NY Giants take Sam Beal in NFL Supplemental Draft in bold move

Art Stapleton
NorthJersey

The Giants made a bold move to improve their secondary Wednesday with the selection of Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal in the third round of the NFL Supplemental Draft.

Beal, 21, is considered the best prospect available in the supplemental draft since the Browns picked wide receiver Josh Gordon in 2012. The Giants will give up their 2019 third round pick for Beal, a 6-foot-1 standout with good ball skills whose first career college interception came against Jets quarterback and USC star Sam Darnold.

“We’re very, very excited about getting Sam in the draft,” Giants general manager Dave Gettleman said. “He’s long, he’s very athletic for a corner, he has all the physical skills, he can carry the vertical, he has very good play speed, he shows instincts out there, he has ball awareness, he doesn’t panic when the ball is thrown at his guy, and he is a very willing tackler. We just feel it gives us a really talented young kid with the ability to ascend.”

In 2017, Beal started all 11 games in which he played and had 26 tackles with a career-high 12 pass breakups for Western Michigan. He ran a 4.4 40-yard dash at his Pro Day last month.

Western Michigan defensive back Sam Beal, right, intercepts a pass intended for Southern California wide receiver Jalen Greene during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2017, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

The Giants had previously taken just two players in the supplemental draft, and with mixed results: quarterback Dave Brown (first round, 1992) and cornerback Tito Wooten (fourth round, 1994).

Janoris Jenkins and Eli Apple are viewed as the starting corners within defensive coordinator James Bettcher's unit coming out of the offseason program, and both had their ups and downs last season. After that, the Giants have a lot of bodies, veterans and younger prospects alike, as contenders to grab a spot with a strong performance in training camp and the preseason.

Bettcher's multiple 3-4 scheme requires corners, especially on the outside, to play a lot of man-to-man and press coverage, which should fit Beal's style of play.

This is a long-term play with possible short-term gains with respect to Beal, who entered the supplemental draft because of the expectation that he would be shy the necessary credits to be eligible to play at Western Michigan this upcoming season.

When it comes to determining Dave Gettleman's way of doing things, it's very clear that he trusts his evaluation of college prospects. In some circles, Beal was projected as a Top 100 pick had he entered the 2018 draft.

Instead, he reportedly decided to stay in school previously with the intent to finish his degree as a promise made with his mother.

Only one other player of the five eligible was drafted Wednesday. The Washington Redskins took Virginia Tech cornerback Adonis Alexander in the sixth round.

“We feel like we’re getting our [2019] third-round pick now,” Gettleman said of Beal, who does not appear to come with any off-the-field concerns that often burden prospects traditionally available in the supplemental draft. “We discussed it at length yesterday, and had a great conversation. We basically had a draft meeting in the office, with people on the speaker phone who had seen him. It was a very thorough conversation.”

From a contract perspective, Beal will be slotted in the rookie scale as if he were selected in the third round of the current class. Any knocks on Beal's game focus on his weight (he's measured a bit light at 178 at his Pro Day, so he'll have to get stronger), which likely coincides with his tackling inefficiency.

But Beal's technique is solid, according to numerous scouts, and his skill set plays in the NFL, meaning he could contribute as soon as he gets up to speed with the playbook with the rest of the defense having been spotted a two-month head start.

Much of the depth behind Jenkins and Apple is part of the competition to replace Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie at nickel corner. William Gay, Donte Deayon and rookie Grant Haley remain in the mix there with B.W. Webb and Teddy Williams as other options on the perimeter. Beal should get plenty of chances to work his way into the lineup, especially now with his draft pedigree.

The Giants had the third pick in each round of the supplemental draft behind the Raiders and Jets and in front of the Browns, who were considered a strong suitor for Beal.

The Giants' rookies and quarterbacks will report July 22 for training camp in East Rutherford with the rest of the team joining them July 25.

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