Giants lose to Raiders, take over 2nd overall pick from 49ers

The New York Giants lost to the Oakland Raiders on Sunday, 24-17, and thus take over control of the second overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.

The San Francisco 49ers beat the Chicago Bears, also on Sunday, moving to 2-10 on the season. They also have a strength of schedule of .530, which is higher than that of the Giants, who have the same winning percentage after losing to the Raiders on Sunday.

Therefore, the Giants now own the second overall pick that the 49ers have held onto for much of the season. Of course, the Cleveland Browns lost again on Sunday, which isn’t surprising, and so still have the first overall pick with a winless 0-12 record.

The 49ers and Giants played each other earlier in the year, a game that the 49ers won, perhaps to their detriment, given the recent turn of events. That said, the head-to-head isn’t a factor in the tiebreak. It’s all about strength of schedule, which means there is still time for the 49ers to claim the second or even first overall pick if things swing the right way.

But for now, the Giants look bad enough to hang onto the second pick. Geno Smith wasn’t egregiously bad since the team benched Eli Manning, but he wasn’t anything great either. It was a lateral move at best and Smith will come crashing down to Earth soon at worst.