The San Francisco 49ers competition for the No. 2 overall draft pick just got a little more difficult! The 49ers hold a one-game lead on the New York Giants for the pick, but the Giants aren’t throwing in the towel. The team announced on Tuesday that Geno Smith will start on Sunday against the Oakland Raiders.
Eli Manning has started 210 consecutive games, which is the second longest streak in NFL history. However, the Giants are officially into the rebuilding process and need to figure out what their younger options can do. The Giants drafted Davis Webb this year, and head coach Ben McAdoo said the team will give him some looks this year as well.
The Giants have five games left to assess some of their options moving forward. It seems likely that Eli Manning could be down with the Giants if they do decide to make a serious long-term move. If they don’t get much out of Smith and Webb these final five games, they become a strong candidate for a quarterback in the 2018 NFL Draft.