The New York Giants hold the No. 5 and No. 7 overall picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, putting them in play for Oregon pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux — should he slide to the bottom of the top five. One of the best pass rushers — and players — in this draft class, Thibodeaux is the pass rushing prospect teams are salivating over this draft season.
New York is interested in Thibodeaux if he happens to slip to the No. 5 pick. The feeling appears mutual after Thibodeaux explained his “great interview” with the team on Thursday.
“They were kind of on me, they were giving me a hard time,” Thibodeaux said at the NFL Scouting Combine Friday, via Zack Rosenblatt of NJ.com. “But I feel like it was like that big brother moment where they give you a hard time because they’re really interested in you and they like you. So for me, just showing them that I’m really a guy — I grew up in a big city so a big city is nothing new to me, right?”
Born in South Los Angeles, Thibodeaux has been in the spotlight since his high school days as a top prospect, even winning USA Today High School Football Defensive Player of The Year his senior season. Thibodeaux is one of the top pass-rushers in the draft, ranking first overall by CBS Sports. In his redshirt sophomore season at Oregon, Thibodeaux recorded 50 tackles (13 for loss), seven sacks, and two forced fumbles in 11 games.
Thibodeaux finished his career with 126 tackles, 19 sacks, 35.5 tackles for loss, seven passes defensed, and three forced fumbles — the highest-ranked recruit to commit to Oregon in its history of the football program. His 34.5 career tackles for loss are fifth-most among active Power Five conference players since the start of 2019 (Thibodeaux’s freshman season).
If anyone can handle the bright lights of New York, it’s Thibodeaux.
“I’m not really worried because whatever happens between the four walls of the team and the organization is what’s going to dictate the future,” Thibodeaux said. “And if I have five bad games, we’re going to focus on that next week and how we’re going to dominate the team that’s next.”
