New York Giants' Joe Schoen praises Jeremiyah Love: 'Not just a running back'

The New York Giants didn't value running backs very highly two offseasons ago when they let Saquon Barkley walk down the New Jersey Turnpike to the hated Philadelphia Eagles.

Barkley led the Eagles to a Super Bowl victory, while the Giants chose to rebuild their roster. The Giants felt Barkley was more of a finishing piece than a building block.

General manager Joe Schoen believes the roster is built up enough to start thinking more highly of running backs in the 2026 NFL draft. The Giants hold the fifth overall pick in next week's draft and could be faced with the prospect of selecting Notre Dame's Jeremiyah Love, an explosive player who has been compared to Detroit's Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson of Atlanta.

"He's an offensive weapon. He's not just a running back," Schoen told reporters in his pre-draft press conference on Tuesday afternoon. "He can play on third-down. You can split him out. He can catch the ball. Certainly an offensive weapon."

What's changed in two years to make Schoen more comfortable in investing in a running back so high now? Quite a bit, he said.

"I would say we're in a different place. We have a quarterback on a rookie deal," Schoen said, referring to second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart. "At that time, our offensive line was different. We didn't have Jermaine Eluemunor, we didn't have Jon Runyan, we didn't have Brian Burns, we didn't have Malik Nabers, so the roster was different, and there's a time and a place to -- in terms of the roster construction."

True. The Giants are also under new management under head coach John Harbaugh, who many believe can turn this team around this year.

Still, Love aside, Schoen is happy with the construction of the current running back room.

"We like our running back room now. (Cam Skattebo) had a really good rookie year. Tyrone Tracy has been a 1,000-yard all-purpose guy the last two years," he said. "Devin (Singletary) is back. Turbo (Dante Miller) and Eric Gray are coming off the injuries. We'll see what happens on draft night. But like the room the way it's constructed right now."

But in the end, the Giants will go with the best player available, and Love fits that bill.

However, it all may be moot. The Giants may not get a shot at Love with the Tennessee Titans drafting directly in front of them. Love has been mocked to the Titans at No. 4 overall more than any other player this offseason.

This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Giants' Joe Schoen praises Jeremiyah Love: 'Not just a running back'