New York Giants

Giants not afraid to start rookie safety Landon Collins now

Published May. 4, 2015 9:28 a.m. ET

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The New York Giants entered the 2015 NFL Draft in a precarious spot at the safety position. Their top three safeties from the 2014 season were no longer on the roster, and the only free agent they added to potentially replace them was Indianapolis Colts castoff Josh Gordy. They needed safeties and the safety class was one of the weakest overall of any position in this draft.

The Giants got aggressive. When Alabama safety Landon Collins, who was projected to be drafted in round one, was still available heading into day two, the team pounced. Even after trading three draft selections to land Collins, some analysts haver termed him as an in-the-box safety who struggles in coverage. A safety with that profile could struggle to earn playing time as a rookie.

Giants general manager Jerry Reese made it clear that won't be the case.

"He'll come right in and compete for a job at that position," Reese told reporters in New Jersey.

Reese admitted that the Giants saw the safety with a different profile than some media members have casted on him. Instead of being pigeon-holed into one type of player, part of the reason why the Giants were so high on Collins was because of his versatility.

"He played a lot of positions for them," Reese said. "They asked him to do a lot at Alabama. We always like guys that have a lot of versatility like that, and he's played at a very high level of competition. He was very productive for them. We think he can play on the back end, and we think he can play in the box. We think he can play like a sub-linebacker, also as a special teams player."

Reese painted a picture of Collins that harps on his ability to be the utility defensive back that Antrel Rolle was for so many seasons with the Giants. Rolle was tasked with playing the deep half of the field, coming up in the box and he even operated as the Giants' slot cornerback for the majority of one season.

The Giants have a recent track record of bringing non-first round rookies along slowly, but one can argue that they haven't found a talent like Collins in the second round in many seasons. With this second round selection, it sounds like things will be different.

"A lot of rookies do compete for starting jobs every year," Reese said. "There are rookies that come in and play all over the National Football League at different positions, so why not him? He played at a very, very high level of competition. He's smart. He can run. He's tough. There's no reason why he shouldn't come in and compete."

With 173 recorded tackles and five interceptions over his final two seasons at Alabama, you can expect to see Collins around the football quite often if he wins one of the Giants' starting safety spots.

(h/t Alabama)

Photo Credit: Daniel Shirley/USA TODAY Sports