2015 NFL Mock Draft: New York Giants select Landon Collins

Landon Collins, S, Alabama

Contrary to the belief of nearly every draft expert, this iteration of the Giants did not believe Brandon Scherff was the correct player to pick at #9.

The Giants loaded up on depth signings during free agency at (almost) every position.
On offense, Brett Jones and Marshall Newhouse were added to the offensive line while Shane Vereen and Dwayne Harris were added to the skills positions. On defense, Kenrick Ellis and George Selvie were added to the defensive line while Jonathan Casillas and J.T. Thomas were added to the linebacking corps.

There is one position, however, where the Giants have left much to be desired: Safety (both spots). The current safeties for the Giants are ... drum roll please ... Nat Berhe and Cooper Taylor! Not only did the G-Men miss out on any of the free agent safety options, but they also lost Antrel Rolle to Chicago and have yet to re-sign Quintin Demps.

While it is generally not advised to pick for need in the 1st round of the NFL Draft, Collins might be one of the best available players as he is considered by most to be a first round talent. In recent years, only a few safeties have been picked in the top 15: Kenny Vaccaro (2013), Mark Barron (2012), Eric Berry (2010), Earl Thomas (2010). There may be no such thing as a sure thing, but when you look at talent, Landon Collins has the makings to be another top safety.

In 2014, the Giants ranked 18th in pass defense and 30th in rush defense. As you can see above, Collins will go a long way to boost the pitiful run defense of which Steve Spagnuolo is once again in charge. The Giants would add a tackling machine to their back end who would instantly add an element of toughness to that side of the ball. From reports, Collins lacks the recovery speed and ball skills to be much of a threat in pass defense. But perhaps his 4.53 40 time is an indicator of potential to improve in that area.

2015 BGN Mock Draft Order

1) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (slickpablovick) - Jameis Winston, QB, FSU - [Explanation]
2) Tennessee Titans (mchiodo) - Leonard Williams, DE, USC - [Explanation]
3) Jacksonville Jaguars ("Snax") - Dante Fowler Jr., OLB, UF - [Explanation]
4) Oakland Raiders (kylebruneault) - Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama - [Explanation]
5) Washington Redskins (BigTimeTMZ) - Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon - [Explanation]
6) New York Jets (4thand26) - Kevin White, WR, WVU - [Explanation]
7) Chicago Bears (rohan915) - Vic Beasley, OLB, Clemson - [Explanation]
8) Atlanta Falcons (GMinTraining) - Danny Shelton, DT, Washington - [Explanation]
9) New York Giants (Grandpapa Joe) - Landon Collins, S, Alabama - [Explanation]
10) St. Louis Rams (deg0ey) -
11) Minnesota Vikings (ablesser88) -
12) Cleveland Browns (djcunningham) -
13) New Orleans Saints (del.champion) -
14) Miami Dolphins (drc242) -
15) San Francisco 49ers (SleepingDuck) -
16) Houston Texans (JaviYL) -
17) San Diego Chargers (StoneColeKiller58) -
18) Kansas City Chiefs (jimmyrustler) -
19) Cleveland Browns (NowWhat?) -
20) Philadelphia Eagles (sports00fan00) -
21) Cincinnati Bengals (Zach_The_Gamecock) -
22) Pittsburgh Steelers (KJ Brophy) -
23) Detroit Lions (KamiKazeJEDI) -
24) Arizona Cardinals (ItownBallers22) -
25) Carolina Panthers (AndyMcNabb) -
26) Baltimore Ravens (dceagles) -
27) Dallas Cowboys (kamjam) -
28) Denver Broncos (WubbaLubbaDubDub) -
29) Indianapolis Colts (ei78) -
30) Green Bay Packers (Nka727) -
31) New Orleans Saints (SwoopThereItIs) -
32) New England Patriots (naderg43) -