Giants take Georgia offensive tackle Andrew Thomas with No. 4 overall pick in NFL Draft

A year after selecting Daniel Jones as their quarterback of the future, the Giants selected his bodyguard of the present.

With the fourth overall pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday night, they chose Georgia offensive tackle Andrew Thomas, who they hope will allow their young quarterback and the entire offense to flourish.

“I’ve always kind of gotten a chuckle out of people who say you draft a quarterback and then have to draft him weapons,” general manager Dave Gettleman said after making the selection. “No. After you draft a quarterback, you have to draft people who can help him stay upright.”

Thomas should be able to do that, having gone up against some of the premier edge rushers in the nation as a three-year starter in the SEC. In fact, Gettleman said, it was the scouting of those edge rushers and watching their film where Thomas truly stood out. Gettleman said he even went back to last year’s film to watch him against former Kentucky edge rusher Josh Allen . . . the very player Gettleman passed on to select Jones. It was that film that convinced Gettleman that Thomas was his guy.

“He’s big, he’s long, he’s strong, he can bend, he can anchor in pass protection and is very athletic in the open field,” Gettleman said.

“I think this is a tremendous move to help Daniel play more confidently,” coach Joe Judge said. “He can sit back there and be more protected . . . We’ve got to add to our run blocking as well.’’

It is the fourth straight year the Giants used their top pick in the draft for an offensive player. They have drafted offense first in eight of the last nine drafts. Three of those nine picks were spent on tackles, with the Giants selecting Justin Pugh in 2013 and Ereck Flowers in 2015.

It may have been the most predictable pick of Gettleman’s career. Despite stating the Giants’ desire to trade back, he continued his streak of never doing so.

“We had conversations, but everybody was touchy-feely,” he said. “There were no firm offers anywhere. There was nothing that made me look at [co-owner] John Mara and Joe and say, ‘Let’s trade back and get some more picks.’ ”

And despite having the opportunity to select a defensive game-changer who plays off the ball in Isaiah Simmons, Gettleman selected one of the hog mollies he has long coveted.

“We’re just really excited to have him and to continue to build this team properly,” he said. “We want to fix this offensive line once and for all.”

After the first three picks went according to chalk, with Joe Burrow, Chase Young and Jeff Okudah off the board, the Giants had their choice of every offensive tackle available. There were plenty of them, too. Alabama’s Jedrick Wills Jr., Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs and Louisville’s Mekhi Becton were considered among the top four prospects along with Thomas. The Jets selected Becton with the 11th overall pick.

What set Thomas apart from the crowd for the Giants? “The length that he has really is a defining feature of him physically,” Gettleman said. “You turn around and you see the guys who are shorter people, and the defensive ends with long arms get them.”

Thomas said after his selection that it was important to him that he be the first lineman selected. “I don’t understand why you would play this game and not want to be the best,” he said.

It’s unclear where Thomas will line up if and when the 2020 season begins. Nate Solder has been the left tackle for the last two seasons, but he struggled in 2019. The Giants could move Solder to the right side and install Thomas at left tackle. They also could put Thomas at the sometimes less challenging right tackle spot to begin his career and move him to the left side later.

“He had legitimate experience at both sides [in college],'' Gettleman said. Judge added that all of the tackles on the roster will compete and have the ability to play either side. “Training camp will really sort out how they fall,” he said. “He’ll compete on both sides, as will all of our tackles.”

Thomas certainly will have plenty of veteran help surrounding him both in terms of teammates such as Solder and newly signed veteran tackle Cam Fleming but also offensive coordinator Jason Garrett and offensive line coach Marc Colombo, who played the position in the NFL and was a coach for one of the league’s top offensive lines in Dallas.

Ultimately, though, Thomas was not drafted to receive help. He was drafted to provide it to Jones and Saquon Barkley, the Giants’ two first picks in the two years that preceded him.

“I’ll do my best to protect the quarterback and open up lanes,” Thomas said. “It’s a blessing to be able to play with guys who are as talented as they are.”

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.