DeVonta Smith will be a thorn in the New York Giants’ side for at least the next few years, but until the Philadelphia Eagles jumped up to No. 10 to draft the Heisman Trophy winner, he was convinced he was going to be part of Big Blue.
Appearing on Chris Long’s “Green Light” podcast, Smith said that once Carolina passed on him at No. 8 to select South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn, he thought that New York at No. 11 was going to be his landing spot.
“I thought Carolina was going to draft me,” Smith said.
“That’s who I thought. I knew of course the Giants, but it was all about, you have to get to 11. I knew if I was there at 11, I was for sure going to the Giants.”
Of course, that’s not what happened. Denver selected CB Patrick Surtain II at No. 9, and with Dallas on the clock at No. 10, the Eagles jumped up to select Smith and potentially steal him from the G-Men.
“I was shocked that they had traded up for me. I was really like, if they traded up for me, then they see something that they like, and it’s a blessing,” Smith said to the media after the initial selection. “Them moving up means that they see something in me that they want, and I’m excited for it.”
According to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, one SEC defensive coordinator said that “The Giants wanted DeVonta bad” and were “pretty livid when Philly moved in front of them,” and Big Blue ended up trading back from No. 11 to No. 20 and getting a similar player in Florida’s Kadarius Toney.
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