NFL Draft: Giants' 10th pick has had quite the journey — from Odell Beckham Jr. to Francis Mauigoa

Players selected in the NFL Draft often reflect on their journey to this point. Francis Mauigoa undoubtedly has one, and there will be time to explore that. But the pick that brought him to the Giants has a story to tell too, and now the offensive lineman from the University of Miami who will likely begin his pro career as a starting guard is a part of its tale.

Like a coin that makes its way through history in the pockets of strangers to find its destiny, this pick wound up, ironically, right back where it started after a dozen years of use: In the hands of the Giants. It almost feels fated that on Thursday night, five picks after selecting linebacker Arvell Reese at No. 5 overall, new head coach John Harbaugh used it to make one of the key decisions of his early tenure with the team, a “Call it, friend-o” moment that may help define the coming era for the franchise.

The legacy of Thursday night’s 10th overall pick reaches back more than a decade where it began as the 12th pick in 2014. The Giants were on the clock and they could have gone in any number of directions. Future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald was still on the board and he could have become the centerpiece for their defense. Another player who will one day wear a gold jacket, guard Zack Martin from Notre Dame, was in the team’s sights and there were those in the building who wanted him badly. How different would the past 12 mostly miserable seasons of Giants football have felt if their offensive line had been reinforced at that moment?

The Giants wound up taking Odell Beckham Jr., and as he blossomed into a one-hand-catch phenom and the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, it was hard to argue they had made a wrong turn.

Things swiftly started to grow unsteady, however. The Giants weren’t quite prepared for all that came with their first superstar of the virtual era, Beckham suffered from injuries and missteps that included social media posts, ill-advised interviews and, of course, boat parties. By 2019 the player and the team were ready for a divorce. Beckham was traded to the Browns and the Giants received, among other pieces, the 17th overall pick in the upcoming draft.

A few months after acquiring that asset, the Giants used it to take Dexter Lawrence. It was a selection that was a bit overshadowed because the Giants had picked quarterback Daniel Jones with the sixth pick a little earlier in the evening and before the night was over they would trade back up into the first round to take cornerback DeAndre Baker at 30. Lawrence, though, turned out to be the gem of that trio. He lived up to being the player for whom the Giants traded Beckham, became one of the league’s best defensive tackles, and seemed poised to become the cornerstone of their defensive identity.

That fizzled too.

Lawrence was injured in 2024, had a subpar season in 2025, and over the last month requested a trade that was ultimately ranted. Lawrence was sent to the Bengals in a rare straight-up swap that brought the 10th overall pick to New York.

So that’s the trajectory of the pick. At least so far. Beckham to Lawrence to, now, Mauigoa.

In between saying he would “die” to protect Jaxson Dart and giving a mischievous laugh when asked about blocking for Cam Skattebo, Mauigoa added that he doesn’t feel any pressure being the player-to-be-named-shortly-later in last week’s blockbuster trade of a once popular and productive Giants player.

“Nah, I don’t really pay attention to any of that,” he said. “I’m just ready for whatever comes my way and I am really thankful for the opportunity the Giants gave me.”

That’s fine because the real onus to make everyone forget Lawrence is on Harbaugh and Joe Schoen having gotten this megamove of mountain-sized men right. After they turned in the card for Mauigoa, they were confident they had.

“To get the 10th pick in the draft and to see it play out tonight, it’s pretty clear cut it was a W for us,” Harbaugh said in his first public comments regarding the trade.

The Giants had an opportunity to do even more with that hot potato pick as they received calls with trade offers once they were on the clock.

“We were so fired up with who we got at 5, and to follow it up with ‘Sisi’ at 10, it just didn’t make sense to get cute,” Schoen said.

There is a strong chance that Beckham, now 33 and over a year removed from the NFL, will be back with the Giants soon, too. He worked out for the team earlier this week and by several accounts looked dazzling. He could be added as a free agent once the draft is completed.

That would certainly be a full-circle moment for Beckham.

And, of course, for the pick that initially brought him here as well.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.