start out 0-2. And what are we gonna hear? What's Steve Serby gonna write? 'Well I think it's time to see the second pick in the draft, we gotta see, we gotta see.' The fans...so there's many things...

The Giants would save $2.4 million by trading OL Ereck Flowers, but he would still count for $2.1 million in dead money on their cap, reports SNY's Ralph Vacchiano.

The Giants are looking to trade Flowers during the 2018 NFL Draft, Vacchiano confirmed.

The Giants' new regime is officially underway with the team's three-day minicamp on Tuesday, led by new head coach Pat Shurmur. It is a fresh start after an atrocious 2017 season. 

For defensive end Olivier Vernon, the team's fresh start involves a position change under new defensive coordinator James Bettcher. Vernon will now work in a 3-4 defense, but how the team will exactly utilize the veteran lineman is yet to be seen. 

Vernon doesn't even know how the Giants will use him in this new system. 

It isn't a secret that CB Janoris Jenkins and former Cowboys WR Dez Bryant are heated rivals between the hashes. They have exchange verbal bouts over Twitter, and of course, physical ones on the field. 

But that doesn't mean Jenkins would be opposed to Bryant being his teammate next season. In fact, he has been trying to recruit him to New York. 

The Cowboys decided to release the 29-year-old veteran receiver, and he has yet to find a new home in the NFL. Like many other players around the league, Jenkins has thought about the prospect of pairing Bryant up his team's wide receivers, which in this case includes Odell Beckham Jr., Sterling Shepard, and Evan Engram.

The Giants are expected by many to take RB Saquon Barkley with the No. 2 pick in Thursday night's NFL Draft. Or to perhaps trade back and take DE Bradley Chubb or OL Quenton Nelson.

One thing the Giants aren't expected to do? Take one of the highly-touted quarterbacks. And if they do pass them up, they will be showing confidence in the future of Eli Manning. And perhaps Davis Webb as well.

The 23-year-old Webb was selected by the Giants in the third round (87th overall) of the 2017 Draft. And in a peculiar move, he didn't see the field last season after Manning was benched. So what can he show new head coach Pat Shurmur during this week's voluntary minicamp that concludes on Draft Day?

More good news comes from the Giants' East Rutherford facility Tuesday regarding star WR Odell Beckham Jr., as he showed up for the team's three-day minicamp ahead of the NFL Draft. 

Head coach Pat Shurmur, who is leading his new team over the three days, also said that Beckham will "absolutely" be on the Giants for the 2018 season. 

Shurmur added that he and Beckham "constantly communicate" since he was placed in his new position. Their conversations -- with the latest right before the minicamp -- are "open and honest with each other" whether it is over text or a phone call. 

What is NFL Draft week without some drama over the No. 1 pick?

With reports circulating Monday that Wyoming QB Josh Allen is no longer in consideration for the Browns' No. 1 pick, ESPN's Adam Schefter is now reporting that Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfield is "definitely" in the conversation. 

Schefter continues by saying the Browns may have their choice in mind for their first overall pick, and before that decision was made, Mayfield was a player in the mix.

The bulk of the attention has been on who the Giants will do with the No. 2 overall pick in Thursday night's NFL Draft.

Will it be RB Saquon Barkley? One of the highly-touted QBs? Will they trade back and take DE Bradley Chubb or OL Quenton Nelson?

Lost in the shuffle a bit has been the fact that the Giants have a very high (34th overall) second round pick as well. And SNY NFL Insider Ralph Vacchiano and SNY NFL Draft Expert Rich Cirminiello recently discussed who the Giants will take with that pick.

Last week, Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was seen using a battle rope to train alongside free-agent wide receiver Dez Bryant.

On Monday, he used a different kind of rope and a different prop: a car.

Beckham posted a workout video of him pulling a GMC Denali that, according to TMZ Sports, weighs between 5,600 pounds and 5,800 pounds, as he looks to return from injury.

The Buffalo Bills are reportedly unlikely to trade up with the Giants for the No. 2 pick, NFL Network's Ian Rapaport reports.

Giants GM Dave Gettleman has said the team "can't get too cute" with what they will do with the No. 2 pick in Thursday's draft, especially given he feels the team could pick a future Hall of Famer.

Rapaport said he would be "surprised" if the Bills, who have the Nos. 12 and 22 picks in the first round, and the Nos. 53 and 56 picks in the second, traded a bunch of assets to move up to the No. 2 slot.

The Browns' choices for their No. 1 pick seem to have come down to two choices just three days away from the NFL Draft: Sam Darnold or Josh Allen?

Yes, there is always the prospect of the Browns going with RB Saquon Barkley with their first overall selection, knowing they have the No. 4 pick later on. However, experts including SI's Peter King see Cleveland getting their quarterback first before addressing anywhere else. 

Recently, rumblings about Allen going No. 1 have gained some steam. But King's most trusted source says Allen is too much of a risk, and the Browns don't want to get another quarterback pick wrong.

Former Jets QB and current SNY analyst Ray Lucas is pretty firm on who he thinks Giants GM Dave Gettleman should select with the second pick in the Draft on Thursday night.

"He's been funny in the papers, joking around and stuff -- it's a very important pick," Lucas said about Gettleman on Sunday night on SNY. "And if he doesn't take Saquon Barkley, somebody should get him drug tested."

Barkley, 21, is viewed by most as the best player in the Draft, and Gettleman didn't try to hide his feelings about him when speaking at his pre-Draft press conference last week...

For most players participating in the Giants' three-day minicamp that begins Tuesday, it is just another offseason workout. 

But, for backup QB Davis Webb, it may be the only opportunity to impress new head coach Pat Shurmur. 

The debate since the Giants received their No. 2 overall pick following an atrocious 3-13 campaign last season has been whether or not to take a quarterback to be Eli Manning's successor when his time is up. But many forget that Webb has yet to prove himself in a regular season game after seeing nothing but the bench in his rookie season. 

Giants S Landon Collins underwent his second surgery to repair his right forearm on Monday, per ESPN's Jordan Raanan. 

It was reported two weeks ago that doctors didn't see Collins' forearm healing the way they had hoped, and a second surgery to repair it again was recommended.

Now that it is complete, the expected recovery time for the All-Pro safety is 6-8 weeks, which will have him recovered before the start of training camp. 

He might want to see a deal get done, but the Giants currently don't have any interest in employing former Cowboys WR Dez Bryant next season.

At least, not right now.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport went on "NFL Up to the Minute" Friday night, and said the Giants haven't been among the teams he has heard looking at the wideout at the moment.

The Giants have finalized a trade for Broncos P Riley Dixon, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

In return, the Giants sent a conditional seventh-round 2019 draft pick to Denver.

After the release of P Brad Wing, the Giants have been in search of a new punter. Well, with former Raiders P Marquette King joining the Broncos this offseason, Dixon was on the trading block and the Giants appear to want his services for next season. 

Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive

The Giants are sitting in the power position of the NFL draft, holding the fates of several teams and players in the palms of their hands. And everyone is watching, waiting and guessing, because no one is really sure what Dave Gettleman is going to do.

And that, by the way, is just how the Giants GM likes it.

Dave Gettleman held his pre-Draft press conference on Thursday, and as he usually does, fired off a bunch of awesome one-liners, had fun with the reporters in attendance, and poked fun at his heavy Boston accent.

Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive

The Giants may spend part of their summer in the suburbs of Detroit, holding a few days of joint practices with the Lions.

The two teams are in talks about holding the joint workouts, according to a source, which would take place sometime during the week of Aug. 12-18. The training camp sessions would lead up to the Giants' Week 2 preseason game against the Lions at Ford Field in Detroit on Friday, Aug. 17 at 7 p.m. 

Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was featured alongside free agent Dez Bryant in an Instagram video of the two of them working out together Thursday night.

Bryant, the former Cowboys wideout who has said he would be interested in coming to New York, posted a video of the two of them using battle ropes to train.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The entire NFL world seems to know that the Giants are in love with Penn State running back Saquon Barkley. It's so obvious that even just a week before the draft, Giants GM Dave Gettleman isn't trying to hide it.

"I'm not going to lie. He's a tremendous talent," Gettleman said at his pre-draft press conference on Thursday. "You put the film on of a defensive guy and if they're playing Penn State, then I'm watching Saquon. He's one of those guys that my mother could have scouted. She could have figured that one out."

So the Giants are taking him with the second overall pick in the NFL draft, as long as the Cleveland Browns don't take him at No. 1, right?...

The Giants will open the 2018 season at home against the Jaguars, and wrap things up at home against the Cowboys.

The schedule will also include a primetime game against the Cowboys in Dallas in Week 2, and Monday night games at Atlanta and San Francisco.

Their full schedule is below, confirmed by SNY's Ralph Vacchiano...

On Thursday the Giants' released WR Brandon Marshall and the general speculation immediately was that the team might try and pursue ex-Cowboys WR Dez Bryant. 

Well, there's another receiver that has noticed the opportunity. Free agent WR Victor Cruz tweeted that he heard there was an opening in New York...

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Dave Gettleman understands the high pressure of making the second overall pick in the draft, where he's said he expects to find a Hall of Fame-caliber player. It's even more intense this year, with so many quarterbacks potentially in play.

Pick the right one, and Gettleman could set the Giants up for the next decade. Pick the wrong one, he said, and "You've really hurt the franchise for probably five years. It's a five-year mistake."

But don't pick one at all, and let a great one slide past him - particularly with the Jets picking at No. 3? That's a mistake that could hurt the Giants for a decade, or maybe more...

The Giants have released WR Brandon Marshall due to a failed physical, GM Dave Gettleman said on Thursday. Marshall had agreed to take a pay cut, but was released anyway, reports Kimberly A. Martin of The Washington Post.

Marshall signed a two-year deal prior to last season, and his release frees up $5.1 million in salary cap space for this season. 

The 34-year-old Marshall missed the majority of the 2017 season due to season-ending ankle surgery after tearing ligaments in Week 5.

SNY NFL Insider Ralph Vacchiano and SNY NFL Draft Expert Rich Cirminiello discuss who the Giants will select 2nd overall in the NFL Draft next Thursday.

The question all along, according to Vacchiano, has been whether the Giants will tab their next franchise quarterback or Penn State RB Saquon Barkley.

"If the Browns go with Sam Darnold, which I expect to happen, I don't think the Giants take a quarterback," said Cirminiello, adding that at that point, the Giants should take the best player available -- which is Barkley...

Saquon Barkley can already envision himself in the Giants' offense. And it looks scary good. 

Barkley recently spoke about the prospect of joining the Giants, which some believe is a lock next Thursday. Having his versatile skill set in the backfield to go along with Odell Beckham and Co. on the outside has a good ring to Barkley's ears. 

"I think Eli Manning definitely has a lot in the tank left," Barkley told Penn State Live. "He's still an extraordinary player. You have Odell Beckham, one of the most exciting players in the NFL for three or four years. Then you talk about Sterling Shepard and the tight ends...

It isn't a smokescreen. Saquon Barkley appears to be the guy the Giants want at No. 2. 

At least, that's what ESPN's Todd McShay feels from the Giants' camp. News has swirled around the Giants wanting to take Barkley with their first-round selection, with fellow ESPN analyst Louis Riddick saying there is a "strong sentiment" for Barkley in New York's building. 

But McShay topped Riddick's opinion by saying it is "inevitable" the Penn State running back will be daunting a Big Blue jersey next season. 

The Browns have the No. 1 and No. 4 overall picks in next Thursday's NFL Draft, and it is widely expected that they'll take a quarterback with the No. 1 pick. But if they opt to take Penn State RB Saquon Barkley -- whether it's at No. 1 or No. 4 -- his handlers reportedly won't be happy.

"They don't want him in Cleveland," writes Ben Baskin for SI in a wide-ranging piece. "They want him to go second to the Giants and play in the media capital of the world. That's where you can become the Face of the League."

According to Baskin, Barkley's manager wanted him to demand that the Browns not draft him -- which Barkley was against, with him telling friends recently that if he brings a championship to the Browns, there will be a statue built in his honor.

Brandon Marshall isn't too keen on all the Dez Bryant-to-the-Giants talk. 

The now former Cowboys receiver said he wants to stay in division next season, and he has been hinting that the Giants could be a good destination for him. The social-media savvy Bryant has been on Twitter regularly since being released by the Cowboys last weekend, and the Giants are among the teams he has flirted with on his page. 

Giants players have expressed their own interest in Bryant as their teammate next season, with one being CB Janoris Jenkins.