INDIANAPOLIS -- The fourth pick in this year's NFL draft can be had for the right price. The New York Giants are "open for business," according to general manager Dave Gettleman.
The Giants join the Detroit Lions, who pick third overall in this April's draft, as teams willing to at least listen to offers. Lions general manager Bob Quinn recently said he would be "open to any trades."
The Lions and Giants appear to be in the sweet spot if the draft plays out as expected at the top and quarterback-needy clubs fall in love with Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa or Oregon's Justin Herbert. That would make the third and/or fourth picks especially valuable.
"Absolutely we're open for business," Gettleman said on Tuesday at the NFL combine. "Again, whatever we do is going to be in our best interest. Trading back has its danger. What happens if ... we're at four. Let's say we trade back to eight. There are only four players that we like. What if they're all gone? Now what are you going to do? Trade back again? You can trade yourself back out of good players.
"But, to answer your question, we're open."
It's unlikely to play out that way. This is considered a rather strong draft. There shouldn't be a shortage of upper-echelon players for the first round; wide receiver, quarterback and offensive line are considered some of the stronger positions.
Trading back later into the top 10 with a team that needs a quarterback shouldn't prevent the Giants from getting a good player.
"There are a lot of high-graded players," Gettleman said. "I'll tell you that right up front. I'm excited to see where the board ends up. It's a pretty strong draft. It really is."
Making this type of move would be out of character for Gettleman. He has never traded back in any draft as a general manager.
He claims it's not that he is philosophically opposed. It's just the way things have worked out in his first seven drafts as the ultimate decision-maker.
"I've tried to trade back as the general manager," Gettleman said. "The value wasn't there. There was a player we really liked."
Trading down is also rare for the Giants. Per ESPN Stats and Information research, the only time the Giants have traded down in the first round in the common draft era (since 1967) was in 2006, when they sent the 25th pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers (who selected receiver Santonio Holmes) in return for the 32nd pick (the Giants selected Mathias Kiwanuka) and two additional picks in the third and fourth rounds.
But this year might be the perfect setup. The Giants drafted a quarterback last year with the No. 6 overall pick. Even though Gettleman and coach Joe Judge wouldn't actually say on Tuesday that Daniel Jones is their unequivocal starter and franchise quarterback, Jones showed enough during his rookie season that people within the Giants organization are confident he is their guy.
Gettleman admitted it's more likely a trade back could work in this scenario. His ears are perked.
The Giants will still be evaluating quarterbacks. They will be paying particularly close attention to the health of Tagovailoa, as they know it could greatly affect the draft.
Judge is on board with the open-minded approach the Giants appear to be taking.
"Everything is on the table as far as options," he said. "We'll listen to everybody."