d a great Thanksgiving — unless you live outside the United States Evan Engram Color Rush Jersey , in which case I hope you had a great November 22nd. But with Thanksgiving football now in our rear view mirror and the second meeting of the New York Giants and Philadelphi Eagles still a sleep away, it’s time to turn our attention to the football on Saturday. And after a fairly lackluster slate of games last week, we are in for a treat this week. We found out late Friday that Dave Gettleman was in attendance for West Virginia’s game against Oklahoma. It seems likely that he was there to scout Will Grier after scouting Oregon QB Justin Herbert earlier in the year.Obvious watch games(4) Michigan at (10) Ohio State - FOX, Noon (Note: Giants’ scouts will be in attendance)Auburn at (1) Alabama - CBS, 3:30 p.m.(3) Notre Dame at USC - ABC, 8 p.m.Okay, now that the three biggest games are out of the way, let’s take a look at a couple other games that should be interesting.(11) Florida at Florida State ABC - NoonNeither of these teams are quite what they were a few years ago, with Florida challenging for the SEC title and FSU would be contending for the ACC crown. However, for a team in need of EDGE rushers — and more speed on the defense in general — this game has a couple very interesting players. Those would be Brian Burns of Florida State and Jachai Polite of Florida. They’re different players, Burns is a long and lean rusher who already shows surprising maturity in technique, while Polite is a compact speedster off the edge. Players to watchFloridaJachai Polite (EDGE)Vosean Joseph (LB)Jawaan Taylor (OT)FSUBrian Burns (EDGE)Demarcus Christmas (DT)Levonta Taylor (CB)(7) LSU at (22) Texas A&M SEC Network - 7 p.m. Sadly, this game won’t be available for everyone, but if you have the SECN and are waiting for Notre Dame at USC, this one is definitely worth a watchIn particular, because given the importance of the secondary to the Giants’ defense — and the weakness of the Giants’ secondary — it is entirely possible that LSU CB Greedy Williams will be a Giant come May of 2019. But even beyond Williams Patrick Omameh Color Rush Jersey , LSU has a number of prospects who could work their way in to the top - 100 of the 2019 draft. Greedy Williams (CB)Kristian Fulton (CB)Devin White (ILB)Rashard Lawrence (DT)Garrett Brumfield (IOL) Nick Brossette (RB) We’re in that no-man’s land part of the offseason where all we can do is talk about what might happen with the New York Giants before the 2019 season begins. That’s because right now nothing is really happening.So, let’s open up the BBV mailbag and talk. Here we go.Ed says: I would guess the Giants might call to see if Derek Carr really is available and what the price tag might be. That’s part of the due diligence any team in the quarterback market should do. Do I think the Giants would seriously consider giving up what it would take to get Carr? No, I don’t. Nor do I think they should.The Giants have a lot of holes to fill. They are far more than a quarterback away from being a top-tier team. They need to draft well and develop a core of players who eventually earn second contracts. In my view, the cost here isn’t worth it.Ed says: You can’t do that. Can teams fine players for missing blocks, committing penalties, throwing interceptions, fumbling, missing tackles, etc.? Nope. You assess their performance like you do in any other job. If they deserve to keep that job, they keep it. If they don’t, you replace them. Every human being has made mistakes — many of them. It is part of life. You want to train officials the best you can and give them the best chance to succeed — just like coaches want to do with players.I don’t believe the NFL has put officials in the best position to get things right. I believe they are asked to do far too much, to judge too much intent, splice through too much minutiae and wade through rules that are far too complex in a game moving at a frenetic pace your television set can’t come close to conveying. I think replay has to be changed to include pass interference, and in an ideal world to be able to correct any egregiously incorrect or missed call that can impact the outcome of a game. But, no, you can’t take money out of a guy’s pocket because he got a call wrong.Robert Tucker asks: Do you think the Giants should attempt to use their surplus of Day 3 draft picks to secure a few additional Day 2 picks?Even with 9 picks in the 2019 draft Landon Collins Color Rush Jersey , possibly 11 with comp. picks, there is currently only one Day 2 pick.The 2018 draft was clearly successful, but I think it’s important to remember that the Giants had 3 early/mid round picks on Day 2. Yes, there are always “gems” to be found in later rounds, but the success rate is much better in rounds 1-3. What can reasonably be done to bundle picks from rounds 4 through 7 to get back into rounds 2 or 3?Ed says: I do believe that having the additional picks gives the Giants some flexibility. I do not advocate trading up from No. 6. As I have said before, I think that would cost them too much in terms of draft capital.If they feel the need to use a couple of those picks to move around the board in the middle rounds, perhaps to get into Round 3, I would be on board with that. It can happen, but if the Giants were to draft 11 players it seems unlikely all of them would make the 53-man roster. If you feel like you can use a couple of those later picks to go target a mid-round player you really want, I say go for it.John M. Scott asks: We’ve heard DG’s explanation of the Snacks trade... move Dalvin to the 1, and B.J. to the 3... but I haven’t seen the stats and I’m not sure if there was an improvement or decline in run-stopping over the 2nd half of the season. Is it reasonable to expect Tomlinson to continue filling the shoes that Harrison left behind, or do we need another big 1-tech to split the workload? Ed says: The baseline stats are these:With Damon Harrison:Rushing yards allowed per game: 113.9Rushing yards allowed per attempt: 4.3Without Harrison:Rushing yards allowed per game: 122.3Rushing yards allowed per attempt: 4.3Overall a few yards more per game but the identical yards per attempt average. So, really a negligible difference statistically.The benefits were in the added playing time for Dalvin Tomlinson and B.J. Hill. Tomlinson got 40+ snaps in seven of the final nine games after playing 40 snaps in only three of the first seven. In the first seven games, Hill never played more than 37 snaps. In the final seven game he never played fewer than 42, and in the final two games he played more than 60 snaps.Yes, the Giants need more help on the line. They need more help everywhere on defense. My view Dalvin Tomlinson Color Rush Jersey , though, is that trading ‘Snacks’ was the right move. I continue to think that deal was made because they were intending to move on from him after the season, anyway, and it gave them a way to accelerate the development of Tomlinson, Hill and R.J. McIntosh.Kurt Kampp asks: In your opinion is the following a reality. Raiders trade Derek Carr to the Jaguars and then draft Kyler Murray with there 4th pick. This should leave Dwayne Haskins for Giants to pick.Ed says: When it comes to Jon Gruden and quarterbacks, just about anything is realistic. This “could” happen. I don’t believe it will happen. I continue to believe someone will jump the Giants at No. 6 — whether it’s the Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, Denver Broncos or someone else I don’t know — to draft Haskins. I just don’t believe he will be available to the Giants at No. 6.Ed says: It is simply impossible to put quarterback of the future and free agency aside when figuring out an offseason plan for the Giants. Can’t be done. What happens in those two areas are critical components of how the Giants approach the draft. I get a lot of questions about “in this scenario” or “if this, this and this happen should the Giants do this?” They give me a headache.The Giants need to have a plan beyond Eli Manning. Do they have to replace him or absolutely have to draft a quarterback in Round 1? No. If there is a guy they believe in, sure, take him. But, don’t do it just to take a quarterback. They need to address the offensive line. They need to add defensive talent across the board. In what order? Does it really matter as long ads they get good players?Never, never, never, never absolutely commit to taking a certain position in a certain round. GM Dave Gettleman referenced avoiding that trap in his post-season press conference and he is absolutely right. You have to see how free agency turns out, who is on the board when it’s your turn Phil McConkey Color Rush Jersey , etc. It’s all related. You have an idea what you would like to address, and when the value meets the need you pounce.You take the player you believe will have the biggest impact on your team, whatever the position.Ed says: I don’t know if you can mold a player entering his fourth season in the league, but to me Donte Fowler is the type of player the Giants should be pursuing. He will only be 25, plays a position where the Giants can use the help, has been pretty productive and yet does not appear to have played his best football yet. So, yes, pursuing Fowler makes sense to me.Ed says: I’m not going to lie and say I’ve studied this kid in depth, because I haven’t. The little that I do know at this point would make him seem like a good fit for the Giants. As you indicate, though, the question will be whether he is on the board for the Giants and whetherthey believe he is the right value at the right time.