It was a binary choice, a decision that would seemingly have major consequences on the direction of the Giants’ franchise no matter which way they went.
They either go with running back Saquon Barkley and embark on a win-now path, or consider the best available quarterback and acknowledge that the Eli Manning era will soon come to a close and require an heir apparent.
But is it possible the Giants actually wind up with the best of both worlds? Is it possible that taking the Penn State star tailback with the second overall pick and winding up with quarterback Kyle Lauletta in the fourth round might mean that they can indeed attempt to win now by adding Barkley, while at the same time grooming Lauletta as Manning’s heir apparent?